Description for West Kaunala Pupukea
The West Kaunala Pupukea is a great North Shore trail, it can be a little hard to find, (some locals call it Combodia Trail so if you ask directions that may help). Basically from Hwy 83 turn inland at the Foodland grocery store onto Pupukea Road, follow it up the hill until you reach a bright yellow fence, to the left you will see a boy scout camp, straight ahead you will see the trailhead, follow the road to another yellow fence, hop over it and you are on your way to the ride. The road will lead you towards the singletrack which is about .5 miles in, on your left.
The ride winds through a lush tropical jungle setting, with unique plant life and tons of root systems that up the technical factor a bit. There are a few creek crossings and several areas with exposed cliff faces, so if you are good bike handling skills are a must through those sections. If you have a less experienced rider in your group, have them walk those sections.
There is something for everyone on this ride, beginners will enjoy the access road part of the trail, intermediate riders will be challenged and may have to dismount on the more technical parts of the trail and more advanced riders will enjoy the steep downhills and even a gap jump that someone built up on one of the offshoot trails. In all there is about 5 miles of trail if you do the loop. Some of the offshoots have some fun sections but a lot of the side trails are just paths created by hunters. Try to talk one of the locals into showing you around, there is some amazing stuff you probably would not find on your own.
The ride is a combination of a fireroad and singletrack, the singletrack turns to unridable red mud during and after hard rains but it is rideable after a day or so of dry weather, so on wet days stick to the fireroad or search out another place to ride.
Caution, this area is shared with hunters and used for military exercises during the week, so be aware of your surroundings and exercise safety when traversing the trail system.
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