One Essential

Kauaʻi has been a continuing lesson that things do not always go as planned and that it's okay.

The Ten Essentials

Any hiker heading out into the wilderness should be familiar with and carry along the Ten Essentials. Years ago I read through a list of ten things to be vaguely recalled while stocking up for a hike but after yesterday's hike I refreshed my familiarity with these. I found out that there are numerous variations on the theme and that while they for the most part agree on the most basic essentials, they vary somewhat as well. Based on three prominent examples here is a compendium in no particular ordering:

1. Navigation (map, compass, GPS)
2. Sun protection
3. Insulation
4. Illumination
5. First Aid
6. Fire starter
7. Repair kit and tools
8. Hydration
9. Nutrition
10. Emergency shelter
11. Knife
12. Footwear ("appropriate" they say but I find it hard to predict what terrain will be like)
13. Whistle
14. Backpack
15. Rain gear
16. Sunglasses
17. Toilet paper
18. Duct tape
19. Bug repellent
20. Trash bag
21. Emergency info (contact info, medical details, insurance details)

The one essential

So yesterday I was up before dawn gathering a good dozen "essentials" for an early start hiking. To get on the road quickly I packed breakfast to go, loaded up the car and headed off. I had not yet decided exactly on the hike so threw in more than enough stuff, three types of footwear, the works: I would figure it out at the trailhead and pack there seeing actual conditions, after breakfast at the beach.

I decided on hiking up the Kalalau trail at least to Hanakapiʻai beach (just two miles). Arriving at Keʻe beach, where the trailhead is, good and early (around 7am) and the breakfast on the beach part was great. Nobody was out there, waves rolling in, sky looked fairly clear promising a fine day. Back to the car and immediately I noticed something missing: my backpack (Essential #14 above). I had plenty of gear but it was in a Longʻs shopping bag which I was not carrying on the trail for obvious reasons. All the way out there with all that stuff but ... I considered and rejected asking other hikers arriving in the parking lot, "Hi, do you have an extra backpack I could borrow?" Not cool, and unlikely to work.

With just two hands I considered the essentials from a minimalist perspective. Sun protection (#2) I could apply now before leaving, no problem there. Navigation (#1) I had in my phone. One essential (#8) I knew was really truly essential: water; I would carry my two liter (Platypus brand) bag of water. I see people walking this trail without water and consider that fairly reckless: unless you are just going a short way and turning around - and you see them as far as the beach empty handed and no pack - no matter how young and fit it isnʻt hard to get dehydrated out there. Drinking from the streams along the trail is risky without disinfecting (Hawaii department of health). Water is truly the one essential.

Reluctantly, I left my camera in the car - not an essential of course but a major purpose of my hikes usually. With water in one hand operating the camera would be rather awkward. Since it's a very well-traveled trail I was not worried about emergency supplies as I would definitely not be alone out there.

Hanakapiʻai Falls hike

Heading up the trail at first felt odd with nothing on my back, but it worked fine, the two kilos of weight wasn't a problem to carry, and of course it got lighter as I went. It was a warm day even before the sun was high enough to reach over the steep mountains the Kalalau trail winds through.

Hiking light and sans camera was surprisingly a different experience. For even the most dedicated nature photographer I recommend it every once in a while to put things in perspective. At first the old habit was strong: seeing something unusual, a gorgeous view, or perfect flower, the impulse to shoot it is strong. But this time instead I stopped to look at it carefully, knowing I would not have a photo to prod my memory later I tried to really absorb it and experience it right there. With photos, for me at least, there is a terrible habit to think that once the photo is properly shot I can move on and appreciate it later on a screen. This exercise showed me how wrong that thinking was.

For two miles the trail winds along the coast climbing from the just-above-sea-level parking lot high about the water, and also following back into a few small valleys where streams cut through the mountain, and then back out again over the ocean. At about the half mile point is the first long view down the Na Pali coast, well worth stopping for a good look. The second mile of this trail is crawling with ants weaving around like a very thin moving carpet at times; if you keep moving you can ignore the ants but if you stop to gawk at the view make sure they arenʻt crawling onto your shoes and legs.

After two miles you descend to the Hanakapiʻai stream with a nice beach just on the other side. This time the crossing was an easier boulder hop than I expected. (As always use caution around waterways here. Never attempt to cross a fast moving stream when the water level is above your knees. People have been trapped overnight out here, unable to cross back, and some who tried to cross anyway have been swept away and perished.)

It wasn't even mid-morning yet as I crossed and headed mauka along the trail on the far side of the stream. Within a short distance after passing an outhouse, the Kalalau trail splits off to the right heading further along the shoreline, with my trail to the falls continuing straight upriver.

There is some serious mud along the first half mile: sticky, gooey, unavoidable, but not very deep. More of a problem of slipping and sliding than sinking in but it makes footing treacherous and is messy. Recently I complained about the mud on the Pihea trail but this is worse. Take it slow, accept that you will have to wash your shoes up, and it isnʻt that bad. Incidentally, I ran into a couple that I met on that trail last week. They did a week on Maui, a week here, and next plan a week camping on the Big Island.

By the time you get to a second bamboo grove the worst of the mud is behind you, though of course you will return through it all again. Less than a mile upstream you have your first crossing to an island in the stream and then over to the side you started out this hike from. The trail can get a little vague in places, look for pink plastic tape showing you key waypoints. You will have a few options for where to cross the river: look for where the trail picks up on the far side as hint. This time I found reasonable boulder hop crossings all the way, never set foot in the water, but it took a little studying at a few points. As always, use good judgment: sometimes it's safest to just walk through the shallow water and get wet.

The trail is very pretty here (much less mud this side) and only a few tricky spots you will want to slow down and take it easy. Did I mention there were yellow guava dropped all over the trail (mostly overripe) most of the first half or more of the trail upstream? Somewhere past one mile upstream watch for your first view of the falls - the drop is high enough that in some ways you get your best view from well away as you can take it all in.

The last two stream crossings - over to the far side and back again - are fairly close to the falls and easier than the downstream crossings. At the first of these there is a good sized waterhole for swimming that looks deeper than the large pool at the base of the falls. A few minutes walk brings you at last to the falls. You are in a U-shaped end of the valley the stream runs through with high cliffs curving around, all covered in green. At the top center a river runs out over the edge, falls a ways onto jagged rocks, and then tumbles down, spreading out, over the rocky cliff face to the large pool below. Said to be 300 feet high, the falls from that close up are more than you can take in from top to bottom in one view. Spectacular, but sorry this time no photos.

After sitting there and taking it all in for a while, I headed back over the same trail. I must have been first one out that day (along with the couple mentioned) but returning ran into perhaps fifty or more people hiking out toward the falls. After spending a little time at the beach I headed back, water nearly gone by the time I made it back to the parking lot. (I donʻt recommend hiking without a backpack but for me, that day, it worked out fine. A few times on the trail I had to duck under a tree or something and thought it was nice not to have a pack to get in the way.)

Photography while hiking is a great activity - I do not mean to say otherwise - but it should never get in the way of the actual experience of the place. None less of an expert than Louis CK recently observed how taking photos can become ritualized to the point of getting in the way of real experience. (Also allow me to insert here a recommendation for an excellent Bill Moyers interview on how digital can easily get to be too much.)

"Every single person was blocking their vision of their actual child with their phone, and the kids ... there's people holding iPads in front of their faces. "

For details on how to get to this great 8 mile strenuous hike, see my previous article. Safety first: if there has been a lot of recent rain or significant rainfall is predicted, hike somewhere else.

Grinds misc.

MCS Grill

The MCS Grill in Hanapepe is a new resurrection of Da Imu Hut.
The atmosphere and menu has suddenly been updated 40 or 50 years from old-style rural Hawaiian to modern. Da Imu Hut was one of my favorite really strong local feeling place, so I was skeptical of the new look at first, but from my first visit I am completely turned around and think this is all for the best. Especially because I learned that Da Imu Hut will be reopening before long up the hill in the Eleele shopping center (between the Big Save and the Kauai Credit Union) but doing on catering I understand, not as a restaurant.

"MCS" is the three initials of the new proprietors; I met one of them, a young lady who was my waitress. I wanted a quick light lunch and they had a special that was just right, a "Crabacado" (crab and avocado wrap, $10) that was very good. Fresh ingredients, the flavoring had a little kick to it, prepared quickly. The menu is very veggie-friendly, about half the fare is meatless (Da Imu Hut, not so much).

1-3529 Kaumualii Hwy, Hanapepe -- Closed Saturdays. Cash only.

 Lilikoi

A friend provided fresh lilikoi from his garden. It's an unfamiliar fruit not often seen on the mainland so it's worth explaining a bit about it. Lilikoi is round fruit roughly twice the size of a ping pong ball. It grows on a vine and ripe fruit simply falls off when ready. The fruit is said to be best when it is fairly wrinkly but I had some good ones that were smooth and firm.

The taste is wonderful: tropical sweet and very tart. You cut the fruit in half (a little juice will inevitably leak out) and then eat the pulp and seeds, discarding the white pithy outside. Use a fork to separate out the pulp, and save all the juice that you can in the process.

I like it straight but there are many ways to eat it, for example:

• with papaya, put lilikoi pulp in the hollow of a half of papaya (get a little of it in each bite)
• mixed with yogurt
• in salad dressing

The seeds are fine to eat, I just swallow them after savoring the flavor; with the pulp surrounding them you can't even feel them at all. If you don't like the idea of eating seeds I have heard that you can put the pulp and seeds into a blender and quickly pulse it to separate the seeds a bit, then filter out the seeds with a sieve if you want to go to the effort.

Beachfront

Of all the places I've stayed on this island, the most satisfying - just as a place to be - is here, in the house I moved into yesterday. Itʻs right on the beach: none of the other details about the house are nearly as important, although it is a beautiful house. As they say in real estate: location, location, location.

Walking up to the front door one sees through the glass, through the large glass sliding doors in the back, through into the back yard lawn, a low hedge, and finally, the ocean. There's something spectacular about that view right through the home that cannot be ignored, that grabs you and invites you in. Perhaps it harkens back to ancient human preference to be near water, even just a bit of the look and feel of a Hawaiian hale, the traditional structures built here for hundreds of years of posts, thatched roof, often no walls so you also looked through it.

First thing I want to do upon arrival is go out into the yard, through the hedge, and step out onto the beach. Not a soul around. Tide is up: the waves are right here at my feet with a thin band of sand. Not long afterwards, swimsuited, I stroll down to the nearby spot where I like to enter the water. Most of the shore here is covered with flat slabs of rock, sometimes with a thin covering of sand washed or not, and when the rock is exposed it can be rough or slippery. Hence a sandy entry is desirable: there is one at either end of the bay here and other sandy spot where a river dumps out into the bad.

The water is surprisingly warm, with cooler swirls that intermingle in complex patterns with the movement of the ocean. Plenty of fish are visible through the murky water, darting around the edge of the flat rock outcroppings as well as around some coral than dots the sandy bottom. In this bay it's shallow quite a way out from shore and it takes careful navigation in spaces to weave through without getting too shallow to swim. The warm water patches persist well out here and not necessarily in the shallower portions. Doubling back and exploring in the other direction out by the point that defines this end of the bay, the water gets distinctly cooler: currents must be bringing up deeper water. There are very few fish here so I turn back.

Until I stayed here previously for a few weeks in April I had always considered it frivolous when people would rave about living in a beachfront home, it must be a status symbol, nothing more. Being within walking distance of the beach it's all the same I had concluded. I quickly learned otherwise once I had experienced it. Ocean view has a peaceful aesthetic - I got that - and also being near enough to the shore to hear the sound of the waves - that was also pleasant. Yet what I came to appreciate is that being right there next to the beach, that makes an important connection, a much more powerful thing.

One cannot help but focus on the ocean when it is right out the back yard. By comparison, the road you drove on to get here along with the connections back to "civilization" the road embodies, falls away in importance. People have always lived near the ocean since ancient times. The Hawaiian land parcel called an ahupuaʻa honors the connection to the ocean: it's a pie-shaped region from the top of the mountains down to the beach that emcompasses the full diversity of island geography. Every ahupuaʻa is beachfront property.

As much as I love the west side, the beaches on the east (I think only the tourism board refers to this as the Coconut Coast) are indeed fine. The trade winds blow in from the ocean, blowing the tops of the waves into white foam, bringing the smell of the sea inland. No doubt exterior upkeep is challenging here but it is worth the trouble.

Back at the house and showered off, I am content sitting out back just watching the ocean for some time. My connection to it just recently renewed lasts even a good while later back there. Effortlessly my mind is clear and relaxed.

A trip to the beach is a very different experience, defined by a beginning and an end. You pack up everything you'll need, drive there, carry it all out onto the sand, play, swim, sit, get sandy. At some point though you have to go back: you pack up, haul it all back, sand and wet. Being right here day in day out the experience just goes on and on - nothing to haul, you can be out on the beach, or cleaned up and in the comforts at home anytime all the time. You completely skip that moment of slight regret when you need to decide to pack it up for the day.

I can't explain it but I don't aspire to live on beachfront property someday - at least for now. Perhaps it is best reserved as a special treat to be savored rarely. Year after year possibly it would get to become routine, not appreciated so much, though I doubt it. Most likely, as best as I can tell, it might be too compelling - it might distract from doing other things - and I would end up whiling away my days just hanging about the beach doing little else, happily unproductive.

What a privilege it is to spend solid time here on the edge of the ocean. Time to get out there again today. Even inside, cooking or reading or writing or whatever, the sound is there with you. Any time you can look up and see the waves, and if you like wander out there one more time.

www.kauai.gov is down

The Kaua'i county web site appears to be completely down tonight.
No idea if they are even aware and without the site I don't know who to notify.

UPDATE: The site now back up as of the following morning. No word of what happened that I can find.

http://www.kauai.gov/ says,

We're sorry. The Web address you entered is not a functioning page on our site. >> Go to Kauai County's Home Page <<

(which then links to the same broken page from "Home" as well)

Try an URL like http://www.kauai.gov/oops and you get,

DotNetNuke Configuration Error Domain Name "[DOMAINNAME]" Does Not Exist In The Database  DotNetNuke supports multiple portals from a single database/codebase. It accomplishes this by converting the URL of the client browser Request to a valid PortalID in the Portals database table. The following steps describe the process: (followed by lots of internal technical instructions)

Kaua'i Civil Defense web site is down as well: www.kauai.gov/civildefense/‎
I was just thinking recently how antiquated it is that civil defense response to emergencies is still broadcast on radio and TV. This isn't idle speculation: I do not own a radio anymore and the TV will only be used for digital, Blu-Ray, and DVD, so I won't be able to tune in unless I buy a radio. I was hoping they would provide information on the web but with service like this maybe that isn't a good idea after all.

High prices

Recently I chatted with a local merchant who runs a small store on the west side. I mentioned that I was in the process of moving here and he asked me what I thought of the prices the markets charge for things here. Prices of everything on Kaua'i are decidedly high, as I have blogged previously.

"So what do you think about prices here?"
"Oh yes, every time I shop it's astonishing how much you pay things here."
"Do you know why prices are high?"
"Well, they say most everything in stores has to be shipped from the mainland. Plus, it must come through Honolulu and then shipped over here by Young Brothers or Matson on a second leg."
"True, but then why are prices on the Big Island much better than here? Their stuff gets shipped in the same."
"I didn't know that. I have no idea why that would be."
"And did you know that prices weren't so high three years ago here?"
"Really? That is about how long I have been coming here."
"Yep, that's when Times market bought Big Save."
"But on the island we have Safeway and Foodland, too."
"Not on the west side we don't."
"We do have Ishihara and Sueoka Markets."
"Too small scale, they can't compete on prices."
"So you are saying it's lack of competition?"
"I'm saying thank goodness we have Costco now."

I think he has it right. Kaua'i is just too small to have very competition. Not only are there well under 100,000 people on the island, for the most part folks stay in the region they live or commute and wouldn't regularly venture too far from home for regular shopping. People living on the west side or north shore have nearly an hour's drive if they want to shop in another part of the island, so the few local stores are really the only practical choice the have. On the west side there are several Big Save markets but other than the small groceries mentioned above, you have to drive to Lihue or Kapa'a to reach another brand supermarket. So there are even tinier captive markets at the ends of the road of perhaps under ten thousand, and the merchants know they can get higher prices because people really have no alternative.

The stores do tend to run sales from time to time. I don't know but I imagine when they do overprice stock enough to discourage buying it builds up and then they have to drop prices to move it, so in a way it does balance out somewhat.

Best strategy here is not to make a shopping list of exactly what you want and then go buy that. Rather, walk the aisles and see what is marked down or doesn't seem eye-poppingly expensive and then creatively see how you can make meals around the lesser expensive things that are on sale. Also, it's good for many reasons to buy all the fresh local-grown produce you can at the Sunshine markets.

I do not mean to complain: this is capitalism and the local economy, both locals and visitors, has long since adjusted to the realities of high prices.

Piheo trail to Alakai Swamp to Kilohana Overlook

Yesterday I did one of my favorite hikes to the Kilohana Overlook (as I have detailed here previously). This is a classic and involves some trepidation (some mud to get through) and risk (the view at the end is often obscured by mist) but is always well worth it, in my opinion even if you don't get the view. Memorably the first time out there with my son we encountered total white-out that never cleared. Fortunately I am considerably more weather-savvy here now.

Weather

While there is no telling with the weather here, especially up at Koke'e, here is some guidance to up the odds for seeing the view of Hanalei when you hike out there.

• Check weather forecast for both north shore and mountains - you want it to be clear and sunny in both.
• If rain is predicted, especially anything about heavy rain, I suggest another hike.
• That said, almost never will it be ideal and it doesn't have to be. Even "partly sunny" (better, "mostly sunny") you have a good chance.
• Don't let the rain percentage discourage you. Yesterday is was "50% chance of rain" and not a drop fell on me. When they say "50%" it means half the time somewhere in the mountains some rain my fall - actually not a very useful statistic at all, and not the chances of rain falling on you.
• The mists in the Wainiha valley come and go quickly. Often offshore winds sweep up the valley and you can see the mist rolling up and over the ridge. And when it clears away the blue ocean and Hanalei Bay emerge from the white right before your eyes.

If you get out there and have a view at all, start enjoying it or shooting photos immediately, don't wait as it might disappear after you finish your sandwich. If you see a bunch of mist, take a break and keep an eye out for it to clear. Of course if it's dark and dreary, and no wind is blowing, it might just be the wrong day. I would say as long as it isn't darkly overcast and you see movement in the mist there is a good chance it will clear if you wait 20 or 30 minutes.

Mud

People used to go out here before the boardwalks were put in, amazingly. Even with this modern convenience there is some mud to be negotiated to do this hike. Ideally, go on a clear day when it has not rained in past few days, but at any time I expect there will be some mud to deal with on this one.

Within the first mile you will have some muddy spots to either go around (or through if you like getting dirty) but it gets tricky when the trail gets steep. Most of the messy part is between mile 1 and mile 2. Usually there are some rocks and roots to provide solid ground and tree branches that serve as handholds.

Footwear that you don't mind getting wet and dirty is essential. Good grip is too important as you will need traction at times. The mud will tend to adhere to the soles so you can even slip on dry places, too.

I have found that proceeding very slowly it isn't a problem but you have to take your time, step by step. Also don't be shy about getting your hands dirty (bring a rag to clean up) and with good handholds it isn't hard scrambling up slopes when necessary. Hiking poles (or just one when you are grabbing on) provide great added stability and can be used to test the depth of mud before stepping into it. Remember the steep parts are going to be even trickier coming back down so don't get in over your head. Kaua'i red dirt is pretty powerful at staining so be forewarned it might not all come out.

For details and directions see my previous post on this hike.

• 8.5 miles round trip
• allow 2 to 3 hours each way
• trailhead at end of 550 in Koke'e

Kauai Bill 2491 passes

The bill passed in the middle of the night, earlier today after a marathon special council session. The controversy will undoubtedly continue, there may be lawsuits, enforcement issues, and so forth, but at least we should get some information disclosure and perhaps that will enable some clarity and transparency that seems much needed.

The video is quite instructive (I watched the last 45 minutes, see link below) as the long night meeting in the end brought out the very human side of the process. Following 17:55 there is a distinct turning point when the patience of many in the room suddenly runs thin, order is firmly but gently restored by the chair, and from that point there is a momentum to wrap up with thank-you's and move to a vote.

First off what's striking is how gut-wrenchingly emotional this entire process is. I have to say that objectively looking at this bill it requires what appears to be quite routine county oversight of five businesses yet the tone of the room is as if World War Three is hanging in the balance.

Overhanging the whole thing is a county attorney opinion about the bill that the council has chosen not to make public. As a result, there are references in the proceedings to unspecified legal concerns that they are unable to discuss publicly. It's difficult to have useful public debate when there are important concerns held in secret as part of the process. Why these legal issues were not mitigated through the amendment process I have no idea.

Another unfortunate circumstance surrounding the bill is that in theory the state of Hawaii should already have responsibility for this matter but in fact has been doing so little for so many years that the county was forced to take this on itself if anything was to be done at all. Yet for the county to act within the purview of state responsibility appears to require a Memorandum of Understanding. Whether the bill or the MOU comes first seems to be a bit of a chicken-and-egg problem but since the mayor has already started dialog with the state - and was urging delay as those discussions seem to take considerable time. With this bill in the works now for many months I would think a MOU could have been forged long ago, or perhaps an MOU of intent to produce an MOU. Again, this is all part of an opaque process so I won't speculate beyond remarking how clear-as-mud the whole thing is.

With the bill now destined to become county law (the mayor has pledged not to veto it) no doubt the county, the state, and of course the affected big ag companies here will doubtless be having many strategy meetings. By no means does passage mean the Bill 2491 story is over!

Coincidentally in Washington DC it seems that also after a lot of emotion the Congress finally agreed to fund the government and restore federal services that have been shutdown over their wrangling. This may be a week for reconciliation.

More details:

• Special Council Meeting video can be found here: click the County Council section look for Special Council Meeting, 10/15/13, 18h 37m; click on Video link there.
• Joan Conrow
• Andy Parx
• The Garden Island

Sunrise

Amazing sunrise Monday morning - the photo just hints at what it was like.

Dr. Pang on GMO in Kaua'i

Today I learned about Dr. Pang, watched his recent testimony on Kaua'i about Bill 2491 and GMO, and found it compelling. While 100% of what he says may not be perfect, this overall message is the best thought out and well reasoned I have yet to seen by far. It's must-see (linked above) if you care about this issue.

Dr. Pang makes a number of excellent points that I won't attempt to condense and summarize here - he is the expert and speaks for himself most capably.

Speaking for myself, not an expert, my key takeaway that I found convincing is his appeal to disclosure: the first thing that we must do is to get the companies doing this work to log and report on their activities. The reasoning is quite straightforward: without solid information it's impossible to do any kind of scientific investigation at all. Only when we have actual data can we begin to look into claims of harm as well as exonerate the same activities from culpability. Absent reliable data, everything remains unclear, nothing can be proven one way or the other. (Again, this just touches on one part of he presentation and following Q&A in the video, but it's such a fundamental point I think it's worth focus.)

He anticipates and counters a number of obvious possible objections, but the bottom line here is even if it is imperfect data, even if the county cannot rigorously enforce accurate and full disclosure, collection of data enables science going forward. We can improve on data quality and quantity, compliance over time but the longer we delay we lose the opportunity to gather data at all in the present. Surely any responsible business already has all of this data and more internally. To the degree details are confidential the county should be trustworthy to keep it private, or only publish digests to interested parties such as researchers that would not reveal proprietary business intelligence inappropriately. Providing data about operations to the county cannot be a major expense at the scale these companies operate, nor is it at all a threat to their business.

Also the analogy Dr. Pang draws to sugar cane burning oversight on Maui seemed relevant and promising. Companies are obliged to log and report whenever they plan to burn cane fields, an essential part of the growing cycle for sugar cane. They provide the county details such as location, area, wind conditions before and after, and so forth. The county in turn can not establish buffer zones or warn citizens as appropriate given the information. Relating this back to GMO and Bill 2491, Dr. Pang aptly noted that ideally the county should get disclosure first and based on that information it could better set effective buffer zones rather than pre-establish buffers in the bill itself; however, he concurred that if the situation was deemed urgent then early setting of buffers arbitrarily was reasonable.

Additionally, Dr. Pang recommended (which Bill 2491 does not do) getting disclosure of the specific GMO mutations being released into the environment. This makes good sense as basic data gathering practice. There was confusion in Q&A, but I believe what this means is disclosure of the type of GMO product (for example, in the case of corn, is it herbicide-resistant or insecticide-producing).

We will see if touching on this topic leads to vociferous responses in the comments: I welcome input so long as it is respectful and backed by evidence cited (see below for my part; naturally, Dr. Pang backs up his statements with citations himself). Should anyone reading this disagree with my takeaway, I would invite them to comment, and only ask for a specific response ("disclosure" below means per Sec. 22-22.4 of Kauai County Bill 2491). Here are a few points I would like to see anybody's best rebuttal:

1. How would reasonable disclosure make the situation significantly worse?
2. If required disclosure is onerous to business, exactly how, and what are the major costs and impacts incurred?
3. Without real data from required disclosure, how can government or independent researchers possibly study the impact of GMO on west Kaua'i communities at all?

Background info:

• Dr. Pang on GMO health concerns
• GMO position paper referenced in the above talk (I don't necessarily "support" this)
• Kauai County Bill 2491 (as amended, latest version as of 2013/10/8) 

Saturday: Nualolo Trail, Emalani Festival

Early Saturday I headed to the west on Highway 50 and up Highway 550 to Koke'e State Park to hike the Nualolo Trail and also see the Emalani Festival.

I was the first hiker down the Nualolo Trail that day as evidenced by repeatedly getting spider webs in the face but it was worth it to get out to Lolo Point and have it all to myself. As a bonus, the trail offered me guava much of the way: handfuls of ripe fruit would either be right in the middle of the trail or easily picked up just at the edge. (I assume the fruit fell and naturally rolled to the slight depression usually near the center of the trail.)

Above is a shot looking down into the Nualolo Aina valley to the right (east) of the trail. It's always a striking view, well over 2000 feet down the steep sides. Inevitably white birds (egrets perhaps, they just look like white dots at this distance) soar through the air here. I can't imagine that the birds are flying around up there in order to get food: it must just be the beauty of the place that makes them circle seemingly without end.

I have already written about The Nualolo Trail before as the first leg of the wonderful loop hike: out Nualolo, over on the Cliff Trail, and back up the Awaawapuhi (with a walk back along the road to boot). The Cliff Trail that makes the loop possible has now been closed so had to do the Nualolo out and back.

It was absolutely clear out at Lolo Point (at the end of the trail, nearly four miles out). I took my time just looking around and savoring the silence ... that is, when the helicopters left the place alone. It must have been a busy day for them, at one point there were three of them flying around the one valley.

Heading back I ran into a few groups, in particular a nice couple from Iowa that I chatted with a few minutes. Back at the park, in my absence the place had filled up with cars parked along the road and over a section of the meadow by the lodge, and the festival was in full swing.

I had missed Queen Emma's appearance on horseback but got to enjoy the hula presentations and live music. As usual there was food and local groups of all kinds had booths set up in addition to the show.

Island days

It is good to be back to the island. I arrived a good hour late due to inter-island flight delay from Maui, then more delay renting a car but made it out of the airport before five. I swung by the storage locker where I stow things while off-island and grabbed nearly everything and with a fairly full Jeep headed for Kalaheo where I am staying right in town.

Wednesday

First day on the island I knew exactly what I wanted to do and where I wanted to go: the Allerton Garden (more info). It's a very special place in so many ways; entering the Lawai Kai valley it feels like you are being immersed in luscious tropical surroundings not quite of this world. Along the road I waved at gardeners I have worked with to say, "I'm back," and they seem genuinely glad to see me. (After all, in some small way I make their job easier.)

The familiar crew was there though reduced in numbers due to continuing budgetary constraints. That six gardeners can keep 83 acres of an elaborate tropical garden in shape is nothing short of a miracle, so I am happy to pitch in. We worked the stretch of road (not on the usual tours) that leads from the bamboo grove along the east bank of the river down toward the house and beach (shown above, right). That curvy coconut tree is just high enough for a truck to drive under it, though they said it gets weighed down when it bears fruit so they have to keep picking coconuts to keep access.

As you can see, their equipment is well used, and even this old truck they only had use of half of the day. Weeding and trimming took the whole day, but the work is peaceful and it's always a treat just to be there and spend time in that environment.

I met some of the other gardeners, got some starfruit at lunchtime, and the day went quickly. While up by the bamboo grove suddenly I heard a crash and looked just in time to see a twenty foot branch come crashing down inside the grove. It was easy to pull out and cut up for hauling to the compost pile. 

Flower in the rocky area
across from the curvy coconut

After work I met a friend for beer to catchup on things and watched the sun set (photo at top) at Glass Beach (in Eleele). A wonderful first day back.

Thursday

At 7am met the local breakfast group that has been kind enough to include me in their gatherings and caught up with everyone. It's remarkably easy to fall right back into the swing of island life even after two-plus months on the mainland.

Mid-morning I drove out to Waimea to visit my friends at the West Kauai visitor center and see how things are in the far west side. By then it was turning out to be quite a hot day.  Lunch at Island Tacos: my usual, the Seared Ahi Wasabi taco. Read the paper at the Hanapepe library and picked up some books for reading, then back to Kalaheo.
A friend's ulu (breadfruit) tree is loaded and he prepared some for me - best I've ever had. He picked it fresh, set the sticky white sap drain out a few minutes, then peeled, cut into chunks, and boiled it until soft like a potato. It was very moist and delicious: the taste is something like a potato with a texture perhaps more like a yam. With salt and a little pepper it was tasty.

Upcoming Events

Orchid on that curvy coconut

This Saturday (October 12) is the Emalani festival up at Koke'e. There will be live music, hula, and a portrayal of Queen Emma in memory of her epic journey up the mountain and out across the Alaka'i Swamp (before the boardwalk was built, obviously) to the Kilohana Lookout (hike). It must have been a sight to see with the queen's entourage trudging through the muck and mud up there for miles: how many European royalty would do such a thing?

Next Saturday (October 19) is "Na Mele No Kaumuali`i" in Waimea featuring original music to honor the last great king of this island. See the web site for latest information and details.

Maui transit

Few flights to Kaua'i are direct and on Hawaiian it's either via Honolulu or via Maui. I prefer Maui just because it's a smaller and thus easier to navigate airport and closer connection.

Also the food here in the airport isn't bad; at Honolulu, for all its size, I have not found a decent meal there yet. At Sammy's Grill (Sammy Hagar) the Beach Salad with Chimichurri dressing was good and there's a full bar.

I'm sitting in the central waiting area people watching. Mostly tourists with locals cruising through from time to time. There are several shops - local goods, T-shirts etc. mostly and a Starbucks in addition to Sammy's and a small food court.

When the airport navigation system was being installed after the war, Jim Hogg (chief pilot for Hawaiian airlines), flew so many test flights they decided to name the installation after him. The three-letter-code he modestly chose this catchy variant on his own name: OGG, which is easier to remember than the city name Kahului for me at least. If you don't fly direct, via OGG may be your best option.

Flying to Kaua'i

Today I'm flying back to the island after a long absence taking care of business mainland. Writing from the airport gate there may be a few helpful things I can offer to prospective travelers.

I have been flying Hawaiian Airlines and always been happy with the service. For domestic round trips they offer "Coach Plus" which for an extra $50 gives you two checked bags plus no-fee flight changes. Since they charge to check bags anyway it's almost free and ability to change flights (you do pay difference if the new flight is higher priced) is great. For example you can hop on an earlier connecting flight if you arrive early (though not if you checked a bag). One glitch I have learned about is that if you can't change return flight online (and the error message you get doesn't explain that at all), it only works if the ticket is yet unused.

At Lihue airport transit lounge check out the world clocks - a little different than the usual.

At Lihue bags usually appear promptly after arrival in my experience. If you are renting a car walk across the airport loop road and get on a shuttle to the agency you want. There can be significant lines at rental agencies so if you can get a priority reservation it may be worth it. 

Macadamia nut pancakes

Make the mix (note: this makes twice what is called for below; halve if you just want a little)

You can make this just as the first step, or mix ahead in large batches (see below); it keeps as long as flour keeps fresh.

2 c all-purpose flour

3 Tbsp sugar

5 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

Optional: crush a handful of macadamia nut and saute at low heat generously in butter until light golden brown. Later, you will drop nuts on grill and then batter on top, if you like sprinkle more on top of raw batter for the flip side.

Add liquids to make pancakes (serves 2 generously or 4 modestly)

1 c mix (above)

1 c buttermilk or yogurt or milk or combination (to taste)

1 egg (don't toss the shell yet!)

half shell-full of vegetable oil (*)

optional: add 2 or 3 Tbsp of coconut milk

(*) Crack egg in two, save one intact half shell, fill to brim with oil to measure.

This makes a very thick pancake batter which I like. 

If you want to thin by adding more liquid you can adjust easily to your taste.

Drop onto well oiled grill preheated to between 375 and 400 F.

Spread out batter to about 1/2 inch thickness. Flip when golden brown, both sides.

Serve with coconut syrup or maple syrup to taste.

To make a large batch of mix, here are quadrupled amounts:

8 c all-purpose flour

3/4 c sugar

7 Tbsp baking powder

2 tsp baking soda

2 tsp salt

Nacirema

If you have any interest in anthropology and you haven't read about the Nacirema yet, I highly recommend it. My take is below the fold, so you can have a fresh, unprejudiced view first if you like. Here's the classic initial study: it is an old study but with some minor updates holds up remarkably well as still very accurate and insightful. (Apparently this remains the #1 most popular article of the entire open collection maintained by the American Anthropological Association [source].)

Body Ritual among the Nacirema - Miner, Horace (1956)

Here's another piece, however, in my opinion it's overdone and belabors the points it makes.

The Mysterious Fall of the Nacirema - Thompson, Neil B. (1972)

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So what's the point and does this have anything to do with Kaua'i?

To start this new chapter I wanted to do something different, and stretch the boundaries of this blog as well as push myself to tackle tougher subjects, go out on a limb. (I welcome feedback in comments, especially if this is a turn for the worse.) Also, I found it wonderfully hilarious while at the same time in places painful to read.

In my time on Kaua'i I have learned quite a bit (though I am just a beginner) about Hawaiian culture. Many people there hold the traditional culture in very high respect and subtly incorporate it into daily life in ways big and small. That the old culture persists in Hawaii is well-known to even the most casual tourist (though they may have a very limited surface understanding of what that culture is). To me this is a striking contrast to the mainland - where there is an absence of interest in past culture.

I am writing from the mainland, from within the bounds of time and space of the Nacirema, yet the culture described by Miner comes across as quite foreign despite being fairly accurately portrayed. While the article is dated, I remember as a child the era of the time of the writing, and know it to be quite accurate at the time. Yes, it generalizes behaviors that in fact individually vary considerably, but then all anthropology makes sweeping generalizations for the sake of brevity as well as to capture broadly applicable insights. While in fifty-some years there have been some changes, those changes have been quite subtle, in fact, surprisingly little has changed compared to our subjective sense of how much the world has changed over the last fifty years.

Yet if you go back another fifty years, the body ritual practices of the same peoples and place would be quite different: a lot less privacy, less regularity, and far simpler and cruder. That is, these core rituals have at most a tenuous tie to older generations and are largely newly synthesized in our lifetimes. Notably, today we have little interest in the past practices of those people. Looking back we would surely find their infrequent and minimal hygienic practices backward and of no relevance to ourselves. In other words, we have neither respect nor interest in the body rituals of our ancestors despite that fact as Miner accurately points out that today such rituals are considered extremely important by any proper member of society.

Yes, there are many obvious differences between the two localities; body ritual is just one facet of a complex culture to focus on; nonetheless, I believe that the contrasts are instructive. Big generalizations:

• Hawaiian culture (despite suppression and much loss) has continuity over time unlike Nacireman.
• Modern people in the islands hold the older culture in high respect and seek to continue it.
• Older culture is woven into modern life in Hawaii, the two existing harmoniously side by side. 
• Nacirema radically evolves ritual while deeply embedding it in current culture while ignoring if not completely ignoring most remnants of formers ways.
• Nacirema cultural continuity with the past is minimal; Hawaiians seek to maintain past culture.

Absolutely, the Nacirema body ritual article is parody in the sense that the author was obviously part of the culture from childhood and personally perfectly familiar with the practices described (claims of managing to get subjects of the study to reveal information are clearly made up for effect). Yet had a "Martian anthropologist"actually written the piece, it may well have turned much the same, and what it says (for the time it was written) is reasonably accurate if light on details.

Yet the palpable cognitive dissidence of reading such familiar practices expressed in such a foreign (at times bizarre-sounding) way is Miner's point. Which brings me to my second point: studying Nacirema suggests some differently nuanced ways of interpreting learnings about Hawaiian culture.

• Never underestimate the fact that as outsiders observing another culture, we don't have full context and hence easily describe what are to the people themselves very sensible practices in an unnatural way, falsely making them appear quite strange (when arguably they are not really so at all).
• When our own peculiar practices are objectively laid out for inspection our instinctive response is, "yes, but, you see, our [ritual] really works!" So if the ancient Hawaiians were still here, that probably would be their response as well.
• Looking at ourselves through the lens of anthropology perhaps best teaches us a little humility and provides excellent perspective as to how well this academic study really captures the essence of any culture it may study. It's a great reminder not to overestimate the accuracy of our knowledge of things we in fact know fleetingly little about.

Finally, that so many people do treasure the traditional culture of Hawaii and in whatever way they can keep it alive today is essential to making it accessible and understandable, and by living it they wear off much of the strangeness of simply being different, which in turn enables us all to experience it in a genuine way not otherwise possible. Mahalo, Hawaii.

A New Chapter

I'm heading back to Kaua'i next week and very much looking forward to it. Look for this blog to get rolling again very soon.

I've been thinking about how this blog best adapts going forward as my trajectory to the island strengthens. While I have be no means seen the entire island by any stretch of imagination, I have covered most of the easily accessible parts one way or the other. I need to get a lot more experienced before attempting to go further off the beaten path: though I have some promising leads it will take time. Most of the travelogue sort of things I can write about usefully I already have.

Let me explicitly invite comments from anyone "out there" as to what they would like to see more or less of. While I can go deeper there isn't a lot of new material I expect to come up with unless I broaden scope. And of course I hope to keep it interesting.

My current thinking is to start writing about living on the island, shifting away from visiting the island. In the past year I have spend well more than half my time there (though I have not fully moved there, I am working on that) so have a unique transitionary perspective that goes beyond the typical visitor's. While I have tried to clearly express my own point of view, things should get more opinionated and more subjective because when you live somewhere you don't exactly stay objective about the place.

My favorite Kaua'i blogger recently called it quits (for the time being at least) and while I can't begin to fill that hole, nor am I that plugged into goings on, I can say that I will miss her insights and it does stand as a shining example.