Mauna Kea Oral History Appendix - Office of Mauna Kea Management

KM:
DW:
KM:
DW:
That’s correct.
I don’t know why they built the fence the way they did, but these areas that had no fence,
there was no reproduction of mämane. Absolutely none, from the ranch fence or forest
fence, mauka to the tree line. Dead and dying trees, all the way to the tree line. It was
obvious, that no way the mämane can survive.
No regeneration.
But we had Pu‘u Lä‘au, Hale Pöhaku and little place like Kemole, right here. (protected
areas where we had reduced the sheep.)
KM: ‘Ae, Kemole.
DW: And a place like Kanakaleonui where the cabins are, and popular for hunting. We got
some reproduction by 1953, I suppose. That’s why we had the fence.
KM: This is about the time that you were working on that road also, around there in the ‘50s,
mid ‘50s like that
DW: The first time I went hunting in Mauna Kea, was ‘47.
KM: Wow!
DW: When I got out of the army. Pu‘u Lä‘au, are you familiar with Pu‘u Lä‘au
KM: Yes.
DW: The forest is beautiful now, the grass is higher than Parker Ranch.
KM: Uh-hmm.
Public hunting program on Mauna Kea begun in 1947, post World War II:
DW: But in 1947, at the time the post-war hunting program was begun, this was bare ground,
bare, all the way to the fence. Dead and drying trees. I went hunting with [thinking] ,
Johnny AhSan was the guide.
KM: Uh-hmm.
DW: The Territory made a hunting program, that you paid three dollars a day. And you hired a
weapons carrier. And then hunt, six hunters, and you could shoot all the sheep you want.
KM: Wow!
DW: And there was no real mandate that you have to remove the meat. The name of the
game was to get rid of the sheep.
KM: Yes.
DW: I went with my brother and Fred Shane and Bill Beard, they’re older guys.
KM: Yes.
DW: And I had a brand new 30-30 rifle, what a delight, and the sheep. And they wouldn’t let
me use it. They borrowed a 22 rifle for me because it doesn’t make much noise. I was
disappointed that they didn’t [chuckling] let me use the 30-30. Anyhow, the 22 rifle with
the pump action had fifteen rounds.
KM: Right.
DW: The two cylinders, and we parked outside of the Forest Reserve below Pu‘u Lä‘au, right
out of the cabin, and Johnny says “Quiet”, and we were all lined up and right on the
fence, the browse line on the trees was as high as you can reach. The sheep were
standing on their hind legs eating off of the leaves. We saw this flock of sheep and we
were from here to the car [about 50 feet], or less, and we just emptied our guns, no fun at
all, no hunt, no anything!
Mauna Kea– “Ka Piko Kaulana o ka ‘Äina”
Kumu Pono Associates LLC
A Collection of Oral History Interviews (HiMK67-050606) A:323