Vicky Durand’s Adventure Blog #128

October 10, 2026

Thanks for tuning in if you have not forgotten about the blog by now with the many weeks absence. I am still here working my way through always trying to move forward on my many projects. I just had another big birthday and I think all these projects keep me going. It is almost like “running from death”. Anyway, I am just glad to be alive with all the many years accomplishments, memories, projects, heartaches, all making many memories. When I think back about my life I am even amazed myself that so much happened and I survived. It is an odd time when so many of my cherished classmates from our Punahou class are sadly no longer with us.

It has been awhile since my last post. I don’t want to give this up, but I am now trying to recap my thoughts on the last weeks events.

We survived all the storms and hurricane warnings pretty well. While many lost electricity I was fine here being off grid. All I needed was gas (which is over 9$ a gallon here in Hana) and my generator to work. After a cleaning it is now is good shape. Luckily we did not have much wind and there were sunny hot days in between the storms. Actually the Big Island shields us from the bad stuff.

My bunk house is now remodeled with bunk beds, a new floor and getting pretty fancy. This was the little shack Bob and I put together and stayed in while we were clearing the lower half of this property.

My friends Edwin and Silipei came over on Labor Day weekend to push projects forward. Among the projects were a new green house cover as the plastic was deteriorating after the past three years. The also did a lot of clearing and ti leaf planting along a fence to hold the cane grass back. The Mannie Brothers (sp?) who own the Hotel Hana Maui bought a new plane to bring people out.

And, speaking of the hotel they redid the bar and are now welcoming locals with dinner Wed. to Sat. nights and music. It is a fun and popular gathering place now.

We are moving ahead planting taro on the old Lo’i. James and his family came out for a planting and it is growing very well. We are going to work on a grant for planting all the terraces and hopefully become big taro growers in the next years while waiting for the coconuts to produce.

We finally got our new 4 wheel drive lawn mower to mow and reduce some week eating expense. Not sure about many of the Hana young men getting Mohawks? James found it on Marketplace in good used condition so that is a big bonus. Since all the clearing the main job is maintenance. Indrajit is coming back next month to search out more coconut varieties to plant.

I am at war with the snails around here because they eat my garden and carry disease. I collect them in the eve when they appear, put them in a bucket of water and redone them far away. I do the same with mongoose-set traps, catch them and re home. I cannot kill them as most people do around here.

I was honored to attend the Kapuna lunch at the Hana Kamehameha Pre School with James and Moe’s three year old Teava. It was so cute to see all of them.

Sadly, a Hawaiian woman down the street had to move to a care home in Kahului. She left over fifty unfixed cats that we are now dealing with. My friend Sharon the Humane Society officer out here is slowly trapping and getting them “fixed”. A few of us are taking turns feeding them until we can find homes and figure it out. I brought one little black cat home (Sophie) that was crying and very friendly. A lot of the cats were sick as she was feeding them ramin and not cat food.

Meanwhile a few of us have formed a non profit animal rescue team called HART-Hana Animal Rescue Team. We have some land and will buy the cat fencing from PURRFECT fencing to fence a large area and hope to create a place like is on Lanai. It is a big project, but we are working towards the goal.

The film Niu Forever has been excepted into the 46th Honolulu film festival and will preview October 28 at the Kahala theater. It will also show the 29th and 30th. This film has been five years in the making and highlights the work of Niu Now with Indrajit Gunasakara and Dr. Manu Meyer. Very exciting!!!!

Alana, a friend and helper from Oahu came this week to work with our local vet Dr. Krista and help me with the cats. Alana is applying to vet school so this is an opportunity for her.

Dr. Krista

Better wind this up and see if I can get the pictures on. My computer died last week and I am working on an old one until my new one arrives this next week. Luckily most of my data was stored in the cloud so I still have it.

Thanks for tuning in.

Aloha Nui,

Vicky

Vicky Durandʻs Adventure Blog #127

August 23, 2026

Welcome to Adventure Blog #127

We survived Lola, but there was a lot of water coming down off the mountain. It flooded the back yard and just as the water was starting to come up on the patio the rain stopped. Hairy to say the least.

Luckily the yard is shaped so the water funnels off down the driveway around both sides of the pool. On the other side is also a flow channel out of the yard. But this will only handle so much water. Our new driveway steps stayed intact.

Of coarse there was no sun for quite a few days so I had to use the generator to back up the system.

At one point the generator hadn’t been on long enough and the whole system shut down. No power, no internet, and no water. Luckily I had just finished dinner so I tip toed off to bed with my phone light. Cory who installed the system came out the next morning and fixed things so I soon was up and running again.

Being off grid works really great until things donʻt work. I had to go out to the high point on the property to use the phone and call Cory-HELP. He lives down the road and monitors the system And is a great responsible person to have for assistance.

I am now bracing for the Moke storm which supposedly will not be so bad.

The biggest news this week is a new Instagram post. James and Moie made the post and it went viral. We had about 100 followers and now we are up to 4,500 followers plus. There were almost three million views and still growing as people are loving it. Check it out on both on Facebook and Instagram-Koaliniu. So much for social media, but we are all amazed to say the least!

Yesterday was our vet Dr. Kristaʻs new clinic blessing. It was so sweet with Krista telling about her long journey to get here, a delicious catered lunch, music and a hula halau  performance. Krista even did the last hula. Special times here in Hana……

Some of the pumpkins are ripening. I made some delicious soup and I give some pumpkin to the dogs with their kibble and ground meat. They love it.

The sick animals are recovering, thank gosh. It just took sequestered care and antibiotics.

It is starting to rain so gotta run and put some things inside.

Thanks for tuning in and wishing everyone a great week.

Aloha Nui,

Vicky

A cat salt shaker my daugher Marcie brought me

sitting on my spice shelf

My beautiful dalias

Vicky Durandʻs Adventure Blog #126

August 2, 2026

Thanks for tunning in. I had this post all ready last Sunday and then there was a big problem with WordPress. It has taken all week to straighten it out but I think things are back on tract. In a couple of weeks I might be posting on the Koali Niu web site, but I will keep you posted. There is a lot of straightening out to do before that happens.

It is hard to believe another month has passed and we are at the end of my favorite time-summer with long days..

The last weeks have been exciting around here with no dull moments. Iʻll start with our exciting kalo harvest this last Friday. James, friends and kids came up and harvested almost two hundred pounds of our Mana ulu taro. We sold 165 pounds of kalo to poi makers in Kaenae. Zack told me they were very happy with the quality and I have since learned this is a loved and esteemed variety. Part of the name Ulu comes from itʻs similarity to breadfruit (ULU).I am learning the early Hawaiians had many varieties. The Mana ulu was given to us by Jesse from Waianae and planted about six months ago. The leaves were made into lau lau and served yesterday at a birthday party. The root was steamed and served in slices which were delicious. Besides the niu gene bank we are now taro farmers! Only about half the crop was harvested so we are looking for buyers for the rest.

We have had some nice press in the last weeks as Indrajit and I were on Hawaii Public Radio program The Conversation with Catherine Cruz. We were also in the Hana News Paper which comes out every few months. And we are steaming ahead with Instagram posts. The latest post has had 17,000 views which is pretty amazing. If you are on Instagram check it out making Poisson Cru with fresh homemade coconut milk-Koaliniu.

My daughter Marcie and her husband Chris were here last week for a long weekend. They stay at the hotel and it was great seeing them after two or more years. We did some fun things even though the storm was lurking off the islands. While Marcie was here one of her high school friends sent her a text that one of my rice bag shirts I used to make and sell in the 1970ʻs and 80s was for sale on eBay. I bought it and it arrived on Friday. A bit of nostalgia….

The flowers are all blooming and I have a bank of zinnia and dahlia blossoms along with white cosmos, snapdragons and miscellaneous others. It is a pretty site!

For the last month there has been a lovely party every weekend. It started with a Sat. House blessing and Lawn party. Many friends congregated and enjoyed conversation and great catered food. The next weekend was a first birthday party with wonderful Hawaiian music and food. Last weekend my friend Karen had her 80th birthday which was fun to have Marcie and husband there to meet all my new wonderful friends.

And, yesterday was James and Moieʻs son Teavaʻs 3rd birthday party. I got a little over exposed to kids screaming, but the lau laus and and taro were the best.

I have been dealing with some sick animals which has been challenging giving so many meds. They are all hanging in so that is good. And speaking of that it is now feeding time so gotta run.

Now a week later and the animals are getting better. Thank gosh we have a wonderful young woman vet here in Hana-Dr. Krista.

Wishing a great week for everyone. We wil sl be replanting the taro this week so stay tuned for more.

Thanks for tuning in.

Aloha Nui,

vicky

Vicky Durandʻs Adventure Blog #125

Welcome to Blog #125

July 5, 2026

WOW, Looking back it has been a month since my last Blog.

With the exception of some visitors The last month has been mostly about maintenance. With the long days, sun, showers, sun, and more showers weather pattern everything is growing like crazy. The. grass is growing so fast it needs mowing every few days.

Besides overseeing the mowing and weed eating Koali Niu has had some special guests. Last week Dr. Mano Meyer and her sister Maile Meyer came for a visit. Mano is the co founder of Niu Now which is affiliated with Maileʻs Puʻuhonua Society. That was a very special visit and I was able to take them around the property on the Kawasaki Mule. Manu and I also went down the road to the top of Wailua Valley and the water fall.

This last week a buddy from Oahu visited and it was fun showing him around. We used to surf with his father who started the first surfing school in the mid-1950s. So, we go way back…..I forgot to take pictures.

This next week Indrajit and I are doing a tape for Hawaii Public Radioʻs program The Conversation. Catherine Cruz will interview us and I am not sure when it will aire. Her programs are listed on the Hawaii Public Radio web site.

The cats are all doing well. A couple like to ride on the mule with me. They love the mule. Picture on the left-These are two feral black cats.

It has been very hot out here and I am now going to the neighborʻs pool for a swim.

Thanks for tuning in and a belated 4th of July. It was very quiet here and I did not see one firecracker.

Aloha Nui,

Vicky

Vicky Durandʻs Adventure Blog #124

June 6, 2026

Welcome to Adventure Blog #124

It has been a few weeks and quite a lot has been happening. May 28 we had our first niu workshop here at Koali Niu partnering with Mahele Farm and Holani Farm. Indrajit took the group up the hill and illustrated the planting method used here as well as showed them some of the varieties planted here. The group walked up further to see the natural pool and waterfall. Some of them even jumped in for a dip. After that we all sat on the tentalo patio where Indrajit showed some examples of rare varieties of niu and told about their use in old Hawaii. He also demonstrated making cordage from niu fiber. 

Indrajit came only for a few days and the time passed all too quickly. He brought Mikey Kyser from the niu grove in Puna. They revisited a nearby grove, but found nothing new. I was hoping they would get out and find some new varieties, but time did not allow. We had some evening fires and nice meals. A few friends dropped by and it was lots of fun. I am hoping they will return before too long as we can use some new varieties. And there are places to explore. While Mikey was here he wrote a beautiful poem about this place which I will share.

Echoes of the Valley:

Valleys high and valleys low,

Water moves as time flows—

A silent river carving stone,

Carrying moments we can’t own.

Fading whispers of weathered bones,

Echoing secrets to mossy tones,

Where ancient voices softly moan

Through emerald cloaks and twilight zones.

Etched in stone, ike resides,

Roots atone and aina sighs,

The old earth hums its lullabies,

Of lives returned and love that dies.

Head down, sight dims,

The world grows quiet, the clamor thins.

Intentions guide from what’s within—

A steady flame no dark can spin.

Beneath the weight of sky and loam,

We walk these valleys as our home,

Where time and bone and spirit roam,

And every ending births its poem

Now that we are expanding the property up above the new job is to keep it all mowed and Weedeated. With the long days the grass is growing rapidly and the bamboo shoots up quickly-it is scary stuff with its horizontal roots. There are some beautiful old rock walls up above covered in vines which need cutting back. I love working around the old walls as I think about the builders and the rocks give off a special energy. Many days garden till dark.  A friend sent me some Dalia bulbs and I am making a flower garden on the berm in the back yard with zinnias, daisies, snapdragons, and others. 

The squash is growing and we are harvesting papayas. I am also planting papayas as they seem very happy here. This soil is so fertile after being covered in hau for over sixty years.

Time to feed the cats and move on. Everyone is doing pretty good. Mana is up to all her tricks, but is such a great companion and at my side continually.

Thanks for tuning in and wishing everyone a wonderful coming week.

Aloha nui,

Vicky

These cats do the darnest things-she didnʻt jump in thankfully

Vicky Durandʻs Adventure Blog #123

Welcome to Adventure Blog #123

 May 2, 2026

I have come to a turning point with these blogs and am wondering about continuing??? At this point after more than three years most all the really big building jobs are behind and I will be focusing on the gene bank, and farming. This past week James has been here on the big machine. On the top he has cleared a huge loʻi and exposed three beautiful old rock walls. Down lower he has been resculpting the hill so we can mow and do less weed eating. Also restoring the loʻi for growing more taro and creating a small bank to divert the water flow in a big rain sideways.

We have applied for a MEO grant for $25,000. to almost buy a good four wheel drive mower. We first applied several months ago and didn’t hear so I thought we were out. Then this last week I received an email requesting more information. I sent that in yesterday so time will tell.

The Koaliniu.org web site is up and running and I will continue writing on that site for information regarding the coconut and our progress -finding new coconut varieties, the growth of the trees, blogs about the uses of the niu, and our press. Many of the trees have now been in the ground for two years and they will have nuts after three to five years. We are discovering so much really interesting information about the niu so I hope you will check out the site. We will continue adding for education and improvement. The gallery needs to be put in order with titles-next job.

It would be great to hear from some of you out there if you are still interested in the personal stories. Sometimes I feel like I am writing to the wind.

Finally, after over three years I am happy to report most of the big jobs have been completed. A drivable driveway is now in so a regular car can make it up and 4 wheel drive is no longer necessary. Beautiful concrete strips were poured just a day before the Kona storm hit. It took a small army to mix and pour the concrete. Below is all of them having lunch on the tentalo patio. James is the one standing.

The tentalo is built and furnished. I am now doing the landscaping around the new garden. There is a wonderful store in Kihei where I picked up pavers which will lead up to the outdoor shower and kitchen. I am planting impatience, blue ginger, halekonias, pandam, a red palm brought over from Oahu, black ti, and other beautiful pants. This is the fun part. We have had generous night rains which will help everything grow.

I had some visitors week before last from New Jersey. It was great having them spend the day here while they stayed at the hotel. Marla Crimini and her husband Chris. Marla is a travel writer and Chris is a musican. Several years ago Marla wrote and article about Koali Niu, but it got sold but not published. I am hoping we can revisit another article as it is time for press.

I did get an article in the Star Advertiser on April 15. I will try and place it here, but if not it is on the web site under Press.

HonoluluStarAdvertiser_20260415_A11_1Download

Time to move on to the next project here or just take it easy.

Pictured below is one of the lei displayed at the hotel yesterday as part of the lei Day celebration.

Aloha Nui,

Vicky

Vicky Durandʻs Adventure Blog #122

Welcome to Adventure Blog #122

This is going to be a short one, but want to let you know we survived two horrendous Weeks of storms and a very challenging time. Today is sunny and beautiful and things are drying out thankfully.Such a relief when it seemed like it would never stop raining.

Most of Hana was out of electricity for six days or more. The two markets were closed and the Hana road was also closed to tourist. Being off grid I was fine in that way. I just had to start the generator from time to time to keep everything going.

My neighbor Karen had a French visitor, Marilyn, and they were having candle light dinner parties for us-the storm orphans as she called us. Dr Krista, our vet, had a lot of food that was defrosting and Marilyn made some delicious dinners and we had a good time in spite of things.

Here at Koali Niu Only three coconut trees were laid on their sides and had to be replanted. I was very lucky as some parts of Hana were devastated with many trees and small buildings ripped apart and trees uprooted.

Most all of my banana trees survived and we harvested a big bunch this week.

The floor is now down in the tent and the beds are set up-finally.Now I am thinking about the landscaping and the final touches. This is the fun part….

I am in the middle of refinishing a trunk so am going to close to work on that project.

We continue working on the web site Koaliniu.org. It will be a continual work in progress as we tell more stories about the coconut-the tree of life.

Thanks for tuning in and wishing everyone a great week ahead. This red bull walks around the neighborhood and crashes through peopleʻs gates to eat their ti leaves. Luckily he doesnʻt come down this far.

This is a foster cat that loves the mule.

Aloha Nui,

Vicky

Vicky Durandʻs Adventure Blog #121

March 15, 2026

Welcome to Adventure Blog #121

It has been a wild few days with this big Kona storm. There has been lots of rain and wind and things were pretty miserable here for three days. My friend and neighbor said it is a once in 50 year storm. I sure hope so and will be glad when it finally blows over. Friday night was scary with pouring rain, listening to the sound of water and rocks making their way down the mountain and just hoping the water would find itʻs way without any mud and we would see daylight here. This tropical storm is supposedly lasting until Sunday noon and I can hardly wait for calm and sun.

Last Sunday someone who has been near and dear to my heart since age 16 passed away and I have been fighting sadness all week….It has been a struggle.

On a positive note the last few weeks has seen some big progress here. After a year of patiently and so patiently My tentalo is finally erected and looks so great. The beautiful old growth cedar planks make attractive benches and railings. It is tucked in the perfect place and will house temporary workers, scientists, friends and hopefully some family. It has stayed perfectly dry and cozy during this past storm. This next week the flooring will go down and I will set up the beds. The bed frames came from Amazon with many parts and I was able to get it all together last weekend-so proud of myself.

The new driveway got poured Wednesday just ahead of the storm. Now, any car came make it up without all drive or four wheel drive. This makes getting here a lot more pleasant. Un until now a regular car had to park at the bottom and guests had to walk up. With our 4 wheel and all drive vehicles we have bounced up over the rocks and holes. Those were two big projects that are complete and great to have behind us. The pour took six men as they hand mixed all the concrete. A BIG job.

Last Saturday I had a lesson from Grant Senner on making a jade flower lei. There is no place to buy lei out here and I am hoping to learn some different methods that the locals pride themselves on making.

The Taro Festival is in April and Indrajit will be coming over to do a work shop and we will be finding new coconut varieties for the gene bank. Luckily all the coconut trees survived the storm. Many big trees were uprooted and the roads have been closed. For the last three days everyone in Hana is out of power and they say it will be 1-2 weeks before it is fixed. I am off grid and my solar is working just fine although the generator had to go on yesterday for a few hours.

The papayas have been cranking and they are the BEST. I take them to my friend Dimitri who sells them as fast as he gets them.

Well it is now Sunday evening and I better get this out. Thank you for tuning in and wishing everyone a sunny and dry week.

Aloha Nui,

Vicky

Vicky Durandʻs Adventure Blog #120

Welcome to Adventure Blog #120

February 28, 2026

Thanks for tuning in. And, to think it is the last day of February! The days are flying by faster and faster.

It has been a few weeks since my last blog so I want to catch you up on all the happenings. What comes to mind as a biggie is finally my tentalo is erected. It has been such a long wait involving so much patience. The patio benches and back rests are made from the old growth beautiful cedar timbers that I bought from Bruce Johnson when he sold his house on Lanai. Last week I ordered the beds and other things to get set up. A larger tarp will cover the front patio which is on order and bamboo poles will replace the 2 x 4s holding up the existing tarp. Then next week I will landscape the garden around the tentalo which I am looking forward to doing.

Last Saturday night we had a thunder and lightening storm like nothing I had ever experienced-very scary

To say the least. It went on for hours with pouring rain. Sunday morning the water was coming out through the rock walls like a hose was turned on. Luckily it all flowed away from the building and down through the yard.

We got the squash starts planted just in time to get a heavy watering. Now we just need some sun to encourage their growth.

Week before last there was an accident on the Hana Hwy. which stopped traffic for several hours. A box truck hit a van and there were some injuries. I was on the road coming home from Kahalui. Rather than waiting for the helicopter, Ambulance and road clearing crew I decided to turn around and come home the back way. This was a long trip.

We have been working on the web site and it is slowly taking shape. Koaliniu.org

Check it out when you have time. The site will focus on education about the Hawaiian coconut with coming blogs to be added so stay tuned. 

I went to Oahu and out to Makaha for the 49th Buffalo Surfing meet. The waves were not wonderful and my Hana friends didn’t place in the four man canoe event, but it was a fun get together. Jit even showed up with his daughter Oui.

My pal Jericho flew in from Long Beach and we had fun going to Downing Surf shop, the Outrigger canoe Club and meeting Yana and Joey Cabel.

The cats are doing pretty well and they have survived to rainy weather. Better get going now as it is nearing feeding time and I have some gardening to do.

It was sad to see the situation with the coconuts on the West side. This is one in our yard that is netted to try and save it from the beetle.

Thanks for tuning in with all the craziness in the world right now I feel so thankful to be here with the coconuts in this little community.

Aloha Nui,

Vicky

Vicky Durandʻs Adventure Blog #119

February 8, 2026

Welcome to Blog #119

We have been having beautiful weather and are probably a tad spoiled. But, it is now a miserable dark, cold, windy and rainy day or I would be outside planting. We knew this storm was coming so I was able to get out yesterday and plant some squash plants for this next season. The storm is good for the aina, but miserable for the cats trying to stay dry.

The big news is the web site is finally up. Check it out………. Koaliniu.org

We still have minor changes and will be adding more pictures as we go along. Also we plan to tell more stories about the different coconuts so it will be an on going project.

We are finally able to share taro with the community. Isaac and his friend came here for leaves to make their lau laus last week. 

The platform to hold the tentalo is finally completed and tomorrow was scheduled to do tree trimming before Assembling the tent. Looks like there might be another wait on this plan, however. Last week was slowed down because Waihua hurt his back on the jet ski. My patience continues to be tested on a daily basis.

I am anxious to get this tent up so they can start on the concrete tracks for the driveway next. 

I had some company this week which was a nice change-Jennifer and her friend Char came out for a day and night. They were most infatuated with the Monarch butter flies which are in the backyard in full force. The butterflies love the crown flower tree and the adjoining pasture is full of milk weed.

The papaya trees are prolific and producing the best papayas ever.

Need to close this up and do some PT. The last few weeks have been extra busy as I have been working on a MEO grant for $25,000. for farm equipment. We are hoping to get the grant for a four wheel drive mower to mow hill and reduce weed eating time. We should hear by March 15.

Thanks for tuning in. Wishing everyone a great week and happy Valentines.

Aloha Nui.

Vicky