The third day of our trip took us around the bend and up, way up, so to speak. We drove to Pana'ewa to meet ALP alumnus Thong Teng Neo who works at Green Point Nursery (owned by Eric Tanouye, another ALP alumnus). Green Point specializes in anthuriums and orchids and exports them all over the world. We learned about the continual research needed to maintain healthy crops as well as develop new varieties of plants to keep customers happy. The University of Hawai'i has contributed significantly toward research.
With the Class' national trip on the near horizon, we spent some time planning the logistics for the two week trip, which will take us to Washington, DC and New Mexico. Needless to say, there was a lot to cover!
We spent the rest of the day in the center of the island, going up in elevation, via Saddle Road. Some of us took a quick hike on Pu'u Huluhulu, one of the many pu'u (hills) that dot the region.
Then we were headed to Hakalau Forest National Wildlife Refuge, which we reached after about an hour of driving on a bumpy dirt road. We saw pastureland covered with gorse, an invasive species that makes the land unusable for ranching. Our eyes were relieved to see the wildlife refuge managed by the US Fish and Wildlife Service, which is restoring areas once used for ranching back into native Hawaiian forests.
No comments:
Post a Comment