A Brief History... WAIPIO TREEHOUSE     In 1974, when Linda Beech was in graduate school in California, a National Geographic reporter doing an article on the Big Island came to Waipio and photographed the structure. Since then, the Treehouse has often been featured in many newspapers, magazines, radio, and televison programs. Courtesy and © Dawn Lundquist Click Here A Bonsai Treehouse on Hawaii's Big Island "When my TV series... Aoi Me no Tokyo Nikki (Blue Eyes Tokyo Diary) was the second most watched television show in Japan in the 1950s and 60s, I fell in love with bonsai and often went to the Imperial Bonsai Garden with my Nadeshikokai group (which always included Princess Higashikuni, elder sister of the present Emperor of Japan). "I was captivated with the art of miniaturization, with the use of small spaces, with simplification, and the careful attention to details. "How grand I thought it would be to have a perfect little house in a tree (Daddy never made me one) with a huge waterfall and many acres. In Tokyo I'd designed and built a house featuring a small water- fall, a bridge, and a small pool with koi but now my appetite was really whetted." In the Imperial Bonsai Gardens a Childhood Dream A Book (and a Boy) Called "Kimo" When I was four in Honolulu... my mother read me a beautiful book about a thinly disguis- ed Waipio Valley. I decided then that someday I'd live there. But I went to Japan instead. The story of "Kimo" tells of a young boy sent from Honolulu to live in a remote Hawaiian valley 50 miles north of Hilo where the ancient customs were still meticulously followed. When my sons, Kimo and Paki, (whom I realized later were nicknamed after the forgotten book) each turned two, I registered them for high-school on the Big Island in order to maintain our ties to the state where our family had lived for nearly 80 years. When Kimo finished his first year of college with straight A's, my husband and I rewarded him with a trip back to the "old country" of Japan where he spent his childhood. When he returned, he announced that he was quitting college to become a farmer. I bribed him with a compromise: I'd buy him farmland if he'd return to school for a year. Of course, I was drawn, as always, to Waipio Valley. Walking along the pictures- que river road, hung with waterfalls, we fell into step with an old Filipino man. When asked about land, he said, "the only land I know of is Papala waterfall over there." My heart leaped. When the owner took me to see it (Kimo was in school) my expectations were exceeded. My feet were magnetized to the ground. "This is the perfect sanctuary!" I thought. And it has been for many people. Looking for treasure in a used bookstore while I was a studying in Berkely, my eye was riveted by a copy of "Kimo". It fell open to a page call- ed "When Kimo Encounters Paki". My life came together like pieces of a puzzle; the story, the names, the Waipio land fit together like magic. For 2,000 years this emerald valley has been a sacred spot. Hawaiian kings kept traditions alive at 6 temples, parts of which still stand. When I got my land its last structure was a grass hut. In 1941 the first car was brought here in parts and reassembled, more than 70 years after everyone else. Time seems to slow down here and take people into another dimension. A "Young" Monkey Pod Tree planted by Mark Twain Courtesy of pahoahi. Click here Fit for both Jacks and Giants... Monkey Pods are the largest member of the bean (legume) family. The branches radiate out in a continuing arc, in an effort to com- plete a full 360º circle. The massive root systems mirror the branches above, which has lead to the trees’ well-deserved reput- ation for being able to onipa'a (stand firm) and hold the earth in tidal waves and floods. Additionally, its roots, like all legumes, are nitrogen fixating, and in the rain, the tree closes its leaves like a Prayer plant, which helps create a micro-climate suitable for under-story plantings, and has earned the tree the additional name, of being the "Rain Tree". The name ‘Monkey Pod’ is based on a mis- understanding. There aren't any monkeys in Hawaii. The word the Hawaiians were trying to say wasn't “monkey,” but "make", a word which means “dead” or “kill,” because the wood is so extremely dense, hard and durable, it was used for making war clubs and tools, traits which also caused it to sometimes be called the "furniture tree." However, by whatever name you call them, as Mark Twain noted wryly, the only real monkeys from Hawaii are in Washington. The Treehouse was built by Steven Old- father and Eric Johnson who are better known for being excellent boat builders, and they did an outstanding job. The Treehouse is built on stainless steel pins and it's just as level now as when it was built in 1973. The tree was then estimated to be 175-yrs old, which now means that it's into its second century. In Japanese design the tokonoma is a focus point worthy of meditation. At home, the tokonoma will have a scroll, a painting, or an ikebana (flower arrange- ment) that changes with every season. Guests are traditionally seated facing the tokonoma, i.e. the best seat in the house, and the four corners of the Treehouse have been constructed to all have views that honor this ideal. Two other Monkey Pods with spectacular waterfall views are ideal for treehouses. All three could be neatly triagulated with connecting aerial walkways. High Above the Rainforest In a Giant Monkey Pod Tree Under Construction in 1973 Held in place by stainless steel pins. Diamonds in the rough. Kimo-Chan A World-Class Hideaway "About 12 years after we built the place, my son, Kimo, thought we should rent the Treehouse so that visitors could have a place to stay in Waipio and he could live down here full time, and share his love of the valley and its magical plants. "The centerfold in People magazine really helped to put us on the map. Sadly, Kimo didn't get to see his wonderful dream come true. But, judging from what people have said and written, the valley has meant as much to our visitors as it did to him" Linda Beech in Home Movie by Sundance award-winning Director, Chris Smith, 2002. Dr. Linda Beech, Tree Hugger Dr. Beech built the Treehouse in 1972 after being a TV star in Japan and a Director of the Big Island Mental Health Association. "I had no idea how many people would want to visit. Apparently, some part of us never quite came down from the trees." See the Movie! If you'd like to read a review or see more about Treehouse life in Chris Smith's Home Movie, Click Here.