Haunted Hikers
About 200 students and advisors converged on Ho’omaluhia
Botanical Garden Saturday, October 24, 1998. Our annual High
School Hikers Halloween Hike and Camp was underway. What started
as a fun activity for Leilehua High School has grown to include
all members of High School Hikers. The purpose - to bring together
students from various schools for a casual fun-filled evening.
After setting up camp and having dinner, we started with “scary
story telling” to set the mood of the evening. There was
some awesome “chicken skin” tales from all over. Then
came the Pumpkin Carving Contest which were very creative and
unique (and smoking!) Costumes were so unreal! Those of you who
missed out, Fred’s cowboy costume would’ve had you
laughing all night. It was a tough decision for our volunteer
judges in every category. “The Haunted Hike” was the
highlight of this wet evening.
Mahalos! to Castle High School for coordinating this activity,
Mark Lee for the big tarp, Farrington for “the hike,”
everyone who helped coordinate all the events, and all the advisors
who worked so hard to make it all happen!
KALAUPAPA ‘99
back row L-R: Jamie Tanino, David White, Ian
Robertson, Dean Alexander, Natalie Borrello,
Adaline Kam, Waimea Williams and Nicole Both.
front row L-R: John Cummings, Michael Ahulau, Debbie Naclerio,
Kanani Reid, Sherine
Boomla, Nina Yuen and Jeremy Taguchi
By Jamie Tanino and David White
On a Sunday morning, David White (of Leilehua) headed out
to pick up Natalie Borrello. At the Aloha Island Air Terminal,
we met Jamie Tanino (Castle grad.) and Waimea Williams, members
of our Hawai’i Service Trip Program (H.S.T.P.) Kalaupapa
crew. This Kalaupapa Service Trip was held January 3rd to the
10th, 1999. Later arrived Kanani Reid, Debbie Naclerio, Sherine
Boomla, Nicole Both, Lori Taketa, and our trip leader, John Cummings
III. Joining us from Hilo High School was Nina Yuen. We arrived
at "top side" Ho’olehua Airport, Moloka’i
then huddled into a van. We drove to the famous Kalaupapa mule
trail where we met Jeff Trainer, Kalaupapa National Park Plant
Specialist. After hiking down 26 switch backs, we arrived at
the Kalaupapa Settlement. At the quonset hut dormitory, we met
Jeremy Taguchi, a National Park volunteer from Vancouver, British
Columbia. After taking inventory of our supplies, we stopped
by the airport to pick up Michael Ahulau and Ian Robertson who
took the easy way down.
Day 2, we woke up at 6 a.m. and helped prepare our breakfast
of spam and eggs. By 8 a.m. we headed to Kauhako Crater where
we separated into two work groups. With chain saws in hand, Jeremy
and Jeff led the way into Kauhako Crater cutting large branches.
While everyone else followed their leader with loppers, machetes
and Swedish brush axes, we cleared back the overgrowth. By lunch
time, we completed our work projects ahead of schedule. After
lunch, we cleared around the crater rim and then we all headed
“home” to the quonset hut. Before dinner we went swimming,
picture taking, and playing cards. Our dinner guests were Uncle
Naia, and Zorro, his dog and constant companion whose company
we enjoyed very much. Uncle Naia shared with us many stories
of his life at Kalaupapa and living with Hansen’s Disease.
He also enjoyed challenging Natalie to many games of checkers
and winning many of them. Poor girl!
On Day 3, we rock hopped the coastline to Waikolu Valley.
There, we picked cockle burr seeds and seedlings by collecting
them in a plastic bag and dumping them into the ocean to eradicate
them. We spotted goats gallivanting high up on the steep slopes
of the valley wall. John went off to spear prawns in the nearby
stream and somewhere along the way, he lost the car keys. Everyone
gathered to search the stream for them, only to find a Powerbar
wrapper, which had also escaped John’s pocket. After awhile
of searching, John came to realize that he might have left them
in the van! We continued to pick seedlings at the tail end of
the amphitheater valley, Waikolu. When we were done, we headed
back skipping rocks along the coastline. And there, sitting in
the ignition of the van, was the keys! After a
fit of giggles, we went on our merry way back home to do what
ever 'till dinner.
Our "day-off" was spent with Dean Alexander, Kalaupapa
National Park Superintendent. Dean drove us to a heiau at Kalawao
and showed us the “Rock Doctor” petroglyph, one of
two known petroglyphs on the peninsula. The other is the “Stone
Nurse.” We explored a lava tube called Old Woman's Cave
and the climax of the tour was a visit to the largest lighthouse
in the Pacific. We climbed 198 steps to reach a breathtaking
view of the entire peninsula.
Day 5, we returned to Kauhako Crater. The first group cleared
1/3 of the crater rim fence line. While the other group went
down into the crater to clear morning glory vines and cut down
non-native trees. A herbicide was used in l spray pumps to kill
the rapidly growing sisal plants. We then gathered wiliwili seeds
from the mother tree and planted over 400 of them through out
the forest floor.
Day 6, we headed to the beach to tackle a large bush/tree
called a Beach Heliotrope. In between truck loads, we frolicked
in the water, picked seashells and observed a monk seal sunbathing
near the shore. After work, a majority of the group headed back
to the quonset hut while Kalawaia (a National Parks carpenter),
John, David and Jamie stayed back to spend time on the beach.
Some of us watched Kalawaia's Fish Cleaning 101 class, with his
star student, Nina.
Day 7 was wet and rainy. We crammed into the van and drove
to an open field in search of the elusive Bull Thistle, a very
prickly weed. We located about two dozen on 4 acres of land which
was a good sign. We headed out to another field near the slaughterhouse
to continue our search and destroy mission. After completing
our task in about two hours, we had the rest of the day to relax.
Jamie, David, Natalie, and Nina went site seeing, took pictures
and went to the beach in search of more shells. After awhile,
John drove up in the van with Kalawaia, Kanani, Adaline (another
HSH/HSTPer), Michael, and Ian to search for Kamani seeds in the
Kalawao Forest. That night, after dinner and more card games,
Jamie, David, Natalie, Nina, Michael and Ian went to play pool
at the pool hall. After a few games, John drove up with some
of the others and we joined them to go deer "hunting".
Actually, spotting deer with the headlights and
scaring them half-to-death. We also went star gazing near the
lighthouse and on the middle of the old runway by lying down
next to each other, side by side, in a line.
The final morning was spent cleaning the quonset hut after
attending a church service. When all the luggage was packed,
we headed to the airport and said our sad good-bye's to the new
friends we made. After arriving back in the cement jungle of
Honolulu, we knew we'd miss the pristine and serene beauty of
Kalaupapa. And most importantly, the friends and the residents
we met there.
Kalaupapa coastline
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