Guide Blogs

It was a fun week of learning.  Thursday, Christina, Matt, and I attended the Mauna Ulu training at HVNP.  Interpreter Jay Robinson and Cultural Liason Keola Wang shared there manao of this dynamic area.  Despite all of us being intimate with the eruption site, we all learned many new insights to share with our guests.  Over the weekend, I participated in a two-day Volcano Institute seminar "Gems of Hawaiian Evolution".  Led by Rob Robichaux and Mililani...

Read More "Trainings and Workshops"

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Read More "Dis 'n Dat"

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Read More "Kohala Ditch Wormhole"

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Read More "Connections Not Lost at Ka‘ūpūlehu, Kona"

Thirteen hours, State Forest Permits, National Wildlife Refuge Permits, and keys to private property all add up to an epic day of island adventuring.  The pre-dawn to dusk day came about from a client request for a full day of private birding.  He wanted to see as many of the native birds as possible and only had one day.  A few minutes into the trip a Barn Owl flew across the road in front of us--a good birding omen. The sun was just beginning to lighten up the Hāmākua...

Read More "Hence the Vog"

There’s nothing I like more than being in the field with an expert.  So the day I recently spent with Don Swanson on Kīlauea was very enjoyable.  I was part of a small group of local residents who signed up for a seminar sponsored by the Friends of Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park (www.fhvnp.org).  Don, a volcanologist and former Scientist-in-Charge of Hawai‘i Volcano Observatory, has had an impressive career studying volcanoes.  His first stint at HVO found him on the Southwest Rift Zone in 1969 when a fissure opened up literally underfoot to herald the beginning of the Mauna Ulu eruption which lasted until 1975.  Later, he left Hawai’i and went to the Cascades and helped start the Cascades Volcano Observatory.  He was there when Mt. Saint Helens explosively erupted and lost colleagues and friends in the eruption.  He probably would have been killed himself if he didn’t have to return a friend to the airport on the day of the eruption.  Returning to HVO, he led the agency for nearly eight years and now continues his research there studying explosive eruptions.

 

Most of us don’t think of Kīlauea as an explosive volcano, but Don wants to change that perception.  Kīlauea has had roughly the same rate of explosive eruptions as Mt. Saint Helens and more people have been killed by Kīlauea explosions than any other volcano in North America according to his research.  The current eruption at Halema‘uma‘u is an explosive eruption.  It’s not nearly as violent as others, but is still producing ash, vitric, and lithic material called tephra.  The Aril 9^th explosion was powerful enough to destroy the wooden fence at the overlook and scatter debris across the caldera floor. 

 

The most famous explosive eruption of Kīlauea was the 1924 eruption.  This phreatic, or steam eruption, lasted two and a half weeks and killed one person. It sent material tens of thousands of feet into the air and deposited an eight ton rock a half mile from the crater. The greatest episode of explosions that Don revealed to us were the eruptions that occurred shortly after the formation of the present day caldera around 1400 b.p.  Probably, sometime at or near the end of the ‘Ailaau eruption (the same eruption that formed Thurston Lava Tube and lasted about 60 years) large areas of the summit collapsed forming the pit crater at Thurston, Kīlauea Iki and the caldera.  From roughly 1460 to 1790 the mountain had over ten different explosive eruptions. At a small dig near the observatory headquarters, Don let us explore the different layers representing this time frame.  The famous 1790 eruption that killed a third of Keōua’s army was actually the last eruption from this long explosive era.  These eruptions deposited 35 feet of tephra around the caldera and nearly two feet at Volcano Village.  That ash is now the substrate that allows such good agricultural production in the volcano area.

 

I once wrote that Kīlauea is a volcano with aloha.  And while most of her eruptions are lava flows that often make themselves readily available for close-up viewing, it’s best to remember that explosive eruptions are a significant part of her history.  One day in the future, we may witness an explosive event that dramatically changes the landscape of Kīlauea and brings Don Swanson’s unique perspective into the mainstream.

 

For more information on Kilauea's Explosive tendencies check out http://pubs.usgs.gov/fs/fs132-98/

With Aloha,

Rob

I spent the weekend hosting Matthew Miller, Features Editor for Islands Magazine (www.islands.com/). Saturday we spent the day with two birdwatching guests at Hakalau National Wildlife Refuge and were treated to glorious weather and cooperative birds. I found my first mixed-species feeding flock of the season allowing great views of Akepa, Hawaii Creeper, and a female Akiapolaau.  Sunday found me meeting Matthew at the crack of dawn at the Puu Huluhulu parking area—we planned to hike the summit of Mauna Loa via the Mauna Loa Observatory access Summit Trail.  After a quick bit of breakfast we drove up to the 11,300’ elevation, geared up and took off on the 12 mile, 4,000’ elevation gain/loss roundtrip.

 Hiking the summit of Mauna Loa takes it out of you in two ways.  First, six miles over rough, sharp, crack-ridden, uneven, bare lava is a perfect recipe for blisters, turned ankles, trips, and falls.  You basically need to watch every step you  make along the way.  And the miles seem much longer on the lava.  Secondly, doing a day hike up from 11,000 to 13,677 feet, after you’ve driven up from sea level, guarantees that the altitude will get you.  Headache, light-headedness, dizziness, muscle fatigue, and shortness of breath were our companions for much of the hike.  Plus, around 12,000 feet the wind shifted and brought a visible haze of vog to the summit.  Not only were we breathing about 40% less oxygen, what little air we were getting was laced with sulphur-dioxide!  Both of us were hurting pretty good by 12,500 feet. Me especially.

 We finally made the summit just at our absolute turn around time.  We averaged one mile an hour to the top—not a record pace.  As I approached the summit ahu, I thought, “This is the last time I’m doing this.”  I think I’ve said the same thing the last few times I’ve been to the summit.  Our hike down was easier but pretty tough.  Rubbery legs, a giant big-toe blister, and headache made for a brainless robotic descent.

 Despite the arduousness of the hike, it’s a trek that’s well worth it.  The challenging conditions combined with the beauty of the lava formations,  the absolute silence, and the magnificent view of Mokuaweoweo caldera make it a world-class walk.  At the summit upon first viewing the caldera Matthew declared, “You know what, I think it’s more impressive than the Grand Canyon.”  Maybe he felt that way because of the tough going getting there or the hypoxic condition of a brain at nearly 14,000 feet.  But no matter what you compare it to, standing on top of the world’s largest volcano is definitely an awe inspiring experience. Despite my summit vow, I imagine if someone asks in the future and I’ve got the time (and my big-toe blister has healed), I’ll find myself hypoxic at the edge of Mokuaweoweo atop Mauna Loa.

 If you’re interested in learning more about Mauna Loa visit this site: http://hvo.wr.usgs.gov/maunaloa/ or check out my essay on Mauna Loa here: http://www.hawaii-forest.com/natural-history/essays/1998-11.asp

 

With Aloha,

 Rob Pacheco

Aloha kakou,

 

I recently got caught up in a conversation with some visitors about traffic in Kona.  It was an interesting discussion and, like a good drive, travelled through several topics by the time we said good-bye.  I think I sold them on doing one of our Nature Adventures at least.  But the one thing that struck me later in thinking about our talk, was how much interpretation on daily life in Hawaii we do on our tours.  Our guests want to know why the traffic is so bad in Kona, is it really expensive living here, do you get island fever, how are the schools, what do you do for vacation, where’s Costco, how often do you go to other islands, the mainland, and of course, how’s the real estate market?

 

Our Interpretive Guide staff come from a diverse background and demographic make up.  And while our core topics and themes on our tours are very consistent from guide to guide, I would imagine the discussions about living in Hawaii are as diverse as our staff.  A kamaaina and “more mature” Interpretive Guide like Danny Almonte, I’m sure has a different perspective on Kona urban growth than someone like Anne Michels one of our newest and youngest guides who was raised on the mainland. 

 

I’ve been in Hawaii almost 18 years now.  When I first started HFT, I could leave my home (and at the time HFT headquarters) in Holualoa, drive down to Buns in the Sun and pick up lunches, then head back down to Keauhou and pick up guests all along Alii Drive and be at the Waikoloa resort in about an hour.  Can’t do that anymore!  But still, despite the growth and challenges that growth has brought Kona,  I can’t help but be thankful I live in this place.

 

It’s easy for us here to be frustrated by the changes happening.  But that change is happening everywhere to lesser or greater extent.  Yes, it’s expensive living here.  Yes, the traffic is a pain in the butt at times.  Yes, a gallon of milk can cost seven bucks.  And yes, people not only want to visit our home, many would also like to make it their own home.  Hawaii, like the rest of the world will get more and more crowded—people are living longer and still making babies—and this is a great place to be.  And yes, I still love my island home.

 

How do you feel and what do you think about living in Kona or Hawaii in general?  Please feel free to comment and share your perspective on Da Life in Hawaii.

 

With Aloha,

 

Rob P.

Aloha ahiahi,

I've driven Hilo to Kona over a thousand times but today was probably the
best bird run ever. This is driving straight over for a meeting, no stopping, but going as fast as the traffic allows.

I started off seeing 3 peafowl below the Makalei golf entrance. At Puu WaaWaa I saw 4 Nene flying towards Puu Anahulu and then a male Black Francolin flew across the highway.  Shortly after the Big Island Country Club entrance a small flock of African  Silverbills flew up from the fountain grass. Crossing just before the Waikoloa junction were 2 Chestnut-bellied Sandgrouse. On the Saddle Rd. between the junction and Waikii I saw several Erckel's Francolin, a few Pacific Golden Plover, 1 Ring-necked Pheasent, 6 Wild Turkey, 1 Pueo, 3 Kalij Pheasant, and several Skylarks. No new birds between Waikii and the Mauna Kea State Park, but after that I had a couple Amakihi cross over the new section in the Mamane; on the way down through the forest, slowing down for the new construction an Iiwi flew from one tree to another just before the Puu Oo Trail entrance. Farther down I saw an Apapane and finally, just above Hilo, there was an Io soaring.

Not bad for a mornings drive.

With Aloha,

Rob P.

Aloha kakou,

 

What a crazy weekend.  Friday started off with a hike with the Society of Hawaiian Archeologists to Kaawaloa. Best known as the place of Captain Cook’s Monument, Kaawaloa is also an incredibly rich resource of archeological sites, history, and marine life.  We hiked out for about 3 miles on the old Government road remnant and walked back around 2.5 miles on the Cart Road.  Both alignments included lots of rocky terrain, overgrown California grass, koa haole, and the prickly seeds of ilima.  Hot, interesting and rewarding day.

 

Saturday found me up at 3 a.m. to rendezvous with a Travel Channel film crew to watch the sunrise of Mauna Kea from the Mauna Loa Weather Observatory road vantage point.  From the hot and humid lowlands of Kona, I found myself pre-dawn in the freezing sub-alpine of Mauna Loa.  As the cameras were set up to film a time elapse of the sunlight washing across Mauna Kea, we were greeted with a view of four mouflon sheep making their early morning migration across the lava.  But even better were four Nene hunkered in the pahoehoe who slowly rose to soak up the warmth of the sun and then gracefully, one at time after being warmed up, took flight and flew off to the lower grasslands.  After an on-camera interview we then did a short forest segment at Puu Huluhulu before parting ways.

 

The film crew were impressed with the cold, the lava, and the breathtaking morning on the mountain.  Poor souls were then on their way to Waikiki.  The show is “Ten Things You Didn’t Know About Hawaii” and will debut on the Travel Channel December 17^th.  Speaking of TV shows, Weatherventures, a new television series that debuts tonight on The Weather Channel features Hawaii Forest & Trail Adventures with three HFT guides Buck, Anne, and Joel.  Check it out if you can.  It repeats every week through December.

 

After my filming I finally made it back down to Kona at the Keauhou Beach Hotel for the in progress Society of Hawaiian Archeologists conference.  I was able to catch a few presentations on studies from North Kohala including a look at the different agricultural types found in Pololu Valley and another study that analyzed sources of five different basalt adze found in the valley.  Good stuff.

 

I finished the weekend after a hard day of work on our property with my son Ben by taking a visiting young man caving.  We went up to a friends property mauka Kona and explored for a little over an hour in a large tube that has lots of evidence of big water moving through it intermittently.  We did a few crawls, a couple climbs, and a lot of sweating. 

 

So let’s see:  hot, humid tropical hiking, ancient and historic sites, a conference of archeologists, filming a TV show in the netherlands of Mauna Loa lava at 35 degrees Fahrenheit, sheep from Corsica, Italy, endangered geese, walking in sub-alpine forest, and caving in a lava tube.  A weekend to be had only on Hawaii Island.

 

With Aloha,

 

Rob P.

Good Morning,
 

Hawaii really is an amazing place.  I was reminded of that again while reading a short article by Rose Kahele in Hawaiian Air’s inflight magazine.  It’s about a story I often include on tours but one very few people know—Charles Keeling’s air collection study from Mauna Loa.  In 1958 Keeling came to Hawaii’s Mauna Loa Observatory to test a hypothesis about carbon dioxide accumulating in the atmosphere.  Keeling came here because the air above our islands is some of the cleanest on earth.  The study is still ongoing.  Scientists collect samples twice a day.  That data set has given us the Keeling Curve, which has documented an annual increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide.  His data is one of the foundations which global warming theory is built upon.  Kahele writes, “Because of its longevity and accuracy, the Keeling Curve is the most important data set in climate science.” 

 

 Keelings study is just one of many from an incredible diversity of disciplines that use Hawaii as place to understand earth and life processes.  From the depths of our oceans, across our volcanic slopes, deep in the rainforests, from the alpine summits, to the mysteries of the universe, Hawaii is a stage and showcase that is unequalled anywhere on the planet. 

 

I’ll close today’s blog with one of my favorite quotes about Hawaii. The February 1924 edition of  The National Geographic was all about Hawaii—the whole issue.  In the forward, N.G.’s founder and editor, Gilbert Grosvenor recalls how he and his wife were asked by several folks how they could entertain themselves for eight weeks on those “tiny specks” of islands in the Pacific.  Grosvenor writes in response, “The members of this Society know that the Hawaiian Islands are one of the wonderlands of the globe; that Nature conceals in them more of her mysteries to attract and chain the attention of the student and more of her masterpieces to enrapture the visitor than in any similar area”

 

With Aloha,

 

Rob P.

Aloha kakou,

After my Land Board Meeting in Honolulu on Friday, I travelled to the Ewa/Waianae coast to do some birding.  I hoped to spot a visting Bar-tailed Godwit at Honouliulu and a Whimbrel at Mailiili.  Missed the Godwit but got the Whimbrel.  Nice to add a species to my Hawaii list!

Saturday also provided some birding, this time closer to home on the Big Island.  While much of Kona was watching or avoiding the Ironman Triathalon (which, are very own Tour Manager, Lisa Nelson, finished in a little over 13 hours—her ninth Ironman competition!), some of us Kona folks took advantage of the annual Open House at Hakalau National Wildlife Refuge.  Each year HFT donates a couple vans and employees volunteer their time to drive up Kona residents that don’t have four-wheel drive vehicles to access the refuge.  This year we took up a little over 20 folks who joined another 500 island residents on this unique day to visit an area usually closed to the public.  Lisa Kummer and I volunteered this year and were treated to a rare cloudless day.  Puu Oo vent was clearly visible as we made our way along Keanakolu Road to the refuge.

We spent the morning and lunch in the Pua Akala meadow birding and enjoying the forest.  Even with such a large crowd, we managed to see all the forest birds except the Akiapolaau and Omao.  HFT past and present were well represented at the Open House with past guides Geoff Gilbert , Dr. Pat Hart, and Dan Nelson along with current employee Kim Hata and Lisa and myself.  It was wonderful to share the forest with so many folks, especially all the kids who were there, but it also made me realize how blessed we are at HFT to do tours there and have the place to ourselves most of the time.


Hakalau is one of the great conservation success stories in Hawaii.  In the fifteen years since I’ve been visiting the place, it’s very uplifting to see the change in the forest health and amazing to witness pure grassland pasture returned to a young thriving koa forest.  An area that I first saw with no trees is now habitat utilized by Akiapolaau and other forest birds.  And finally, it was great to catch up with my friend and mentor Jack Jeffrey who is the heart and soul of what Hakalau is all about.  Jack has touched thousands of lives, won numerous awards, and when you spend a few moments in the field with him you realize what a great naturalist and person he is.  It was a great day to cherish.

 With Aloha,

 

Rob P.

  Aloha kakou,

I love books and reading.  Most of the books I buy and read are nature/natural history related in some way.  Plus there’s lots of Hawaiiana in my library.  But I also like books on business.  I’m a fast reader and a strategic one.  I’ve gotten quiet good at being able to work through a book efficiently.  However, a current read of mine has really slowed me down and I’ve been in it a few weeks now.  Howard Bloom’s The Lucifer Principle: A Scientific Expedition into the Forces of History published in 1994 by Atlantic Monthly Press is a provocative work.  Bloom is a fascinating character who’s had an amazing career as a scientist, psychologist, and free-lance journalist.  He even owned a huge rock and roll PR company in the late 70’s early 80’s.  (He worked with Prince during the Purple Rain era and those who know me know I’m a Prince freak, so I got to like Bloom!) 

 

The Lucifer Principle, as one review notes, is a

 

“theory that evil--which manifests in violence, destructiveness and war--is woven into our biological fabric. A corollary is that evil is a by-product of nature's strategy to move the world to greater heights of organization and power as national or religious groups follow ideologies that trigger lofty ideals as well as base cruelty. In an ambitious, often provocative study, Bloom applies the ideas of sociobiology, ethology and the "killer ape" school of anthropology to the broad canvas of history, with examples ranging from Oliver Cromwell's reputed pleasure in killing and raping to Mao Tse-tung's bloody Cultural Revolution, India's caste system and Islamic fundamentalist expansion.”

 

One reason Bloom’s book is taking me so long is because it has over 800 footnotes and I like to read footnotes.  The breadth of his references is incredible.  The chapters are short and I’m finding myself reading them two or three times.  I love theories that look at human culture and society from a socio-biological perspective.  And this work certainly does that.  And while it is a book on nature, Human Nature, it also in many ways is a book with business applications.  But that is probably the topic of another blog.

 

The Lucifer Principle also got me to revisit another recent read which I enjoyed immensely, Bernard Haisch’s The God Theory.  Physicist Haisch makes the case that

 

 “in the mysteries of light rest clues to the deepest mysteries of the universe, something he calls God, though he doesn't mean by that word the personification that some believers prefer.  Haisch proposes the alternative that the special properties of our Universe reflect an underlying intelligence, one that is fully consistent with the Big Bang and Darwinian evolution. At this time both views are equally logical and equally beyond proof. However exceptional human experiences and accounts of mystics throughout the ages do suggest that we live in a purposeful Universe.”

 

It’s quite a different (and easier) read than Bloom’s, but both books together provide a unique perspective on God and the Devil. 

 

Have a great day and don’t forget to look around for the bugs, birds, and blooms in your place.

 

With Aloha,

 

Aloha kakou,

Cindy and I recently returned from a visit to Chicago.  We flew in a few days before the The Motivation Show, a large trade show for Incentive Travel and Meeting Planners. We had a great time personally and accomplished some productive business.  I spent Saturday morning birding since the fall migration was in full swing.  It really amazes me that I could take a 10-minute taxi ride from our hotel on the Miracle Mile of Michigan Avenue and in a few hours of birdwatching see 50 different species of birds including a couple of lifers for me-Tennessee Warbler and Black-throated Blue Warbler--and never leave the city limits. 

I've birded in Chicago three times all just before The Motivation Show in late September and have seen 80 species.  Compare that to all the years of birding I've done in Hawaii where I've only seen 178 species!  Of course, the diversity of birds in Hawaii is much less than Chicago, in fact, there's only a few hardy and well-talented souls who have over 200 species on their Hawaii list.  But what Hawaii loses in overall species diversity, it more than gains in the fabulous resident endemics that inhabit our islands.

The other day I was able to tour some of the development staff for Hualalai Resort around in one of our Pinzgauers.  Kamaaina Hannah Springer, who is one of my favorite people to be in the field with,  was along to provide orientation to the wonderful resources of the Kaupulehu ahupuaa.  As we were standing under an Australian Silk Oak tree in the dry a'a field talking about the archeology of the area, I heard an assortment of birds calling and singing about.  The Indian Myna, the Japanese White-eye, the African Yellow-fronted Canary and African Silverbill, and the European House Sparrow were all abundant, active, and noisy.  And then amidst the sounds of non-natives, two Hawaii Amakihi began to call back and forth between two native Lama trees.  To hear these birds at such low elevation and in such degraded native habitat made me smile.  And though the Hawaii Amakihi are one of most common of the native forest birds left, I would trade all the birds in Chicago for these two Honeycreepers.  Lucky I live in Hawaii.

With Aloha,

Rob P.