Date: April 13th, 2022

Location: Zoom Recording

Interviewer: Ainaaloha Ioane

Interviewee: Keone Chin

Summary:

ʻAnakala Keone Chin is a native Hawaiian resident of Hawaiʻi.  He has worked in various responsibilities helping Hawaiʻiʻs youth prepare for their adult lives.  He spent time researching the coastline of Keaukaha and Kingʻs Landing during his college years and has worked as a researcher for the Edith Kanakaole Foundation.  As a teacher at Ke Ana Laʻahana Public Charter School ʻAnakala Keone told stories of the manō, the sharks that guarded the Keaukaha and Kingʻs Landing coastline.  He would take his sons when they were younger to go holoholo, fish in Kingʻs Landing and the back end of Puumaile into Laieikawai.

Keone Chin:

2:08

Pass Lehia I dunno too much, ummm….but…. I dunno if its mo’olelo’s but I can tell you like landmarks cause I used to go fishing ova dea a lot.

Ainaaloha Ioane:

Yah thats maika’i, mo’olelo’s, experiences, ummmm… you know holoholoing, or anything that you’ve heard from people or kupuna, or experienced yourself. 

Keone Chin:

(cough)

I know Papa’i Bay we used to call there we used to go camp turd park, but da last park its all da way in. ummm…. But das was when I was like young. Da only ding I can remember about dat is dat I remember one guy when drown ova dea. He when go… had da big ‘opihi on da rock, he went down fo get da big ‘opihi, da wave when take ‘em out. And he neva no how fo swim so his brother when jump in for help him but he ended up drowning da brother, so da brother when jump in fo help him when die but da guy who went fo da ‘opihi when die, cause he was like you know when dey panic dey push da person undaneath fo stay up so he survived and den my brother, my oldest brother, da when dat just passed Russell, he jumped in and he saved dat one guy. Ummm…. And I dunno know see I dunno know da name of da points we just know, we just know land marks, but we used to go ova deahh and be like go by dat island ova deah. Had plenty like, umm… places you gottah cross drew da water to get up onto da papa fo fish. Ummm …. Lehiaakane. 

(1:56)

Kanealehia, Kanealehia is da name of da mano (cough) and you know das kind of like da kupua for Keoha area ummm.. And dey’ve matches mo’olelo I’ve heard before where you know there was a shark that was born in, what was dat Kaumaui, Is it Kaumaui or Kamaui, but it was born in dat area where da family went, da mother went down to da ocean to hanau and she gave birth to a shark and she told dat shark, never harm anybody ummmm from Keaukaha so he was always known as the pers the one who protects people of Keaukaha, ummmmm…. Mikololou was the other shark he’s the one who killed somebody outside of Papa’i.

(3:00)

And das why Kanelehia went after Mikololou cause he killed one of those fisherman on that coastline where he was ummmm sworn to protect. Ummm… den i’ve heard Kua ummm… dat one came from ahhh…mo’olelo by….I believe it was kahaoolopua ummmm… and da name of da shark was Kua and dey lived in a cave at Lehia and you know when I put all dis together, Kanealehia was probably Kua.

(3:48)

But, yah you know one day I would love to come out to Lehia and just sit down talk story cause, you know if I’m in the space then brings back a lot more memories.

Ainaaloha Ioane:

Yup

Keone Chin:

But you know like diving we used to go holoholo ummmm right before your guys place in there or at the yellow bus. We used to drive in to the yellow bus then walk out to da point and then dive back to ummm was it Pakanis place or 

Ainaaloha Ioane:

Yup

Keone Chin:

Or was it your dads no I think was Pakanis, we used to dive to Pakani’s turn around and come back.  

Ainaaloha Ioane:

Waika’alulu and Waiokawa is ummm Uncle Bill Pakanis place. 

Keone Chin:

Yah, we knew Uncle Bill too cause he worked Helco with my dad 

Ainaaloha Ioane:

Cool.

Keone Chin:

Yah, so we used to go back there, ummm but we were small again, and we used to go catch lobster with the hand pole, so we used too and again I was small and I neva really know what was going on but I just remember the experiences, and also outside well little bit pass his house get clump of pine trees ummm we call it pine trees I never been there from land but from the ocean and outside from the pine trees about maybe two hundred yards there’s a ahi koa so we used to go over there go outside there and then go catch the ahi ummm we palu ahi ummm on the koa ummm you know what those, those  koa’s I don’t, I don’t know if the younger generation fisherman know about these koa’s cause before back in the eighties ummm nineties not soo much but definitely eighties maybe the early nineties boats used to be always parked on the koa’s fishing and now when I go out or when I, you know the past what maybe twenty, what is this, yah maybe  twenty, twentyfive years I’ve been going on the boat, I dont see boats parked on the koa’s anymore. So I dont know if the younger fisherman know about koa fishing or they know where the koa’s are. But that was one of the koa’s, ummm we used to call it Pine Trees, The Pine Tree Ko’a or six mile, cause we used to call Kingslanding point, that Lehia are we used to call it Six Miles or Six Mile and cause it’s six miles from Hilo Bay. So that was a land mark that um… and the Ko’a was there.

(6:50)

I dove out there for how many years,  I’ve never seen mano so dont, I seen one mano but that was in front of umm Pu’umaile, so but yah I’ve never seen it and it has always been a good feeling.

Ainaaloha Ioane:

My faddah say the same thing.

Keone Chin:

Yah, the only, the only kind of hairy part was umm.. In front Uncle Waysons place. Cause the thing get like, its all cliff like.. It gets deep real fast and when you dive in that area the water very dark.

(7:38) 

Very good feeling. Being in da water over there. And then again get plenty ‘aholehole wholes. But I don’t throw net but I used to take my boys when they were small, we used to go with da hand poles and catch ‘aholeholes. Again we parked by the bus and then we walk on the costline and like those little inlets and they catch ‘aholeholes. And then of course limu kohu. Dhas all my experiences ova dere. That you know we used to go holoholo a lot. And of course you pass the governor Kipapa on your way in (laugh) he is good he used to always come out and greet us. He hear one car come in he go walk outside, this was before the gate so he would walk outside and then he go ( nods his head) see what you was doing, then we talk story, then come out we give ‘em whatever, give ‘em fish and stuff. Eventually when da gate came up and hed be like, ohh if my van home just call me I let you guys in. And dat was before umm you know da county when clean up Puumaile. You know we’ve neva had problems ova deah. Just had da people and da tents on the side of the road but they was just mining there own business. This is after dey cleaned it up no more da fish like had before. I guess because it becomes more accessible.  So even like at Palekai before when had all da tents and stuff like dat you people go inside scre park there car ehh so no body would go holoholo but now de open num up. I was kind of ahhh and I you know da families dat lunderstand why de did umm Pu’umaile you know at dat point the drug problem was kind of…. Rambin and I know your dad was, used to say when you guys go school you used walk in and out and would like have the druggies right along side the entrance of Puumaile, as young females walking in and out wasn’t a safe place so, I understand that umm you know prior to dat ice epidemic and all dat back in the eighties da families das used to live back dere… dey do deah think, dey drink do deah pakalolo… but dere were a very… well from what I know… they were good people… dey maintained deah little ‘aina… you go holoholo you come in deay greet you… 

(10:03)

you know it wasn’t a bad ding, and das why I was kind of bummed when dey cleaned out Puumaile umm because I know already was gonna happen to dat coastline….. And I’m glad you guys did that you put up the gate I know had plenty hassle with you guys and cutting the locks and stuff but again you know you gotta luck, you gotta lock your ice box at times. You know it was kind of mix feelings but I understood when your dad made that point about you guys walking in and out….. And you know… I knew a lot of the families that was camping at umm…the breakwall at the time back in the eighties so that was like the Kai’eha’s, you dey had one house but dey chose to live down deah…. So I dink dat was da difference… when dey cleaned out Onekahakaha everyone went from Onekahakaha back behind Pu’umaile side, cause da Onekahakaha crowd was kind of different from da ones da original ones dat was in Pu’umaile and breakwall. So da Onekahakaha crowd was a little bit different dey were like a later fraction of um blue tent dat came up… and den when dey when clean dem out dey when all move Pu’umaile and I guess dey when take deah pilikia with dem. Like I said I know what was going happen to da coastline once dey when open num up and make em one park…. Dat was like one of our swimming spots you go to and no one was deah (referring to La’ieikawai). You know you park your car walk drew da bush walk drew da tall california grass and it just opens up and deaths La’ieikawai, Keonepupu umm Lehia and you know dat was kind of like our own little retreat and like our own little oasis and you know I remember dat swimming, swimming deah when we were young cause my brother my oldest brother he used to take us deah and if you dunno where to park on da high tide you come back your car going be undah wattah (laughing) cause was all ova grown… now its clear get da one get dat first ummm I dunno know if its river but get dat first inlet before was all california grass so if you dunno da inlet is deah you park you come back you undah wattah.

(12:23)

I remember one thing umm… dis uncle Wes Ka’ilimai, I used to be me, me and his friends was best friends in high school and he used to tell us go behind ummm… go behind da ponds and go dig in da sands  get clams, so high school time we used to go, go dig for clams, right by da ponds da first pond you go in get da sandy area, yah we dig in da sand and we find clams and we eat da clams right there. So I don’t know if still get clams cause that was back in what eighties….. Mid eighties… early eighties. So I took my boys there when they were younger and it wasn’t the same you know what I mean, you go in the early or late two thousands and you go back there and there’s people with their dogs or people sunbathing its not private anymore. Yah so you kind of loose that seclusion and for me along with loosing that seclusion you lose the sacredness of that place, cause for us growing up you go over there it was a treat and walking thru the tall grass and walking thru the water you getting wet before you get to the pond was like the experience in itself, but that’s part of the fun trucking thru the jungle.     

(13:46)

Yah so for my kids they remember going back behind then fishing ‘aholehole and watching the whales outside. They remember the yellow bus, that was a landmark. So you turn in my the yellow bus get that one loop in there then we park. They know the area but its very different and what it’s gonna look like you know twenty years from now. Back in the day guys would take their bikes and ride the trial in the back for go to the ummm papa’i, you know had that gate over there, that gate been there the longest time. And guys would ride their bike from the beginning or they would park their bikes, park their car at the gate. I knew that landscape like the back of my hand.       

(14:42)

The series of alkaline ponds in Keaukaha runs all the way to what is that Shipman area.

Ainaaloha Ioane:

Ehh, uncle in your research you know the alkaline ponds did kupuna use it to raise fish or farm fish?

Keone Chin:

Ummm…. Outside of the major ponds not that I know of.

Ainaaloha Ioane:

But in major ponds like larger ponds, do you know when like you drive in the back before the yellow bus Uncle James Iopa house had a large pond and its Waio…. Waiakeakua, it’s large like, well it’s not as large as ummm…. Maybe the same size of….little bit larger then Hale o Lono. But it’s all enclosed unless, unless I cannot see the beach access because it’s all overgrown. But it’s large.

Keone Chin:

See I don’t know about that pond. But I’m pretty sure ummm it was some sort of source used for a food source, weather it be for gathering limu ‘ele’ele grows good in those ponds…ummm… as well as a lot of ‘opae. Sooo thats what I know about the ponds behind Kingslanding had plenty ‘opae. 

Ainaaloha Ioane:

And the i’a are naturally there, every, you know our small pond at Waika’alulu, you know five or six hole’s all the time and den the larger pond at Uncle James, yah theres hole’s and big ones, and you know there in there by themselves and they growing fine. 

Keone Chin:

Yah and get plenty food and no more predators. Even though they separated by the ocean there’s cracks or during maybe high tide or high surf then that’s how a lot of those little fishes get in there. Wa kahiko they stock the ponds, den they would probably raise the fish. But I would say if they stock the pond it would probably be ‘aholehole because the food source cause you already have the ‘opae that stuck in the ponds, where as the ‘anae there more of a erbavore so you might not have the food source where you need the salt the fresh the brackish water unlefss theres creacks in the lava that allows the umm salt water to seep in.

Ainaaloha Ioane:

I neva know that hole can live in that amount of fresh water.

Keone Chin:

Mmhhm. So theres, theres probably some salt that seeps through. When I dive in behind, umm you know da ‘aina back there its not like Keaukaha where the water is cold so the water is warm out there which tells me theres not much interaction between the ponds and the ocean. Once you get pass a certain point behind Kings Landing, the drop off, the blue water comes fast. So its not like a gradual extension out into the ocean where you can have springs into the ocean but its a drop off a cliff. I dont think theres much interaction between the fresh and the salt water.

Ainaaloha Ioane:

The water is umm what you said warcause the salt but the salt is clean.

Keone Chin:

The salinity of the water is not as salty which means theres still a lot of fresh water in the ocean thats why you feel that way. If you see ‘ele’ele in the ponds you know the ponds is healthy. The limu ‘ele’ele will tell you the health of the pond.