A guided mountain bike tour is your ticket to Oahu's scenic backcountry. A clean air ride, you'll be pedaling a vehicle that doesn't spew harmful carbon emissions in its wake and provides a good physical workout to boot. Bike Hawaii offers tours that travel into deep valleys, over mountains, to waterfalls and sometimes combine biking with hiking, sailing and snorkeling.
The lush, 1,000-acre Ka'a'awa Valley, on Oahu's northeast shore, offers a multitude of trails to choose from with stops at a reconstructed Hawaiian house, a taro terrace and an old military bunker that has been converted into a movie museum for films shot in this historic valley.
For a sense of old Hawaii, take a guided tour through the Kualoa Valley, one of the most historically significant places on Oahu. This tour combines biking with kayaking and snorkeling. You'll kayak past Mokoli'i Island (Chinaman's Hat) to an 800-year-old fishpond, the largest ancient Hawaiian fishpond in the state.
A less demanding tour begins in the Pu'u 'Ohia rainforest where riders will coast five miles downhill past tropical scenery with distant views of Honolulu.
A guided hiking tour to a private, 200-foot waterfall is another Bike Hawaii option. The two-mile, round-trip hike moves along a tropical stream where Hawaiians once cultivated taro. The company also offers tours that end with sailing and snorkeling off the Diamond Head coastline.
Bike Hawaii provides Kona mountain bikes w/front suspension and disc brakes.
If you plan to rent or borrow a bike and set out on your own, here are a few scenic suggestions:
Diamond Head: Ride past Kapi'olani Park around the famous Le'ahi Crater (Diamond Head) and then down Kalaniana'ole Highway toward Hanauma Bay.
Ka'ena Point State Park: Around the northwestern point of Oahu runs a rough dirt road linking the island's north and west shores. The sand dunes out on the point shelter federally protected plants and birds, so keep in mind that bikes are allowed only on the main trail. The trail, five miles one way, is fairly flat and suitable for beginning to advanced riders. Take Farrington Highway west to Mokule'ia, pass Dillingham Airfield, and park at the end of the paved road.
Makapu'u Lighthouse Road: A paved but challenging incline to the top
of Makapu'u Point, where you'll enjoy an excellent view. Go east past Sandy Beach Park on Kalaniana'ole Highway. Park along the road just beyond the Hawaii Kai golf course.
