Mauna Kea Oral History Appendix - Office of Mauna Kea Management

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Yes.
All different sides like that.
Yes. On Kemole side there’s one other place down, let’s see what’s that, Kaluamakani.
Above Kaluamakani, by Pu‘u Kihe. When you’re looking from here it’s all mountain, but
when you get up there it’s nice big flats and hollows, it’s cinders. The old people used to
make traps, Päloa, and they used to drive, mainly horses. Hit the sand and it goes right
down to the corrals.
Wow, amazing!
In 1948-49, I took old Hogan Kauwë, he was an old cowboy, we went up from Pu‘u Lä‘au,
we went over to Kemole to shoot birds, and it was all grass. He told me in Hawaiian,
“Lucky, their days on Mauna Kea was like a lawn mower, the sheep used to keep ‘um
short. You can see every blade, every rock.” But when I went up in ‘48, ‘49, the grass
was high. He told me, “Now, those same people come, rope the pipi ‘ähiu and horses,
they would all break, all make.
That’s right, all make. Yes, ‘cause you can’t see.
At that time you can’t see the rocks, the ditches.
It’s like Jiro’s father, yeah
Yes.
Hä‘ule, coming down Kemole driving hipa.
Yes.
Make. Wow! But this was up higher even
This is right on Mauna Kea, about 9,000 or 10,000 feet elevation.
Yes, it’s hard to imagine even, working at that elevation.
Yes. But you know, those days, that’s why you asked me for pleasure, what we used to
do. Those days, all the old cowboys, they used to go up there for pleasure, go rope
horses and rope cattle.
For real!
They go up on weekends, they go sleep out in the open like this, and then next morning
they go rope animals.
Wow! Did you folks used to go out on to the plain towards Ahu-a-‘Umi too
Yes.
You folks did. You go kï hipa like that
Yes.
For fun though [chuckling]
For fun. [chuckles] Every time I think of those days, I laugh.
Yes.
Cold. You can’t make fire, ‘cause the animals would see the fire, would come around.
That’s right. Did you folks find caves sometimes, you could shelter in
Yes, that’s what we go look, puka.
Yes.
Mauna Kea– “Ka Piko Kaulana o ka ‘Äina”
Kumu Pono Associates LLC
A Collection of Oral History Interviews (HiMK67-050606) A:301