Mauna Kea Oral History Appendix - Office of Mauna Kea Management

KM: Yes, interesting. Even if I can for a moment, coming back to Mauna Kea, you’d
mentioned the waters off of like Houpo o Käne (Hopukani) like that and stuff on the
Pöhakuloa gulch side. Were the sheep living completely off of dew, condensation and
moisture
DW: Yes.
Recalls Waikahälulu Spring on Mauna Kea:
KM: They weren’t getting water out of the mountain somewhere too
DW: They get along with no water. You know that story that the Humu‘ula, the Waikahälulu
Gulch, where there’s a spring
KM: Yes.
DW: And they laid the pipe to the spring
KM: Yes.
DW: And then a guy got the idea that they could get more water, so he put a dynamite in it.
And then no more water, and the pipe rusted away. (They lost the spring entirely.)
KM: Yes. Eben Low them.
DW: Yes.
KM: They went and they dynamite ‘em, oh, lost the water.
DW: They did, they lost water, the pipes all rusted away.
KM: So, that was Waikahälulu. I guess the horses would come and the animals too, so they
catch the Mauna Kea ponies yeah, in those places
DW: The damn fools, they laid the pipe and then they blasted the spring.
KM: ‘Auwë!
DW: They salvaged much of the pipe, but not all of it.
KM: So, you heard the guys talking about this too, then
DW: Oh, yeah, Willie Kaniho and Alex Bell.
KM: Yes. I’ve been out with Willie’s sons, Danny and... Danny’s passed away but Sonny,
who’s older. Teddy Bell is still…he’s your age actually.
DW: Yes, Teddy.
KM: Good fun though, you know.
DW: Those were good years.
KM: Hmm. You know, there’s a big problem out on the Hawaiian Homes section now here at
Humu‘ula, it’s called gorse.
DW: Oh, yeah. [chuckling] That Parker Ranch is a criminal. Ask Oscar Asahina, you know
him
KM: I know the name, Asahina.
Discusses infestation of gorse on the ‘äina mauna:
DW:
He told them, Parker Ranch is not doing their damn job. The lease says, they had to
control gorse and improve the pasture. Almost on the twenty year lease or whatever, was
coming due, and so they (Hawaiian Homes Commission) , got after the Parker Ranch
and what they did was all the bulldozers dozed the gorse, patch to patch, to patch. All
they did was spread it and plant it.
Mauna Kea– “Ka Piko Kaulana o ka ‘Äina”
Kumu Pono Associates LLC
A Collection of Oral History Interviews (HiMK67-050606) A:331