Officials said they had a hard time even finding out about the trails or knowing where they were.

that’s exactly the problem. the reason those officials’ jobs exist is to keep people safe in the park. if people get lost or hurt and officials don’t know where they might be or how to get to them, or that they even exist, then they can’t get them help. there are official channels they could have gone through to request new trails, which the park could then maintain and support, in addition to ensuring that they’re made in a way that’s minimally invasive to the environment