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Loryn Kanemaru

Occasional adventurer

The Sibley Volcanic Regional Preserve is a wonderful, dog-friendly park with beautiful views of the bay. A large portion of the park is off-leash for dogs as long as they respond to voice commands. The labyrinths, however, are underwhelming. That said, it seems like they have been rearranged or dismantled based on the pictures. The trip to the labyrinths is a little convoluted, but the hike is not that difficult. Take a look at the preserve map in the description and park at the Sibley Staging Area. You can take the trail on either side of the visitor's center because they meet back up. When the path splits up, take the middle trail—the left leads to the Sibley Backpack Camp and the right leads to the EBMUD water tank. Continue down the trail until it splits again and turn left—the right continues the Round Top Loop Trail. When the trail splits again, take the Volcanic Trail. Continue down the trail a bit until you see the self-guided tour stop #6 and keep your eye out on the right—the labyrinth is in a small valley.

This park is really beautiful and located in a less traveled area on Maui. While it takes about 2 hours to get to this beach by car, it looked like Roberts Hawaii was also bussing people out there so it is not as unvisited as it once was. Once you arrive at the park, there are tons of activities. The black sand beaches are beautiful and there are several trails that will take you and away from the crowds. Waianapanapa is a nice place to wander around and relax.

This is an awesome sunrise hike in the Kailua area. If you search Google Maps for "Pillbox Hike," it takes you to the trailhead on The Outbound. There is no parking lot at the trailhead, so you have to park in one of the surrounding neighborhoods. Once you've parked, the trailhead is pretty well marked and is past the entrance to the Mid Pacific Country Club. The hike to the first pillbox is moderate as you gain elevation and need to make your way up an incline filled with rocks and tree roots. Once you make it to the first pillbox, the hike is much easier and very much like a leisurely stroll to the second pillbox and beyond. If you want to do this hike for sunrise, be sure to leave a little early so you can get a seat on one of the pillboxes. Otherwise, you will need to watch the sunrise from somewhere on the trail. Either way, the sunrise is amazing and you should have a great view of the Mokulua Islands and beyond. I did not do it, but the chatter on the trail seemed to indicate that you could make this hike a loop by continuing on the trail and walking along the road it drop you on to back to the trailhead.

My friends and I did this hike mid-February and it was muddy to say the least. We did not have issues with the sun or bugs though, so that was a plus. While the hike was short, I would not necessarily say that it was that easy because of all of the slipping and sliding. There are a couple steep inclines that were a little more difficult with the mud, but the rest of the trail has pretty gradual inclines. The view at the end of the trail is by and far the best part. Sitting on the bunker at the end of the trail with a snack is highly recommended. Even when the visibility is not that great, you can still see Kaneohe Bay and all of the little patch reefs—the different colored circles in the water—below. Parking seems easiest near the McDonalds just down the street from the trailhead. If you park there, it is a short walk to the trailhead.