As the sun blistered his bare back 50 years ago, Mac Hori fixed his eyes on the rocky path he was chipping along Kaua‘i’s isolated North Shore cliffs. Seated late last week in the shade of a Niumalu park pavilion,
As the sun blistered his bare back 50 years ago, Mac Hori fixed his eyes on the rocky path he was chipping along Kaua‘i’s isolated North Shore cliffs.
Seated late last week in the shade of a Niumalu park pavilion, the now retired state park ranger recalled the long days he endured maintaining an ancient avenue that weaves 11 miles from Ke‘e Beach to Kalalau Valley.
Although he rarely considered it a job, Hori’s long career with the Hawai‘i Department of Land and Natural Resources involved far more than trail work.
Starting in the late 1960s, the 79-year-old conservationist devoted his life to preserving more than 10,000 acres that comprise Na Pali Coast and Koke‘e state parks.
Local environmentalist Gabriela Taylor and Kalalau Valley legend Bobo Hawks said they revere Hori, often urging him to impart his wisdom on current state park managers.
The three talked story recently, recounting memories and brainstorming ideas to better protect Kaua‘i’s North Shore, which draws thousands of visitors from around the globe.
“I don’t know of anyone who has taken care of the parks as well as Mac,” Hawks said. “In a rugged wilderness that could chew you up and spit you out in seconds, you could always count on him to be clear-minded and helpful — he’s like the Rock of Gibraltar.”
Keeping Na Pali Coast safe came easy for Hori.
“I just used common sense,” he said.
The ranger would scan streams for goat carcasses hunters may have abandoned, and bury any remains he found to avoid water contamination.
Sometimes after work, Hori said he would camp in Kalalau Valley among the hippie community entrenched there in the late 1960s and early 1970s.
Hawks earned recognition among locals there for swimming in and out of the valley instead of hiking.
“I realized swimming was easier and I didn’t stub my toes or sweat so much,” she said.
The 59-year-old has lived on Kaua‘i since she was 20, and did not own a pair of shoes or slippers for her first 15 years here.
Hori said he chipped out rock handholds at the “shower” — a small waterfall that cascades onto the beach at Kalalau Valley — so people would stop climbing up and unintentionally polluting the water from above.
Much of the ranger’s work has vanished, said Taylor, who has hiked Na Pali Coast Trail for the past 30 years.
The warning signs and safety ropes on steep ledges have all likely been stolen, she said.
Hawks and Hori have saved the lives of some hikers caught in flash floods or rip currents, but have also witnessed others drown or vanish out to sea.
More signage, Taylor said, would improve safety at the park and also help backpackers to more easily follow the trail and know where the toilets are.
The trick, however, will be accomplishing this in a non-intrusive way, Hawks said.
Hori underscored the need to keep the trail primitive and as natural as possible, particularly after the heavily trafficked first 2 miles.
An improved educational board at the start of the trail, Taylor said, could stress useful information such as the need to bring ample water and proper footwear.
Hawks said she has turned around on the trail many times to escort a dehydrated hiker back for help.
Hori could not recall the last time he hiked Na Pali Coast Trail, saying he wants to remember it how it was.
Hawks and Taylor assured the ranger that although the path could benefit from improved maintenance, the views of the lush stream valleys, jagged sea cliffs and secluded waterfalls remain in tact. Above all, they said, the spirits of the valley are still alive.
“Whether you’re a tourist or a transient, we’re all visitors here,” Hori said.
• Nathan Eagle, staff writer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 224) or neagle@kauaipubco.com.
