Kealakekua, HI
I have embarked on a grand adventure to Hawaii for 6 months, starting November 15th, 2021 with my incredibly capable brother Forest. We will be working as an organic farmers at Kawelo Farm as well as some building projects to improve the infrastructure for processing goods and living spaces. In exchange for labor, the incredible family hosting us is providing food and living quarters on the farm. Here I plan to record our journey through photos and little snippets of our 182 days here.
I intend to do updates so you can follow my journey as you please. There will always be more photos and videos on my shared google drive. Pictures will automatically be available there so you can see what I photograph throughout my day. I welcome you to comment or ask questions on the photos if you feel so inclined!
You can get access here:
WEEK 1
day-by-day
NOV 15
We arrived at the airport at 7:30pm Hawaii time, after almost 23 hours of travel; a 2-hour car ride to the shuttle bus, 45 minute bus ride, then two 6 hour flights. Lastly, we were met by Todd to pick us up. We drove to the farm through Kona and were able to see the night time glow of the towns local coffee shops, food and lights coming from up the side of the mountain (of volcano). We learned about island directions and how direction is in context of Mountain side (Mauka) and Ocean side (Makai). We settled in for the night, we able to meet our wonderful host family, and get cozy in our rooms before crashing for the night. I fell asleep to the sound of frogs and toads peeping in the jungle around us.
NOV 16
I woke up the next day I was greeted by the many sounds of roosters and birds. We met Todd for breakfast and he made a beautiful breakfast with a fruit plate with freshly fallen Lilikoi (passionfruit), Oranges and Papaya, along with cinnamon raisin toast and cream-cheese. We got a tour of the farm and looked at all the potential projects in store for us for the next 6 months and even beyond. We hopped right in a started off with harvesting and processing coffee beans.
The ancient avocado tree that lumes above the yard, will intermittently drop avocados down on to the ground. Now well deserving on its name, The Drop Zone. The beautiful avocados are on average the size of a softball in their classic oblong shape. I have witnessed the tree drop about 15 fruit a day and they need to be collected each day into a wheelbarrow. There are truly too many to know what to do with. The farm has used them to create a truly magical Chocolate-Sugar-Avocado popsicle (Otherwise known as the CSA popsicle). They are deliciously creamy and has been approved multiple times by Forest and I, in partnership with Quality Control.
Our other daily tasks include feeding the chickens, gathering fallen Lilakoi and Avocados, harvesting coffee beans and then processing them, and lastly making as many popsicles as possible. For lunch we made a udon noodle ramen with vegetables from the garden.
After work we were taken out into the town to do a preliminary grocery shop for the times we are not eating all together and went to a gorgeous ocean swimming spot. The water was truly the bluest I have every seen and my mind had to adjust to the fact it was naturally occurring. The water was warm and we let the water push us around for a while as the surges came and went. I found a promising looking coconut on the rocks and we decided to bring it home and see what was inside. I let Forest do the machete work.
NOV 17
Today was a big coffee bean processing day, we harvested another 2.5 gallons of the coffee of the trees, then ran them through the mill that takes the red husk off. We did some seeding into trays for the garden, as well as popped some transplants into the garden beds. At one point in the day I tried to source a howler monkey noise coming from up in a tree, until I realized I had been bamboozled by a wild Forest. We made more CSA popsicles and even had to freeze some avocados that didn't make it into the batch.
NOV 18
After our morning chores, we started our harvest for the farms' First CSA Box! We harvested and washed a collection of produce to put in the box. We then made bundles of produce for 10 families that the farm is supporting in an effort to connect and supply them with fresh produce. Then, of course we made popsicles. We processed the coffee beans soaking from yesterdays harvest, rinsing and sorting through the good and bad ones before spreading them out in the dehydrator. We spent some time weed-wacking to manage the overgrowing weeds that climb into the farm. I hit a mushy avocado and Gaucified myself pretty hard.
NOV 19
Today we harvested and dried more coffee beans, did a huge clean and organization of the Hoshidana, which is a building built for processing Kona coffee beans. The building right now is not in working function to process the beans, but is a historical building on the property. On of the long term plans is to restore the original building and honor the Hoshidana that once preformed to make rich Kona Coffee. In more modern news, Todd bought a chipper that loads very nicely on the tractor and will be an exciting new tool for next week!
After work, we got together with an old friend of mine, Sage, that lives on the island now and grew up a couple towns over from me. She and I even saw each other on the ultimate field from time to time in high school, and almost played together on Siege Ultimate in 2019. She took us to a beautiful beach in South Kona and we were able to swim and take a walk down a path to see some incredible lava formations and sea creatures, such as sea urchins and a sea cucumber!
I highly recommend the shared drive for more of these photos
NOV 20
Saturday!
Upon waking up I made breakfast with some guava fruit and beautiful Kona coffee.
We discovered an all yellow coffee bean tree the day before and took a walk into the trees to discuss harvesting it for a beautiful yellow husk tea. We decided it would be a beautiful beach day and we got ready for the beach and grabbed snorkel gear. We drove with Todd and Alvira to Ho’okena to a beautiful beach. The sand was so hot we had to skip over it to not burn our feet even with slippers on. I was introduced to my snorkel gear and we found a nice spot down at the end of the beach to get in. The water was so nice and I learned quickly how to put my face in the water and breathe. What an absolutely strange and amazing sight. We saw all types of fish, sea urchins, blue and green coral and a blobby sponge thing. For the first time snorkeling I was amazed at how buoyant our bodies were in the salt water and the ease of swimming with flippers.
On our way back from the beach we stopped at a Honaunau Poke Shop and got some incredible Poke. For dinner I baked some dessert trying out a new recipe to eliminate more avocados. I baked banana avocado muffins with chocolate chips. The were pretty tasty and had a super moist cakey texture.
NOV 21-27
WEEK 2
This week we harvested a bunch of fruit, peppers, and squash to begin processing into canned products. One of which was the Calamansi-Lime which we made a delicious marmalade from. The other was the Red Bonet Pepper that really packs a punch in the hot sauce. And lastly, the Lilakoi, was simmered down into a grenadine elixir. On Thanksgiving, I made a Kabocha Squash Pie, which is a lot like Pumpkin and Butternut combined, it was delicious with cinnamon and a graham cracker crust. Todd and Forest made Seitan from scratch.
In our after work activities, Forest and I did the Captain Cook monument trail hike. It goes down about a 2 miles and goes through tall grasses, lava and trees, to the Kealakekua Bay and it is which is to be said to be one of the best snorkeling places on the island. We both attest, it is truly wonderful and magical underwater scenes with incredible fish and reef life.
On the weekend we went to the local farmers market and have been meeting some incredible vendors. One vendor Sara, recognized Forests hat from the Western Mass Valley and we talked to her for a while and found out she had lived in Amherst for a bit. After buying some fruits and different goods, we went to a beach and snorkeled around a bit. When we first arrived we could see a pod of Dolphins swimming around and the little babes shooting up in the air and twirling around.
This week we went surfing for the first time too, and had an absolute blast. We went to Kahalu'u Beach and found some moderate waves. A highlight was captured only through Todds mental imagery, as he saw Forest and I catch the same wave and ride it all the way in. What a joy.
WEEK 3
NOV 28-DEC 4
This week began again with a Sunday afternoon farmers market, though this time we saw something neither Forest or I were expecting. The Permaculture Promise. By Jono Niger. Sitting on the table of a farmer named Patrick and his intern Spencer, was a worn copy of the book Forest's Dad had written and published. We talked with the two for a while as Patrick soaked in the celebrity's son standing at his booth. It was quite an incredible moment and we got their contact to do a farm visit later in the week. We joined them after work on Thursday at his farm, only 4 miles down the road from ours. We were able to talk more with Patrick the wonderful owner of the property who has been working and living on the land for 4-5 years.
We got the chance to go into Kona center and walk around see some touristy things and people watch a bit. We went to a sports bar and found some Hawaiian draft beer to spin on and played some pool to pass the time. We couldn't pass up the opportunity to indulge in some homemade ice cream as we passed by a shop. We sat with a cartoonish Captain Jack as we ate our ice cream and watched the drunk tourists call for each other and meander down the boardwalk.
During the work week, we made progress on working the land into beds and clearing some overgrown jungle. Wednesday everyone knows is Hump Day, but we have reclaimed the meaning to reference the giant hump made of compost, trees and dirt that remains. We made our first attack to deconstruct the hump and take the beast down to just its pieces. Progress will be documented here over the course of the battle.
We went surfing after work one day at a new spot called Kohanaiki Beach and caught some serious waves, and watched some even more serious surfers.
Montage of The Hump Day Battles
WEEK 4
DEC 5-11
This week featured a storm, end of season coffee harvesting, pineapples, and freeing avocados! Going into the week we were hunkering down for the storm that hit, bringing snow to the far side of the island and big rain storms here. The overall damage of the farm was minimal, but by the end of the heavy wind and rain we were missing a roof panel on the barn and had to clear a fallen macadamia nut tree off the road from the farm. The land here is unlike any place I have lived before. The soil is rich and full, but is also positioned on top of the base of the island, Lava. The soil varies from 1 inch of soil to 2-3 feet before hitting either large lava rocks, this creates certain difficulties including shallow roots for trees. I love storms, so it was exciting to feel lots of wind whipping through the open barn and see the oceans many whitecaps from up on the hill. We are in the dry season right now, and the weather is mellow and within a 10 degree range from around 66-75 degrees with lots of sun and some quick showers every now and then.
We have been developing the land each week a bit more to establish the places where crops, trees and fruit are going in and designated spaces for compost. We created a beautiful pineapple grove along the side of the road way to the low end of the property. We have also been doing wrap up on harvesting coffee and pruning back older branches to make way for new growth in the next season. As for Avos, in tandem with making popsicles, we have been setting up a box at the end of the road for people to claim as many as they want and bringing them where everyone go to give to anyone we see.
In other exciting news! I found a pick up ultimate group to go to on Wednesday evenings. Forest and I drove down to the fields in Kailau and played with a super fun ultimate group. We were able to fill in easily and have a 7-on-7 game with one sub. Next time I will take pictures I promise.
To finish out the week, on Saturday we went to an estate sale up towards Waimea. It was not very fruitful, but we did come away with a beautiful drive and being able to see more of the island. We were able to go surfing again and and find some delicious baked goods too. In the evening, Forest and I checked out a bar that was a mile down the road and we played some pool, watched live music and interacted with the local crowd of bar goers.
DEC 12 - 18
WEEK 5
The work week has become more self regulated as we fall into an ability to self task and accomplish what needs to be done. We have developed a pattern that makes for an efficient work routine. We lapsed the first 30 days of our stay here on Wednesday and it both feels like time is flying and we have also accomplished so much in a short time. The spaces and plots around the farm are starting to take shape and we have finally started up the wood chipper to get at the piles of limbs we have been consolidating into mulch and compost material.
Over the weekend we got to see more of the Island as we traveled out to Hilo. We had to make a trip out to meet a potentail fit for our dog Lilo. She is an absolute sweetheart, but is a bit of an escape artist and enjoys attacking the sheep down the road. It is very sad to see her go, but the hope is that she has a happy home where others livestock are not at risk.
On our journey to the other side of the island, we saw a beautiful rainbow and the landscape change quite a bit too. We stopped at the "most southern bakery in the USA" at the most south point of the island. After meeting with Lilos new family and parting ways, we went to the national park and hiked many paths through the dark rain, and eventually ended up at the smoldering volcano opening, lava and all. More pictures and photos are in my google drive.
In other exciting weekly news, I baked my very first Focaccia, which came out beautifully. I put together a little album below of some of the leaves I have pressed in the last couple weeks that are ready for their next artful stage.
WEEK 6
DEC 19 - 25
We have been told the weather here recently has been quite odd for the dry season. Its has often been raining in the mornings or afternoons, somewhat sporadicly, but more often than in previous years. It has been incredible to see some of the down pours and hearing it drum on the metal roof above us.
This week we found some farmers that we excited to show us their farms so we followed along and got to see some more incredible land. The first was with a man named Jai, that we met chopping coconuts at the farmers market. The farm Jai works on has many different crops and is owned by a photographer, named Lynn, who spends half his time in Alaska doing wilderness tours and being hired for his incredible nature videography. The other half of his time is spent managing the farm in Hawaii and getting it back up and running after a long pause. Our first farm tour with Jai, who works for Lynn, led to our next. We asked to help Jai with his client Jeremiah, who needed his coconut trees groomed. We helped clean up the giant frawns and put the coconuts into the bed of the truck. We even got to keep a few :) We were invited to Jeremiah's fish and hydroponic farm down the road so we hopped in and went on the next adventure. It was an incredible farm and we got the hear about the symbiosis of the fish fertilizing the plants and the plants filtering the water as it flowed through the farm. He was raising some for meat (Tilapia) and others for decoration (Coy). We learned a lot and got some great contacts for possible side jobs. Everyone and every farm seems to need a couple extra hands around here. There's a lot of work to be done.
WEEK 7
DEC 26 - 31
The week to finish out the year and the end of 2021. We have been here for 2.5 months now and are almost half way through our grand adventure. I feel so luck to be here with this family and making strides toward building community. We officially have 2 CSA members that pick up a mixed box of veggies every week. One of my favorite parts of farming has been seeding and then harvesting beautiful fruits and vegetables for people to eat.
It doesn’t feel like a new year is turning over here, there is a lack of the dark New England cold that is necessary for such a transition. I however feel that every day a new amount of comfortability seeps into my being. I am getting more and more used to the patterns of living here in Kona and have been able to shake the culture shock. Transitioning from a very busy Boston life to a tranquil Hawaiian pace has admittedly been very difficult. I guess the end of 2021 aligns well with my acceptance of this new environment. Happy New Years from the big island of Hawaii.
JANUARY
HIGHLIGHTS
Starting the new year off strong, with adventures, new friends, surfing and lots of yummy dishes. The biggest highlight this month was camping at Mahaliki Beach with 2 amazing women from The Western Mass Valley, Sage and Isabel. We hiked 2 miles out down the beach and set up camp. We got to watch the sunset, know each other better and share stories about our dads who all run together occasionally. We used our supplies well and had bread on a stick both for dinner and for breakfast (along with smores too). We all smelled like fire by the next morning and took on the challenge of consuming the collective 16 oranges to lighten our load for the trek back.
Another incredible highlight for January has been the amount of surfing we have gotten in the last month. We have been going at least 2x a week, and have been able to catch and get smashed by an equal number of waves. It has been such an incredible feeling to be able to get out into the water whenever we can. We have also been going to pick up ultimate every Wednesday and have been welcomed by an incredible community of fast and tenacious ultimate players. We have collected some friends along the way and been surfing with them too whenever we can.
This month on the farm I have been compiling some incredible recipes for baked goods and new Kawelo Farm products. So far the highlights have been, Lilikoi Cheese Cake, Sourdough (its different with the climate here), Chocolate-Chip walnut cookies, a mint birthday cake for Sha’an, Jabuticaba syrup, matcha popsicles, and we started making our own yogurt too.
I am looking forward to the new recipes and have been doing my best to keep posting on instagram @foodcrushes with the recipes and food I have been making. I am always willing to share recipes, just reach out! Happy First month of 2022!
FEBRUARY
HIGHLIGHTS
Although I recognize February is the shortest month with 28 days, I will say it flew by just as any other month. February is the coldest month here on the Big Island, meaning the temperature ranges between 62 - 82 degrees. Terrible, I know. We have been increasing our seeding and planting schedule as we recruit more CSA members. We are battling the "cold" the best we can and preparing for the rainy season to make our plants happy!
Outside of work, Forest and I have been chasing waves in Kahala'u Bay and Kohanaiki, with our friends Katherine, Julien, and Jack. Julien and Jack are at the Mau Loa Pilot School and getting there helicopter pilot licenses. Julien kindly invited us on a lesson with him and his teacher and we excitedly said, "Where and When?". Julien, an amazing pilot by the way, flew us up north and we got to see much of the coast, Waipio Valley from above and incredible waterfalls.
At the end of the month Forest and I did our first Island hop to Oahu. We explored the city of Honolulu, camped out in the beautiful botanical garden "Kahua Nui Makai", and made new friends after joining a Goalty game in Ala Moana Park. We were welcomed warmly by the city and got to see lots through TheBus windows using our Holo cards. Oahu is an older Island than the Big Island and it shows. The landscape is much different than where we live in Kona and an incredible sight to see. We got to see and experience very different terrain and spoil ourselves with ice cream and island treats from the farmers market. Some of our favorite farmers market treats to indulge in, when we can find it, has been Logan Fruit and Mochi.
We wrapped up this month by baking some Focaccia and sampling new Jabuticaba Jellies made earlier in the month.
MARCH
HIGHLIGHTS
Leaving the coldest month behind, I shed my extra sleeping bag for a single duvet. Embarrassingly, I will admit at night the coldest it got was 54 degrees. but with windchill it really felt more like 52 degrees. With the warmer weather coming in so does the rainy season. The rain started going into the second week of march giving light to heavy showers every afternoon into the evening. Luckily for us that means our work day from 7-2 outside was mostly sunny with a nice sprinkle in the afternoon. To avoid some of the rain in the afternoon post work, we would hit the beach at a lower elevation to surf or sit in the sun. The rain depends on elevation and the higher up the volcano you go the more rain, and sooner it starts. Kawelo Farm sits at ~1,500 feet so we get a perfect amount to keep the plants hydrated and happy.
Projects this month included finishing up the front Lanai for Todd and Elviras home, CSA harvests, creating more beds for planting into, and making Lilikoi hard candies. This month Forests parents visited and spent time seeking out Ulu (breadfruit) and exploring the island. We got to spend some time with them as well as make a trip over to Hilo side. Another special guest was Kai, the intern at Kawelo before we arrived. It was neat going through the property with eyes that hadn't seen the new progress. We made a trip to Hilo in seek of Mochi, the Hilo Farmers Market, and turtles (we found them all and more!). A new exploration area was to the Koloko Cloud Forest where we were able to do a nice hike through a very unique climate. Forest became quickly obsessed with the prehistoric sized ferns, and how can you blame him. (Pictures of this trip on the shared drive for curious viewers.)
With a close to March our time here becomes ever short with a month and a half to go, both nostalgia and a craving for home kick in.
APRIL
HIGHLIGHTS
To start up our last full month, Forest and I hopped on a flight to Oahu to meet our friends that were visiting for vacation from Amherst. We met up with Chris and Claudia and were in and out of the AirB&B in Waikiki bound for the beach. It was wonderful to see some familiar faces after 5 months and getting to relax with some incredible people to explore Oahu with. We met a local guy working at Waikiki beach and he showed us some fun night scene spots. We spent our last day exploring the north shore of Oahu at Haleiwa beach and eating delicious food.
Back on the Farm the Lilikoi started putting out new fruit and flowers, as well as the Jaboticaba tree for its 3rd time since we have been here. The seasons are mild in temperature change, but the plants feel it and bloom with the new rainy season. The Plumeria all across Kona are blooming and the flowers are starting to make the air fresh with an incredible floral aroma. We have excitedly been packing produce boxes on the farm and this month have gotten enough interest to pack 9 boxes for our loyal CSA Members. The eggplant and cucumbers have been looking particularly tasty.
As for more fun and adventures, we planned a beach day with our Kona Ultimate crew outside of the normal Wednesday evening pick up. We gathered on Hapuna beach at 8 am to claim our sand, and set up cones for a 5-on-5 Beach Ultimate Game. After the sand got too hot to run around in with bare feet with jumped in the 78 degree water to cool off. We gathered at our teammate Rash’s house and spent time together enjoying mixed drinks, poke, swimming in the pool, hot tubbing and card games. It was quite luxurious if I do say so! Thank you Rash!
To finish out the month, we went camping at Makalawena with our Western Mass gals Isabel and Julia Snodgrass and Sage Lumis. (At the same time our dads ALSO were hanging out, we will have to debate who had more fun).
MAY
HIGHLIGHTS
With our hourglass running low on sand, and 2 weeks left at Kawelo farm, time is running out. We planned and checked off many adventures before our departure. To our surprise, an unexpected visitor called from the Airport May 2nd. Oliver Fay (a friend from home and a fellow Amherst High School survivor) had arrived in the Kona airport rather than his intended Honolulu, Oahu arrival. We willingly picked him up and took him directly to Kahalu’u to catch some waves. Oliver stayed with us for a couple days and we were able to show him around Kealakekua and put him to work planting vegetables and throwing rocks around.
On the bucket list was another visit to the Cloud Forest in Koloko where we visited the rainbow eulcalyptus tree with our friend Micheal and his fiancé. The Clouds truly were present, as we walked the rain went from a simple drizzle to a a full super soaker of water.
We were able to secure a boat for our next adventure from the farm and headed out with Sage to the Manta ray diving spot. We brought waterproof headlamps and our snorkel gear and headed out a little after sunset. We joined the array of boats bringing tourists out and jumped into the water. The Rays were about 6 feet long wing-to-wing and were attracted to the plankton swimming in the flood lights from the boats. More underwater footage of this on the shared drive from May 6th.
In our last week, Forest and I made it over to Hilo for another look around and visit to their farmers market. We spent some quality time with our friends at the beach. We played our last game of ultimate with our Kona family. Who sent us off with homemade ice cream we made right on the sidelines!
As for the farm we still work at, you ask? We finished off some big projects and wrapped up our work week by making beds that now stretch from the edge of the greenhouse up. We completed the tree planting in the new citrus grove. And we tended to the plants one last time before handing the farm off to one of the new interns Fergie.
In our last weekend, we visited the gorgeous peace gardens with Skylar, took an adventure with Sage to camp out at the bottom of “Road to the Sea” on the South of the Island with glowing olive green sands.
During our lat days in Hawaii we had a send off organized by Todd and Elvira filled with games, friends and s’mores.
Mission Complete
Thank you to everyone that made this trip possible and all the friends we collected along the way. I am so grateful to everyone that contributed to the community we connected with over the 6 months. Thank you to our huge community of ultimate friends Katherine, Greg, Marie, Carl, Gabe, and so many others; to our Pure Kona farmers market community Jai, Patrick, John; to our Mauna Loa helicopter and surfing buddies Jack and Julien; to our Happy Valley girls Sage and Isabel, and our incredible hosts, family and farmers Todd, Elvira and Sha'an, David and Sky. I learned so much from each and everyone of you and am forever grateful. Until next time and many conversations in between.
Much love and Mahalo, Jo-z
