**IMPORTANT PARK NOTICES**
Monitor local surf and weather reports prior to your park visit.
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[OʻAHU] UPDATED 12/19/24 – Kaʻena Point State Park, Keawaʻula Section: Park CLOSED due to anticipated large surf on 12/20/24 through the weekend.
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[OʻAHU] UPDATED 12/16/24 – Diamond Head State Monument: Beginning January 6, 2025 to July 25, 2025, or upon completion of construction project, the park will close at 2:00 p.m. Monday – Friday, (excluding weekends and holidays) due to a construction project. The last reservation time slot for Parking and Entry and Entry Only during this time will be 12:00 p.m. If you reserved at 12:00 p.m., you must enter the Park no later than 12:30 p.m. or you will be denied entry. Please check back for updates.
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[MAUI] UPDATED 12/16/24 – Mākena State Park - Invitation For Bid For Sealed Bid Proposal To Provide A mobile Food Truck Concession At Mākena State Park on Maui. Any party that may be interested in providing a bid may inspect the concession premises by calling DSP at (808) 587-0505 or contact DLNR-Division of State Parks Property Manager, Ms. E. Keiki Kipapa, by email to [email protected] Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM Hawaii Standard Time (HST) except Federal and State Holidays. See Full IFB: https://dlnr.hawaii.gov/dsp/files/2024/12/SPM25-010A.pdf
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[OʻAHU] UPDATED 11/4/24 – Kaʻena Point State Park, Mokuleʻia Section: The 2024 Kaʻena Point permit and decal is being extended through 2025. You do not need to apply for a new permit now, you will be notified when applications open next year. Take good care of your decal, we cannot replace decals. Please remember to take rubbish bags home, do not leave it a the trash bins.
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[KAUAʻI] UPDATED 11/4/24 – Waimea Canyon State Park/Kōkeʻe State Park: Paving will take place on Waimea Canyon Road leading into Puʻu Hinahina Lookout on Wednesday, November 6 limiting vehicle access into and out of the lookout parking lot from 11:30 am to 1:00 pm. Pedestrian access will remain open, and vehicles can access the lookout before and after the closure.
Reopening of State Parks Provides Access to Famed Kalalau Trail
Posted on Jun 14, 2019REOPENING OF STATE PARKS PROVIDES ACCESS TO FAMED KALALAU TRAIL
Community Group Recognized for Stewardship & Governor Ige Makes the Hike
(Hāʻena, Kaua‘i) – The eagerly anticipated reopening of Hāʻena State Park and the Nāpali Coast State Wilderness Park on June 17, 2019, also allows for the highly anticipated reopening of the Kalalau Trail. Considered one of the most arduous and beautiful hikes in the world, the trail attracts thousands of global visitors who seek views of the spectacular Nāpali Coast, one of Hawai‘i’s most photographed and iconic vistas.
Visitors with newly instituted park entrance permits or Hawai‘i residents can make the four-mile-roundtrip jaunt to Hanakāpīʻai Stream or the eight-mile round trip up the valley to Hanakāpīʻai Falls without additional permits. Hiking beyond the two-mile mark at the stream crossing requires an overnight camping permit from the DLNR Division of State Parks. For the latest information: https://dlnr.hawaii.gov/dsp/home/haena-napali-access/
All hikers can thank the Friends of the Kalalau Trail for their devoted support in helping maintain and restore sections of the first two miles of the trail. The remaining nine miles of this challenging trail that terminates in Kalalau, has been repaired and is maintained by the Division of State Park west side field crew.
The Friends group was recently recognized with a DLNR & YOU Citizens Conservationists Award from DLNR Chair Suzanne Case. During the award presentation Case thanked group leaders for their dedication and passion, particularly over the past few months, assisting prepare trail sections for reopening. They cut back vegetation, cleared accumulated debris and restored erosion control features, and smoothed spots that were damaged in the April 2018 flooding.
The movers and shakers behind the Friends group are Mark Hubbard, Bill Newton, and Frank Whitman. A decade ago, they spearheaded a volunteer program to provide continued maintenance. Their work supplements the field crew’s efforts and is credited with helping keep the historic trail safe and readily traversable. Hubbard commented, “Beginning in February this year we tried to make twice monthly trips to get Kalalau ready for reopening. There were a lot of muddy and sloped areas since no one had been on the trail for nearly a year.
We cut back a lot of overgrown brush and vegetation and restored water diversion features to help prevent erosion.” The trio and their small cadre of regular volunteers say they not only love the area and doing work that helps others, but it’s exciting to see the fruits of their labors. Hubbard added, “It’s like wow, we can walk along this trail and see hundreds of spots that we’ve fixed and repaired, that are still solid, and you know that’s gratifying.”
Hawai‘i Governor David Ige is among those also thankful for their efforts. He and First Lady Dawn Amano-Ige hiked a short section of the Kalalau Trail on June 5th after a community blessing at Hāʻena State Park. It was the governor’s first exposure to the trail, though Mrs. Ige had hiked it as a teenager. They both marveled at the first view visitors experience from the aptly named Windy Point. They hope to return with their three children for a longer hike.
The governor reflected on the changes that are coming with the reopening of the two state parks and the Kalalau Trail. He said, “As I’ve traveled around the state, I’ve heard more and more about how much, is too much? I think everybody acknowledges that the visitor industry is our number one industry. Everybody wants to support that… but when you see these kinds of trails and Hāʻena State Park, where everyone wants to visit, clearly too many people is just not a good experience for visitors or residents.”
Friends of the Kalalau Trail DLNR & YOU Citizen Conservationists Award Presentation (June 4, 2019):
Governor and First Lady Ige’s Kalalau Hike (June 5, 2019):
HD video – Friends of the Kalalau Trail workday and SOTs (April 12, 2019):
