Trespassing on Maui
reserve is attributed
to guidebook
WAILUKU >> Some Maui residents and government officials have expressed concern about an influx of tourists that is causing problems at secluded and remote natural sites.
Frank James Oliveira, who lives at the end of an unpaved road just outside Hana, said tourists frequently trespass on his property to reach Heleileikeoha Falls. This happens even though he has posted "No Trespassing" signs, he said.
Oliveira and others attribute the increase of visitors at previously hidden sites to a guidebook called "Maui Revealed."
Marine biologist Ann Fielding says she has seen the destructive impact of visitors at the Ahihi-Kinau Natural Area Reserve since the book's first edition was published in 2000.
"Once this book came out, it was like a bomb going off," she said.
Oliveira and others say the guidebook encourages tourists to disregard "No Trespassing" signs and trample fragile resources.
The book was written by Andrew Doughty and Harriett Friedman, who explain in the preface that they came to the islands and stayed. They also have written "Revealed" books about Kauai, Maui and the Big Island. Doughty declined to comment to the Maui News.
Attorneys for Maui County, the state and Alexander & Baldwin are looking into liability issues and possible recourse. A&B is the parent company of East Maui Irrigation Co., where tourists ignore "No Trespassing" signs to reach a series of waterfalls.