Ranch Wall

Ranch Wall. Haleakala National Park. This ranch wall stacked stone by stone in the late 1800s, represents an investment in the land. Stretching for two miles, it guided cattle through the harsh landscape of Haleakala to pasture lands on the east and west sides of Maui. The ranching era shaped the economy and communities of Maui, which value rugged independence, self reliance, and sustainability. The paniolo (cowboy) culture still lives today on the slopes of Haleakala in neighboring ranches and communities., Cattle also had a devastating impact on native vegetation, completely destroying some native forests and dramatically reducing others. The National Park’s investment in the land includes over 30 miles of fences to protect and preserve unique species, such as “ahinanima (silversword), and subalpine scrublands. Fences exclude cattle, pigs, goat, deer, and other grazers from destroying protected land in the park, providing resource managers the opportunity to restore and revive the native landscape., By 1960 more than two million acres in Hawaii were used for cattle grazing, mostly in the cooler uplands. Whether ranch wall or park fence, boundaries delineate contracts in land use philosophies, between taming a wilderness landscape or preserving it in its original state., The trail is dangerous…when you have cattle like that, some of those sharp turns and steep banks, and it drops off and all that loose gravel…you don’t know what is going to happen. Retired ranch foreman Johnny Sakamoto, describing the cattle drive down Halemau’u Trail.