Where has the year gone?

Lots of fun at the beach, hiking Iao and the crater. we have to be reminded to take time to enjoy the natural beauty of Maui. It seems we never do anything until friends come for a visit. "Beach? You mean there is a beach 15 minutes from my house?" Of course Hunny was along for all the adventures. She is not a water dog but was going in the ocean amazingly well. baby Beach and Kamaole 3.

Whale watching March 2011- Then Turtle town Wailea

 

Unusually calm winds made for a spectacular morning out on the water. Lots of Whales!

Summer is beach time

Beautiful days on Maui. For people, dogs and the birds :)

Whats happening on Maui?

No Posts since May?? LOL life is just zipping by. It has been gale winds the last week. This is a relief because the week prior it was really hot. Between noon and 3 it was "Stay in the shade or go to the beach".

Planting a field of Alfalfa

Soaring feed costs!! $28 - $35 dollars a bale. Help! What can a horse person do. Nobody is buying horses. Ok, time to grow our own hay!
My goal is to reduce my feed bill by 1/3. I do not want to feed my horses a pure alfalfa diet. Currently they get 5 pounds of alfalfa cubes a day. The rest of their diet is 21 pounds of orchard grass. The reason I feed this way is often we will have a shipping strike and only alfalfa will be available.
I was surprised to find that many cattle business's are growing fresh cut hay. Often feeding #80 per milk cow per day. The hay must be grown close to its daily destination as fresh cut hay does not last more than a day. The sooner it is fed after cutting the better. My friend had a small 20X20 foot alfalfa plot she fed her horse daily from years ago. She lived a mile up the road. Kula Maui has a wonderful growing climate. At 2,000 feet in elevation the nightly temperature is in the 50's. Days 70-80 degrees.
I researched alfalfa seed and settled on Amerigrass 721. A alfalfa designed for the Southwestern States: Calif, AZ and New Mexico. Hybridized to grow with a bigger leaf, nematode resistant, aphid and crown rot resistant.
2 days ago Dad got on his trusty old kubota and made the first pass across the field. 1/4 acre experimental plot. I followed helping remove old roots. Dad used the bucket to rip the stubborn roots up.
Yesterday he made another pass over the field. The beautiful dark red Hawaiian dirt looks great.
Now with rain beginning yesterday we will let the weeds grow for a week or so and roto-till them in prior to planting. Dad wants to roto till in some manuer too. We have lots of that! I will get some pictures soon.

Sister's

Lets ride! Christmas on Maui and we are all together! The youngest says, "But I don't have breeches." We have a ton and half chaps too. "Why do I have to go first. You ride first, that way I know the horse is safe." Come on Diane, even Charlie rides Kalae. She is a schoolmaster! Trust us she is safe. "I don't know about that"....... Come on, get on! "I cant ride long, I'll be so sore my Christmas vacation will be miserable". 15 minutes later as she and Kalae lap the arena at a trot. "This is fun, I'm an expert again, maybe I will canter tomorrow"

BURRRH!! Colorado in December

This is 17 degrees, then 10 degrees, a small snow fall! Frozen water buckets.

I love Maui, I love Maui!!! To all the people in the world who live in the snow - your very tough frozen cookies. A little antifreeze in your blood..ahh... that's why whisky was invented. And to all those riders who rider their horses in the winter - that's total dedication. I salute you from my sunny patio in the middle of the Pacific in my aloha shirt and shorts this winter.

Maui No Ka Oi

La Peruse

Spent the last few days touring Maui. Kauhakaloa on the narrow, skinny, scary road. Checking the surf at DT Flemming and Honolua Bay. The blow hole at Nakalele was spouting off.Then Hiking out at La Peruse. Saw a mongoose out there with a 6 inch centipede it was carrying around. Body surfing at Polo beach. The water was great!

Kamaoli Beach Park III

South swell! Grab your boogie board and head to the beach

Hookipa SURF

The national weather service predicts 12-18 foot waves. They were right! It was mesmerizing!

What a great day in November on Maui. The windsurfers were not to happy: waves and no wind!

IAO VALLEY - IMAX in real time

Spectacular Iao Valley: You just can't fit the whole view in. This is 1/4 of the view. IMAX in real time. We have hiked beyond the barrier which says "Don't go" We are on a ridge in the middle of this old caldera. Sheer cliff and a streams flowing on either side. Quickly we are in the bracken ferns waist high with Ohia Lehua tree's on the edge of the trail.