Government officials have closed off all access to the Haʻikū Stairs, or Stairway to Heaven hike, during its demolition.
The state Department of Land and Natural Resources and the City and County of Honolulu have closed the entire Moanalua section of the Honolulu Watershed Forest Reserve and the Moanalua Valley Neighborhood Park.
Access via the Moanalua Valley Trail has been named the "backway" to the famous stair hike, due to its unregulated access points and overall difficulty compared to the easier front access within the Haʻikū neighborhood.
DLNR had previously closed the Middle Ridge hike, used to access the stairs from Moanalua Valley.
Removal of steps of the popular, but illegal, Stairway to Heaven hike started in April, but many hikers have ignored the partial closure.
The Honolulu Police Department and DLNR Division of Conservation and Resources Enforcement have issued dozens of citations over the past two months.
Military police at Tripler Army Medical Center are also watching the area.
“Having people on the trails or in the area during this demolition project is extremely unsafe, thus the full closure is necessary, to protect public safety and our natural resources,” DLNR chair Dawn Chang said in a statement.
The stairs were originally built in 1942 to provide access to a military radio station during World War II. Hikers were allowed to legally use the stairs until 1987, when the U.S. Coast Guard closed access due to vandalism.
Decades of debate have surrounded the removal of the stairs, heightened by neighborhood complaints of trespassing and noise.
