Hi, I’m visiting friends in Honolulu and happen to have my muni and trials uni with me. If you wanna go on a ride this weekend or any time before next Wed, give me a call or pm.
My friends are letting me borrow a truck, so I have transportation.
There have to be some good trails around here somewhere!
-Noli
(206)484-5823
Noli, check out this old thread. There is some good into toward the bottom. Plus PM critter if he doesn’t see this thread.
TB
Thanks Tom!
I went to 5 bike shops today with no luck. One, The Bike Factory, even had a 20" Torker DX in stock but nobody at the shop was a rider.
The uni guy at The Bike Shop no longer works there (and hasn’t for a few years). I couldn’t get any help on unicycling from that place or The Bike Factory or the shop right next to it or McCully Bike or Momentum Multisport.
None of the shop seemed to have riders working there. The Bike Factory is the only place that even had a mountain bike guide book.
I know of the St. Louis Heights downhill trail and this trail ( http://trails.mtbr.com/cat/united-states-trails/trails-hawaii/trail/PRD_167693_4543crx.aspx ) looked pretty good. I’ll report back if i manage to ride them.
How did your O’ahu muni experience turn out, Tom?
I ended up doing a little riding near the hotel I was at, but it was otherwise a bust. Wife ended up not being great with concept of flying to Hawaii for family vacation, then abandoning Lotion Boy duties to go off riding.
Send me an email, and I can give you the email address I have for Critter. He posts here every once in a while, but obviously hasn’t seen this thread or is out of town.
I actually PMed Critter, and he called me today. We’re going to ride St. Louis Heights tomorrow. But thanks for the help!
Do you remember what trail is in the pictures?
Another great ride at St Louis Hts. (John Foss took couple pics from there.) Tomorrow we’re set for Aiea Loop.
It’s great to have guest riders come to town. Tanx Noli
Noli took some pics.
Well, 1 week in Honolulu, 3 muni rides, 3 trails, 3 videos - 3 weeks later.
Since I had a tough time finding trail info even after going to 5 bike shops, I figured I’d do future O’ahu muni riders a service and write up trail descriptions. Also, if you’re visiting O’ahu, contact Critter. He appears to be the only current muni enthusiast on the island, and he’s getting lonely since all his buddies left for the mainland.
Videos
Kuli’ou’ou Ridge trails: http://vimeo.com/6753890
St. Loius Heights trail: http://vimeo.com/6737276
Aiae Loop trail: http://vimeo.com/6738542
This post has got me thinking. Someone should really make a wiki website reviewing trails for muni all over the world (since mountain bike reviews aren’t always terribly relevant).
2009.09.05
I rode the Kuli’ou’ou Ridge Trail today (link below). Well, hiked 2.5 miles up I-don’t-know-how-many-thousand vertical feet then rode most of the way down.
Note of Caution: This is a hiking trail! Even if it’s listed in mountain bike guides, it was not designed as a bike trail, so many sections are either very difficult or impossible to pass on wheel(s).
Difficulty: Intermediate to Extremely Difficult (if you choose to ride instead of hike some sections)
Summary: Beginning: VERY steep and technical, roots abound; Middle: wide, rolling terrain; End: very tight, mixed rolling/steep declines with rock garden after rock garden
Description: Since it was a hike-up/ride-down trail, when I say “beginning” I mean “near the top” and “end”=“bottom”. The hike up uses A LOT of energy, and I recommend leaving the unicycle in the ferns to climb the final stairs to the lookout point (which is definitely worth it). The ride down: It starts on a small ridge with very steep drop-offs on each side, some technical, tight, steep descents and some flat areas. The most I fell down the side of the ridge was probably 15 feet down the side because the ferns break your fall and catch you pretty well.
The middle part was almost relaxing with either really wide trail or flat terrain. Ironwood needles abound and make for soft UPD landings.
The last section was tight switchbacks on super narrow trail with lots of vesicular basalt poking out of the ground. Watch out because the basalt weathers to pretty much the same color as the dirt.
Wrap Up: A nice hike with lots of variety that pays off as a challenging downhill ride. Take breaks and BRING WATER! By the middle of the ride, I was suffering from heat exhaustion and ran out of water. The rest of the trail wasn’t nearly as fun as it should have been. I ended up having to “take it easy” at the end where it started getting difficult again.
http://trails.mtbr.com/cat/united-states-trails/trails-hawaii/trail/PRD_167693_4543crx.aspx
2009.09.07
St. Louis Heights Trail (link below). Critter and i each had a vehicle, so we shuttled.
Note of Caution: This is downhill biking trail. Bikers can get going pretty fast, so watch out.
Difficulty: Intermediate to Difficult (depending on whether you walk some sections)
Summary: Goes from easy shallow-grade, dirt paths with the occasional root section to steep, technical downhill littered with rocks or straight up massive rock-gardens. Rideable even if moderately wet. Many points with nice views of Waikiki and the UH campus.
Description: The beginning has a few tricky root sections, but they can almost all be avoided. Otherwise, gently rolling downhill terrain.
The middle gets tighter as you enter the forest. Rocks start to show up, some big.
The last section leaves the forest and is definitely the toughest part. It gets steep fast, and the environment totally changes. Rocks abound, big/small, fixed/loose. There were a few sections here where i could be caught having said a cuss.
Wrap Up: A fun downhill trail which also happens to be the closest to Waikiki and UH. You can even take a bus from the bottom to the top. Overall, the first 2/3 is pretty easy (I managed to do a lot of filming-while-riding), and even though it can get super technical near the end, the trail is only about 2 miles long. I only went through 1 L of water and didn’t feel like dying at the end (as with Kuli’ou’ou). Bring a camera for all the panoramic views of UH and Waikiki.
http://trails.mtbr.com/cat/united-states-trails/trails-hawaii/trail/PRD_167703_4543crx.aspx
2009.09.08
Aiae Loop Trail (link below). Critter and i parked at the second parking lot and hiked up to the trail head.
Note of Caution: VERY difficult when wet. This kind of clay doesn’t absorb water, so instead of the occasional bogs most of us are used to, the entire trail surface just becomes a slick film.
Difficulty: Intermediate to Difficult (depending on whether you hike some sections)
Summary: Loop trail almost entirely in tropical forest. Occasional look-out points give nice views of Pearl Harbor/downtown and a couple of valleys.
Description: We took the loop clockwise, hiking up to the highest point first. Starting from this point, the roots here are the most ridiculous i have EVER seen. Much of the beginning section would be rideable on dryer days, but we decided to hike up to the highest point to conserve energy. After this, there’s a good stretch of downhill before it starts rolling again. The trail starts getting REALLY narrow with drop-offs on the side. My muni rolled down about 30 feet during one lazy dismount, and there was VERY little traction on the climb back up.
The middle is by far the easiest part. Expect to get some rest as the trail becomes flatter and wider for long stretches.
The last section starts to climb again as you head towards the parking lot. This is the most unrideable section of the trail going up OR down. Narrow, overgrown, and super technical. If you want a challenge, here it is.
Wrap Up: This is Critter’s favorite trail on O’ahu. I wasn’t convinced at first but started to see why as we made our way through. Definitely the trail with the most ‘tropical’ feel. Whichever direction you take the loop, expect to hike at least a third of the way. As mentioned about the water, be wary if it’s rained recently. Since most of it is densely forested, even a full day of sunshine after a rain won’t remove half of the water.
http://trails.mtbr.com/cat/united-states-trails/trails-hawaii/trail/PRD_167685_4543crx.aspx
Btw John, judging from the pictures, Critter took you on the St. Louis Heights trail.
Hello,
thanks for the nice video’s, they are great, really liked to watch 'em.
May i ask what kind of belt you’re wearing while Muni? Looks pretty nice and handy. I would be happy to exchange my backpack with a kind of your belt while riding :D.
Cheers
Shasaar
Thanks for calling it a “belt” and not a “fanny pack”! (I totally thought fanny pack whenever i first saw it . . .)
I really hate wearing backpacks while riding, too, but you can only carry so much water in the back of a cycling jersey. That and tools and spares aren’t as secure.
This pack is really awesome in having two giant, adjustable, and secure water bottle holders, a large pouch in the middle, and smaller pouches on the sides good for quick access to multi-tools, keys, and such.
The only logo it has on it says “ULTIMATE TORSOPACS”. I meant to look them up online, but didn’t because I liked the pack so much, my friends just lent it to me on indefinite loan.
If you find any info on them, could you post it here?
WOW! Nice write up Noli. Great start on a world muni guide.
‘‘Muni Riders favorite rides from around the world.’’ hmmmm
I don’t care if you tell everybody about my favorite trails because muni riders are an eclectic bunch. Also muni riders are the coolest. 
I can’t frigging wait to get there. :D:D
6(ish) weeks to go and I still have oh so much to do. . .
Hello,
the manufacturer of your belt seems to be Ultimate Direction (www.ultimatedirection.com).
They got pretty nice stuff there but sadly, they dont have a shop online and none of the linked shops offers worldwide shipping.
So i’ll have to look in the nearby stores for such a kind of belt.
Thanks.
Shasaar
@ Peripatet
These may be late, but here are some photos to further entice you:
http://picasaweb.google.com/thenoli/OAhuMuni#
Only a week to go?
Here are my shots from what was definitely the St. Louis Heights trail (Feb. 2006). I hope to get a chance to ride that Aiae Loop trail someday!
Those are great. Just the thing to pep me up and get me moving. Being trapped in this prison of moving boxes is getting old.
10 days left. . .
Aiea
thanx John, I forgot what a goof ball I am.
All muni riders welcome!