- 1 hour ago
- #realitytvdeep
#RealityTVDeep
Category
🎥
Short filmTranscript
00:00:00I feel bad for my kids, they are ready to give up.
00:00:14I don't get the situation figured out.
00:00:16They may choose to live, you know, with their dad.
00:00:21I wouldn't blame them because you can only live like this for so long.
00:00:27We might be in paradise, but this seven acres is brutal.
00:00:33This homestead is being swallowed up by invasive bamboo.
00:00:37I've definitely seen a 200-pound pig.
00:00:39How big is that?
00:00:40Like, that tall.
00:00:42Yeah, they're pretty scary.
00:00:43I see the stress on Erica's face.
00:00:46She's overwhelmed.
00:00:47They have to pull together as a family.
00:00:49That's the only way they're going to survive.
00:00:51This homestead, this is not my style.
00:00:54Do you want to be here on this coffee farm now?
00:00:59One, two, three.
00:01:02Three.
00:01:03Oh, yeah.
00:01:05This homestead has 8,000 coffee plants.
00:01:09I just didn't take into account how hard it would be.
00:01:12It's time to incite these children to help their mother manage this farm.
00:01:19This is too much.
00:01:22Go, go, go!
00:01:23Hawaii, with all the rainbows and sunshine, is not an easy place to homestead.
00:01:44Everything grows 365 days a year, and your whole homestead could be overtaken by the jungle in a matter of days.
00:01:53Don't think this is going to be a vacation at all.
00:01:56What?
00:01:57What do you mean?
00:01:58I brought my bikini.
00:01:59So did I.
00:02:00On the leeward side of the big island of Hawaii, the rainies race toward one of their most challenging rescues yet.
00:02:11In the shadow of the Mauna Loa and the Hualalai volcanoes, this rugged landscape, shaped by ancient lava flows, has helped form one of the most ecologically diverse places on Earth.
00:02:24But for those trying to live off the land, the semi-arid climate averages only 20 to 30 inches of rainfall per year, making water catchment essential for daily survival, while invasive bamboo grows like wildfire, choking out native flora.
00:02:43Homesteading against a backdrop of lush landscapes and ocean views is a single mother struggling to brew her own off-grid dream.
00:02:58I'm Erica.
00:02:59I live here in Kona on my seven-acre coffee farm.
00:03:02I live here with my three kids.
00:03:05Before I moved to the farm, I was living in a condo, but I've always wanted to live off-grid.
00:03:10I didn't want to rely on anything for my power, my water, and eventually my food.
00:03:17When I did move here to the property, there was, like, raw land and so peaceful.
00:03:23There was no cabin, no electricity, so those first few months, I was just here building a place.
00:03:28I built my cabin right here, and I got my solar set up for my power, but I just didn't take into account how hard it would be.
00:03:36Erica believed the family could quickly capitalize on the farm's coffee crops to generate income while they continued to carve out their homestead.
00:03:46But that hope turned to despair.
00:03:49I thought I could come in and take over the coffee farm from the get-go, but my neighbor planted bamboo, and it has jumped over into my property, and it's out of control.
00:04:02We have wild pigs here in Hawaii, and there are no natural predators.
00:04:09Their populations have exploded.
00:04:11They come out every night.
00:04:13They've been known to kill people and make gardening impossible.
00:04:16So I need to have my food on a regular basis, because if you get a garden set up, the bamboo or the pigs destroy it.
00:04:25On top of that, I currently don't have a water system set up.
00:04:30We run out of the water I haul, and we don't have water to drink.
00:04:33I have gutters that lead to buckets on the ground, and then I do my dishes.
00:04:38But it's not adequate, because as a single mom, doing everything from the ground up is exponentially harder.
00:04:48Every day, my brain is filled with what I need to be doing and what's not getting done.
00:04:54Having the seven acres is a dream, but not being able to solve the problem is...
00:05:02It's killing me.
00:05:05I don't know what to do.
00:05:08I don't know what to do.
00:05:12Hi.
00:05:12Good morning.
00:05:13Morning.
00:05:14I'm Erica.
00:05:15Erica, nice to meet you.
00:05:16Nice to meet you.
00:05:16Hello.
00:05:17I'm Sage.
00:05:18Sage.
00:05:19Hi, I'm Hazel.
00:05:20Nice to meet you.
00:05:20I'm Sage.
00:05:21What is it?
00:05:21Hazel.
00:05:22Hazel.
00:05:22Nice to meet you.
00:05:23Nice to meet you.
00:05:24There's also my younger son, Kove.
00:05:26He's Chris's dad.
00:05:27We do half the week with me.
00:05:29Okay.
00:05:29You guys will meet him in the days to come.
00:05:32You live on a coffee farm.
00:05:34Yeah.
00:05:34What a beautiful spot.
00:05:36How long have you been out here?
00:05:37A year.
00:05:38We moved here a year ago.
00:05:39So how was the last year?
00:05:40It's just a bit stressful right now.
00:05:42Why?
00:05:43It's just basically me, you know, doing this.
00:05:46So it's not like I know how to do all the things.
00:05:51Yeah.
00:05:51Yeah.
00:05:52Oh, here I go.
00:05:53I don't mean to get emotional, but it's just been really hard.
00:05:55It's just like feeling like bad that I put my kids into a situation where it's not the best.
00:06:05It's okay.
00:06:06I grew up in Idaho, but I'm Alaska Native.
00:06:15So I moved back to Alaska to get to know my family and my heritage.
00:06:21To live in Alaska is to survive, basically.
00:06:23And just having a culture that has done that for thousands of years, I was inspired.
00:06:29And I wanted to have my kids raised that same weight.
00:06:34But Hawaii, it's always felt like my spiritual home.
00:06:38So I packed up my kids and kind of just moved here.
00:06:41And that's how we ended up here on the island.
00:06:43Though Erica's adolescent children, Hazel and Sage, were initially excited about the move
00:06:50off-grid, the lack of creature comforts has softened their interest.
00:06:55My kids do love things about living here.
00:06:58But as far as helping me, that's not their priority.
00:07:02I'll try to get them excited, but they'll be like, no.
00:07:06I really like living in Hawaii, but this homestead, I mean, I don't know.
00:07:11This is not my style.
00:07:13It's super close quarters, and we're kind of missing a lot of stuff that a normal house
00:07:17would have.
00:07:18I love homesteading, and my little brother likes it out here.
00:07:21But I think my mom needs help with this homestead.
00:07:26She's had a lot of stress and struggle.
00:07:28I don't know what to do.
00:07:30For me, as a mother, the light at the end of the tunnel is setting up a legacy for my
00:07:35family and my kids.
00:07:37I want this to be a place that they can build their own dreams when they're older, too.
00:07:42But right now, it is all on my shoulders.
00:07:46But I don't get the situation figured out.
00:07:48My kids may move.
00:07:49They may choose to live, you know, with their dad.
00:07:53They are my life.
00:07:54They are my family.
00:07:54It would be heartbreaking, and I would feel like a failure, and I wouldn't blame them
00:08:01because you can only live like this for so long.
00:08:05You want to look at that cabin?
00:08:09Yeah.
00:08:10I live here in this tiny home.
00:08:13I see gutters on both sides, but the job's not done.
00:08:17There's an attempt to capture water, and then it kind of ends right here.
00:08:22Yep.
00:08:22Every time I come to Hawaii, I feel a little bit like Magnum P.I.
00:08:28We go into detective mode.
00:08:31This gutter leads over to where I do my dishes.
00:08:36If it's a fresh fall, I wash it out, get it all, like, sterilized, and then I have the
00:08:41water come in.
00:08:43Young lady, I got to tell you, this is desperate.
00:08:47Yes.
00:08:47This homestead has 8,000 coffee plants.
00:08:53None of them have a sprinkler system.
00:08:56There's enough water here from the rain.
00:08:58But the homesteaders' biggest problem is they don't have enough water.
00:09:04This is my water tank.
00:09:06How many gallons?
00:09:07It's 950 gallons.
00:09:09I have not set up yet.
00:09:10How long has this tank been sitting here?
00:09:13It's, let's see, nine months.
00:09:16Okay.
00:09:18There's almost 1,000 square foot of roofing that can catch 600 gallons of water if it rains
00:09:26an inch.
00:09:27And we have caught zero gallons of water.
00:09:30That has to change.
00:09:31But we have a much bigger problem.
00:09:34These kids probably won't want to stay on this homestead without adequate facilities.
00:09:41Is there a shower in this building?
00:09:43No.
00:09:43And I have to ask this.
00:09:45Do we have a legitimate place to use the restroom?
00:09:50This is it.
00:09:51This is the composting toilet in here.
00:09:55Okay.
00:09:56So, um, this is functional.
00:09:59It's currently just getting the job done.
00:10:02Mm-hmm.
00:10:03But it's not sufficient.
00:10:05It's just not made for a family of four.
00:10:08And I have to keep it cleaned, like, on a regular basis.
00:10:10This is like a part-time job.
00:10:12Okay.
00:10:14So, all of these things I'm looking at need to be upgraded, connected, when it comes to infrastructure.
00:10:21I'm super thin on everything.
00:10:25I work five jobs.
00:10:28And then whatever free time I have, I cut vines off my coffee trees.
00:10:32Well, right here.
00:10:33Because I've never in my life ever heard of anybody with five jobs.
00:10:39Picture this, a single mom with three kids and 8,000 coffee trees.
00:10:48Quite a challenge.
00:10:49I think it's time to incite these children to help their mother manage this farm.
00:11:02Let's talk about coffee farming.
00:11:04Do you know when the harvest season is?
00:11:06No, I know it's happening soon because these flowers turn into coffee beans.
00:11:11Hopefully, we can sell it, maybe.
00:11:13Yeah.
00:11:14Turn it into, like, a legit farm.
00:11:16Yeah.
00:11:16It seems like you guys are kind of in the middle of this jungle.
00:11:20Do you have problems with plants kind of moving in and trying to take over the farm?
00:11:24Yeah.
00:11:24There's the bamboo over there.
00:11:26They'll come and they'll fight for the water and the sunlight with the coffee trees.
00:11:30The growing season in Hawaii is every day of the year.
00:11:34The jungle is encroaching on your farm, your garden, whatever you're trying to do.
00:11:39And so do you guys cut this back by hand?
00:11:43Yeah.
00:11:43The only thing that we can really do is chop it down and just keep chopping it down because
00:11:47it's too hard to get to the roots.
00:11:49Some bamboo can grow like a foot a day.
00:11:52This is pretty crazy.
00:11:54If they're going to survive, we have to figure out how we're dealing with this invasive bamboo.
00:11:58Your mom is a single mom.
00:12:02And so trying to rent a farm and trying to raise a family and doing everything on your
00:12:05own doesn't sound easy.
00:12:08Yeah.
00:12:09So how do we help your mom?
00:12:12Nobody else is going to.
00:12:13Yeah.
00:12:13It's kind of up to you.
00:12:14My dad expected us to work when we were younger.
00:12:19When we were teenagers, we worked really hard.
00:12:22Are you really excited all the times when it's like a Saturday and you got to work?
00:12:27No.
00:12:28But it's a part of life on a homestead.
00:12:31And what do you think of living on a coffee farm?
00:12:32It's kind of tough with the living situation because we're super close quarters.
00:12:39Me and my 15-year-old brother, we got a 12 by 12 foot little cabin.
00:12:43So it's a little crammed.
00:12:45Yeah.
00:12:45Good times.
00:12:46I think it builds character though.
00:12:48And then what do you want to do here?
00:12:51Man, that's a real good question.
00:12:54The most important thing I could do on this homestead this week is inspire Hazel to get involved.
00:13:01I want the world for your mom.
00:13:03So we have to figure out how we're going to do that together.
00:13:06Are you in?
00:13:07Yeah, I'm in.
00:13:08Whatever it takes.
00:13:13Let's go look for pig signs.
00:13:15You can see all the footprints in the trails.
00:13:19All this is signs of pigs rooting.
00:13:21They definitely roam over here a lot.
00:13:23Have you seen one?
00:13:24Yeah.
00:13:25Squealing, running around the bushes, ruckus everywhere.
00:13:29Outside my little cabin.
00:13:31You can hear 20 pigs just going off.
00:13:34I've definitely seen like a 200, 250 pound pig.
00:13:37How big is that?
00:13:38Probably like that big.
00:13:40Maybe like...
00:13:41That tall?
00:13:42Yeah.
00:13:43No.
00:13:43They get pretty big.
00:13:44Really?
00:13:45Yeah.
00:13:45And the tusks come out like that and they're just fat.
00:13:49So I'm definitely scared walking in the dark.
00:13:51Aside from destroying local habitats, wild pigs can be deadly.
00:13:58Over the past decade, wild boars have killed nearly 20 people a year worldwide.
00:14:04More than three times the number killed by shark attacks.
00:14:08The only real way to stop these pigs is with heavy duty fencing.
00:14:16And there's a lot of time and a lot of money.
00:14:19But have you hunted pigs?
00:14:21Yeah.
00:14:21I've definitely hunted pigs on my friends' places.
00:14:24Not on this land because I never... I don't really have the resources yet.
00:14:28Okay.
00:14:28But I really want to expand the hunting on this property because I've seen some fat pigs
00:14:35and they look pretty good.
00:14:39Sage knows where to hunt for them.
00:14:41We need to get them to be able to defend this homestead from those wild hogs.
00:14:46I always call them livestock you don't have to raise.
00:14:49But you do have to trap them or hunt them.
00:14:53Sounds easy.
00:14:54It's a lot harder to actually do it.
00:14:58This homesteader has five jobs.
00:15:05Single mom raising three kids.
00:15:08And did I mention 8,000 coffee trees?
00:15:13So whether it's water or infrastructure,
00:15:16there's plenty of challenges that can kill the dream for this family.
00:15:21They're trying to coffee farm.
00:15:23But this homestead is completely overgrown with bamboo.
00:15:27One of the fastest growing plants on the planet that's encroaching everywhere.
00:15:33And Hazel, she's awesome.
00:15:35But she's not very invested in this homestead.
00:15:38I saw a lot of signs of pigs on the homestead and somebody's got to have the skills to stop them.
00:15:44The sage sees the need for it, and he wants to do it.
00:15:49But I don't think he's ever just done it by himself.
00:15:52They have to pull together as a family.
00:15:54That's the only way they're going to be successful.
00:15:57I think figuring out how we get the kids involved is crucial.
00:16:01Eric has got her hands full.
00:16:03She's got her work cut out for her, and she's overwhelmed.
00:16:15All right, there's a beautiful family.
00:16:17Let's talk a little bit.
00:16:18So it is a little daunting to think about the scope of the work here, but listen carefully, both of you.
00:16:27It's really painfully obvious your mom cannot farm 8,000 trees by herself.
00:16:34No.
00:16:35So this is clearly a homestead that's only going to make it if the family does it together.
00:16:43So hopefully we make some changes around here, because it's easier said than done.
00:16:49We'll see you tomorrow.
00:17:02Okay, follow me.
00:17:03On the MP's Big Island Homestead, Marty's first focus is to help Erica establish the infrastructure to meet the entire family's needs.
00:17:13All right, so let's say it's 3 o'clock in the morning.
00:17:16Okay.
00:17:17And you want to use the privy.
00:17:21What would happen in your world right now?
00:17:24I would walk out kind of where we all are and just use the bathroom.
00:17:30How would you like to do this?
00:17:34Walk straight.
00:17:37Whoop, whoop, stop right there.
00:17:40And now you have to open the door.
00:17:42Open the door.
00:17:44All right, now walk in.
00:17:45I'll follow you.
00:17:46All right, stop right there.
00:17:48How would you feel about a bathhouse?
00:17:52We'll build the biggest building we can build.
00:17:55We'll put a petition in there, and they can have living quarters and the bathroom.
00:17:58Okay.
00:17:59Just having somewhere to shower, it would be the biggest load off my back.
00:18:03Okay, we're in the process of trying to figure out where to build a bathhouse for all the family members.
00:18:12If it's done right, it's going to be a home run.
00:18:16It's going to make this homestead less stressful.
00:18:19I think the kids are going to become more involved, and all we need to do is pick X marks the spot.
00:18:27We'd put it over this gully, and if it flooded or water came down it, so be it.
00:18:33Our building would be high enough that it shouldn't compromise the building.
00:18:37Uh-huh.
00:18:38Come back over here.
00:18:39Why we want it there is because the goal, we want to catch all this water from all these roofs, including the water off the roof we're about to build.
00:18:48Okay.
00:18:48We can gravity feed this entire system.
00:18:51I love it.
00:18:51Marty and Erica will build a 10-by-30-foot structure for a bathroom and additional living space.
00:19:00Then, they'll create a gravity-fed water catchment system connecting all of the homestead's roof space into her storage tank to provide the family with thousands of gallons of potable water.
00:19:13I'm stoked to start working.
00:19:17I don't know how it's going to work out.
00:19:19I'm trusting that Marty knows how it's going to come together, but I think it'll be good.
00:19:24All right.
00:19:24We'll pile it up for now, and then we'll figure out what we're going to do with it later.
00:19:27All right.
00:19:28Sounds good.
00:19:28All right.
00:19:28Sounds good.
00:19:28Morning, guys.
00:19:44Hey.
00:19:44Good morning.
00:19:45How's it going?
00:19:45How's it, Matt?
00:19:46Good to see you again.
00:19:4720 miles from the MP homestead, Matt and Sage begin their day with a field trip to gain some pig trapping knowledge from an experienced neighbor.
00:19:57This guy is a hunter, he's a trapper, and he knows pretty much every way to deal with the pigs.
00:20:07Sage has hunted the pigs before, but he doesn't really know much about trapping.
00:20:11Mike has pig traps set up on his property.
00:20:14I think it'd be really valuable to go look at a little example of what's successful, and then we could build this ourselves on your property.
00:20:24Yeah.
00:20:24No problem.
00:20:27So, like, down here in this little hole, you've got a macadamia nut tree, so it's a constant, steady bait source.
00:20:36These pigs are checking all their food sources.
00:20:40Pigs are nocturnal, right?
00:20:41So they're going to spend most of their day sleeping in, like, real tall grass like that.
00:20:47Yeah.
00:20:48You know?
00:20:48Yeah.
00:20:48Guinea grass.
00:20:49Just, yeah, the guinea grass.
00:20:50And then as soon as it gets dark, they come out looking for food, right?
00:20:54And if you can, like, bait them in the same area over and over and over again, then they forget about all worries and they just come charging into the food.
00:21:03Wild pigs often scrounge for food under the cover of night by regularly baiting high-activity areas with attractive foods like nuts and corn.
00:21:14The pigs gradually become comfortable with their surroundings and more prone to enter a trap.
00:21:21I think it'd be really useful to see how you set this trap.
00:21:27You run a string off of this trigger here, from there into the back trigger, and...
00:21:35Okay.
00:21:38That's a good job, though.
00:21:39It is.
00:21:40I mean, I would love to be doing this for my life.
00:21:44After meeting with Mike and seeing this trap, Sage is convinced this is going to work, and he's excited.
00:21:51I'm definitely hearing some new stuff, and I think it could be useful.
00:21:55So we need to bait a spot on Sage's property and get a trap set up ASAP.
00:22:01I'm psyched on setting up the new trap.
00:22:03Yeah, man.
00:22:04Get some pigs on the land.
00:22:12I'm ready to get to work.
00:22:15Back at the MP Homestead, Misty, Erica, and Hazel face the daunting prospect of reclaiming acres of their land from destructive bamboo.
00:22:25It's taken out the whole upper part of the farm.
00:22:27Okay.
00:22:28Let's get rid of it today.
00:22:29Yay!
00:22:30Yay!
00:22:31But don't get excited.
00:22:33Oh, okay.
00:22:33Because it doesn't look like I can get to the bamboo in an excavator without killing part of the farm.
00:22:41What I'm hoping is that we don't have to kill the coffee trees too much.
00:22:46We will take out a few trees that we will try to transplant, and if that is not working and it's taking too long, we're just going to mow them down.
00:22:56Okay.
00:22:57Okay, let's go on foot first.
00:22:59We have to deal with this invasive bamboo.
00:23:02It's encroaching and trying to overtake the whole coffee farm.
00:23:06My gosh, you guys, this is no joke.
00:23:10The problem is there's no access.
00:23:12You have to cross the entire coffee plantation to get to the other side where the bamboo is.
00:23:19While most bamboo in Hawaii can soar to over 60 feet tall, coffee trees typically grow between 6 and 15 feet.
00:23:28Blooming in the spring, they develop clusters of white flowers that soon give way to vibrant red cherries.
00:23:36In a single growing season, one coffee tree can yield over 2,000 cherries, producing roughly 1 to 2 pounds of roasted coffee beans.
00:23:47Okay, so I'm already looking at easily 50 trees.
00:23:52And we're not even halfway there.
00:23:53Yeah.
00:23:55Dude, this is major.
00:23:58Clearing land is the most dangerous thing you can do on a homestead, so we're just moving really slow.
00:24:06Let's just try to get here without dying and get to work.
00:24:15Okay, girls, we're going to start digging up these trees.
00:24:18Show me what you wanted to show me.
00:24:20Yeah, so this is coffee rust.
00:24:22You can see it because it's all spotted.
00:24:24It's turning brown.
00:24:25So I think that we should try to get rid of the trees that have coffee rust.
00:24:29That's a great idea.
00:24:30Can you identify the coffee rust without your mom?
00:24:34I can.
00:24:35Okay, so let's go and we'll catch up in a little bit.
00:24:37All right, sounds good.
00:24:38All right, Hazel and I are creating access to the bamboo.
00:24:51At the same time, we're getting rid of the coffee rust.
00:24:53I'm going to try to wiggle in here with the excavator and see how weird it gets.
00:24:57Here we go.
00:24:58I'm going to try and fit through and straddle as many as I can.
00:25:09I'm a little nervous.
00:25:11How's it look?
00:25:12Well, yeah, just go straight.
00:25:15You're tipping a little.
00:25:17Oh, no.
00:25:20Woo!
00:25:21Don't be sad.
00:25:22It's going to be easy, Hazel.
00:25:24Yeah, I see that now.
00:25:28On Erica Empey's seven-acre Hawaiian coffee farm...
00:25:37How's it look?
00:25:38I can see some rocks and trees that way, so you got to go a little bit this way.
00:25:42Misty begins the tricky task of eliminating invasive bamboo,
00:25:46overtaking the family's cash crop of coffee trees.
00:25:50Bushwhacking through the coffee farm.
00:25:52I was concerned about how much destruction there would be
00:25:55with the excavator and these coffee trees.
00:25:58At this point, we've stumped 44 trees.
00:26:01We're right now at a point where we're halfway there.
00:26:05And, I mean, hopefully by the end of the day, we can make it to the bamboo.
00:26:10Am I straddling any of them?
00:26:12Right now, if you come a little tiny that way, you're on course to save all those ones.
00:26:16Is that better?
00:26:17Yeah, it looks good.
00:26:18Living here has definitely been a struggle, but Misty's real good at her job.
00:26:25Hopefully, we can turn this farm into something sustainable.
00:26:29Risky business.
00:26:31I like her vibe.
00:26:32She's got, like, an onnit paste, and she wants to go, go, go.
00:26:35I like that.
00:26:36Okay, that was pretty good.
00:26:38That was good.
00:26:39All right.
00:26:42We made it.
00:26:45Hazel right now is smiling.
00:26:47It seems like she's having a good time, which is great news, because for me, it's all about
00:26:51getting her involved, because that's the only way this homestead is going to have any success.
00:26:55We're touching the bamboo.
00:26:58Yeah, we finally made it.
00:26:59So, your work is done for now, and now it's just me and the excavator.
00:27:03I'm going to try to cross this massive ditch to be able to get to the other side.
00:27:08This is pretty sketchy, and it's going to take a long time.
00:27:12Yeah.
00:27:12So, I better just keep moving.
00:27:13Here we go.
00:27:14All right.
00:27:21On the other side of the homestead...
00:27:24Let's start packing these beams.
00:27:25They're going to be heavy, guys.
00:27:27We're going to all do this together.
00:27:29Marty, Erica, and a local build team begin foundational work on a much-needed sanitary structure for
00:27:36the family to collect potable water and utilize indoor plumbing.
00:27:41Easy.
00:27:45We're about to build a bathhouse.
00:27:47Right there?
00:27:48Yep.
00:27:48Adding another 300, 400 square foot of potential roof system that can catch water, because this
00:27:57family needs a safe living space if their coffee farm is going to succeed.
00:28:03Nice.
00:28:04I'm kind of in let's-get-it-done mode.
00:28:07Hey, get over here where the action is.
00:28:09Erica, what's your experience with building?
00:28:12I was basically the help crew on both of these, so kind of like how I'm doing right now, carrying
00:28:17the wood, measuring.
00:28:19So that part is over.
00:28:21Now we're going to ratchet it up.
00:28:23Okay.
00:28:23You were a freshman.
00:28:25Yep.
00:28:25Now you're going to be a senior.
00:28:26Perfect.
00:28:27In the next seven days.
00:28:28Let's do it.
00:28:28And you're going to graduate.
00:28:30Look at this beam.
00:28:32Every long beam and board in the world either has an arc up or an arc under.
00:28:39Put your eye on this and look down it, please.
00:28:41Has that thing got an arc down or does it have an arc up?
00:28:44I would say it has a little arc.
00:28:46Why would we care?
00:28:48Because if it's already sagging, it's going to just sag more.
00:28:51But if you have, like, the arc, it's going to hopefully straighten it out.
00:28:54A plus?
00:28:55Marty comes off, like, really, like, gruff and, like, just business.
00:29:02But I think every little skill I pick up is just going to take me somewhere else where
00:29:06I just think, oh, I can do that now.
00:29:09Get a pencil mark on it right here so we know which way's up.
00:29:13Please.
00:29:19All right.
00:29:20Let's cut this.
00:29:23Isn't this where you want to do?
00:29:25Because that was just the arrow pointing up.
00:29:28Uh, it might be.
00:29:31Erica's smart and she's learning.
00:29:33And, thank goodness, Erica is indeed a worker.
00:29:38Very good.
00:29:39You just saved the day.
00:29:40I'm serious.
00:29:41It was a heart attack.
00:29:45We may have been able to correct that, but that was a major save.
00:29:55I'm pretty sure some trees fell down.
00:30:01It kind of looks like there's a pig den in the middle there, too.
00:30:05At the edge of the homestead, Matt and Sage lay the groundwork to lure the wild pigs roaming
00:30:11the land into their trap.
00:30:13You can actually stop the pigs from coming into the property if you know where they're coming
00:30:20in at and what they're after.
00:30:23And that's what I'm going to try to do with Sage.
00:30:26Hopefully all these mac nuts bring the pigs over onto our land.
00:30:30And this is just one spot.
00:30:32I think we should look around at those trees in the middle, put some bait, and we should
00:30:36go back to the other side of the property where we found that pig skull, and we'll put
00:30:40some macadamias there, and hopefully we'll catch something on those trail cams that we
00:30:45can identify and be like, oh man, that'd be a good one.
00:30:47For sure.
00:30:48Okay, so grab that bucket and let's keep going.
00:30:50We're going to case the property, look around and see where the pigs are coming in at, find
00:30:58good signs, and just see how up to speed Sage is with this whole pig problem.
00:31:04We've got to build some traps, and we've got to build them quick because we don't have much
00:31:08time.
00:31:09Let's get back to the drawing board and see what we can come up with to be able to build
00:31:12a good trap, especially something that is as good as the one that we saw over at Mike's
00:31:16property.
00:31:17Matt and Sage will construct a series of four-by-six-foot cage traps and place them
00:31:24on the homestead's hotspots.
00:31:27The traps will lure the pigs in with bait and ensnare them once they're inside, turning
00:31:33a dangerous nuisance into a crucial off-grid protein source.
00:31:38All right, let's build a trap.
00:31:40We have some hardware.
00:31:42We got some metal.
00:31:43We got some hog panel.
00:31:48And with all these pieces, we're going to get this thing all bolted together and build
00:31:52one trap without any welding.
00:31:55Sweet.
00:31:56You like it?
00:31:57Yeah, it sounds great.
00:31:58Okay, awesome.
00:31:59Okay, let it rip.
00:32:03Good.
00:32:04You feel the power of the angle grinder?
00:32:06It definitely has some kick to it.
00:32:07I scored each one of these things about halfway, and now if I kick it and bend it, it comes
00:32:17apart.
00:32:18Now we got one side of the length of our trap.
00:32:22Now we need three more.
00:32:24Building this trap with Matt so far has been pretty fun, and I've learned a lot of new experiences.
00:32:29These panels will act like plywood does.
00:32:33He's taught me a lot of new skills, and they're super useful, and I hope these skills can catch
00:32:39a pig with that trap.
00:32:41But we're not done yet, so let's keep going.
00:32:43All right, I knew it wasn't going to be easy.
00:32:55I was super apprehensive.
00:32:57Misty encounters a setback on her bamboo clearing quest.
00:33:01We got through the, you know, coffee plantation, and then we hit this massive ditch.
00:33:07And now, uh, I think we're hitting some blue lava, and if you don't know what blue lava
00:33:14is, it's the lava that you cannot break.
00:33:19Hear that?
00:33:21It's not good.
00:33:23I think I'm, like, in this moment completely wowed.
00:33:26I had no idea what I was up against.
00:33:29Getting to the bamboo, seeing how tight it was together, so thick, it's over 100 feet tall.
00:33:34Like, I'm literally staring at the impossible.
00:33:53This is pretty sketchy.
00:33:56At this rate, like, are we ever going to clear all this bamboo?
00:34:00Because it looks like it's going to take more than a week to clear.
00:34:05So, I'm going to call in backup.
00:34:11At backup, you know, stands about 6'4", got a red beard, big smile, doesn't talk much,
00:34:19but it's pretty capable.
00:34:21So, while Clint's been in the excavator, cutting the bamboo back, I want to shift focus to coffee
00:34:29processing with Hazel.
00:34:32While Misty leaves Clint to tackle the problem of clearing a quarter-mile swath of bamboo...
00:34:38It looks amazing.
00:34:43...just up the hill...
00:34:45Excellent.
00:34:46...martie stabilizes the platform of a catchment bathhouse
00:34:50that will provide the family with effective infrastructure and water collection.
00:34:56Good, good, good.
00:34:58Okay, man.
00:34:59...and on the edge of the homestead...
00:35:01This is our door.
00:35:02This is what's going to slide the channel on the other end of our trap,
00:35:05and let's go see if it fits in place.
00:35:07Let's go.
00:35:09All the way, okay?
00:35:10Oh, yeah.
00:35:11So, there's two things that need to be added to keep pigs in here, okay?
00:35:17And the first part, all it is, is a very thick piece of wire that will then hang down.
00:35:23It'll basically act as our pin trapping.
00:35:27It's a very passive way to deal with the pigs.
00:35:30It frees up sage to be able to do other things on the homestead,
00:35:33and it's a really great way to get those pigs manageable.
00:35:39This trap is set, but we need to trip this trap with something that everybody has
00:35:44commonly laying around on a homestead, and that is string line.
00:35:49We want these pigs to trip this trap like a trip wire.
00:35:53We want to make that trip wire go across this path.
00:35:57So, we don't want to catch little pigs, right?
00:36:00Mm-mm.
00:36:00So, let's go up.
00:36:01Just kind of, like, pull that knot tight.
00:36:05Yeah, it's going to be pretty tight.
00:36:08Now, this trap is set.
00:36:10Maybe let's test it out.
00:36:12All right, man.
00:36:13Hop in there.
00:36:14Let's see if this thing works.
00:36:15Be careful.
00:36:16It's like a hairline trigger.
00:36:18Oh, yeah.
00:36:27You're trapped.
00:36:27Woo!
00:36:31Yeah, definitely pig worthy.
00:36:33High five.
00:36:35I'm going to let you out.
00:36:37I'm going to let you out.
00:36:39Sage and I finished our pig trap, and I got to tell you,
00:36:42I think it's the best trap I've ever built.
00:36:45Now that our trap is done, we just need to add the bait
00:36:49into the mix, and hopefully, we catch a pig.
00:36:52We're going to build a lot more of these things.
00:36:54Yeah.
00:36:54All right, let's go.
00:36:56We're building a second trap because we've seen
00:36:58a lot of pig activity.
00:36:59All right, man.
00:37:00Trap number two is done.
00:37:02Hopefully, within the next couple days,
00:37:05we catch a pig with that second trap.
00:37:08Have you ever used a trail cam?
00:37:09Nope.
00:37:11They're motion activated.
00:37:12They only turn on when something moves in front of them.
00:37:16Just zip tie it to any tree, as long as it's
00:37:18a stationary object.
00:37:20So go for it.
00:37:23Sage and I are going to set up trail cameras
00:37:26to see if we're on the right track
00:37:28when it comes to outsmarting these pigs.
00:37:31I think we should add more to this baited area,
00:37:33lure them in more, and then keep checking the cams,
00:37:37then try to outsmart them with the trap.
00:37:41Yeah.
00:37:42What do you think?
00:37:47That's amazing.
00:37:48In a day, how much you've accomplished.
00:37:50I've never seen light back here.
00:37:52This is so crazy.
00:37:53As Clint clears the remaining bamboo foliage,
00:37:56Misty and Erica discuss how to carve out a role
00:37:59for her teenage daughter on the homestead.
00:38:02I'd love to create a space for Hazel doing something
00:38:07that she's interested in.
00:38:08Yeah.
00:38:08Some kind of structure is needed.
00:38:10So do we create this little coffee farm stand
00:38:14for processing, harvesting, labor?
00:38:19Can that be dual-purposed and actually become a space just for her?
00:38:24I think so, yeah.
00:38:25I think so, too.
00:38:26I think Hazel will be a lot happier if she has her own space on the homestead,
00:38:30and I think when we tie the coffee stand to it,
00:38:33it's giving her that role that she needs for this family.
00:38:37That is the key to success.
00:38:39There's structures and there's plans kind of where the existing cabin is.
00:38:44Maybe put it in front, even a little bit lower,
00:38:47just flatten it out and have that be the space.
00:38:49There's now going to be a little driveway down to it.
00:38:51I'm really excited.
00:38:52Okay, you can't tell her.
00:38:53Oh, but that's so exciting.
00:38:54I don't want to tell her at all.
00:38:56Sounds good?
00:38:57All right, sounds good.
00:39:00Misty's ambitious idea is to create a dual-purpose 10-by-10-foot structure
00:39:06that Hazel can live in and operate the coffee processing from.
00:39:11Next to the structure will be a washing basin,
00:39:14a stove for roasting the beans,
00:39:17and a station for grinding and packaging the coveted Kona coffee.
00:39:24Come on over.
00:39:26We're going to start this little coffee processing station together.
00:39:30So we'll do like this little 10-by-10 coffee shack.
00:39:34You ready to start building?
00:39:35Yeah.
00:39:35Do you have any tools?
00:39:36I got a pencil.
00:39:37Yeah, bring the pencil.
00:39:39That's a tool.
00:39:39I'll grab the last pier block and then we'll go.
00:39:41All right, cool.
00:39:43One of the most important things I want to do this week
00:39:45is lighting the fire for Hazel,
00:39:48getting her inspired, finding her place on the homestead.
00:39:51Where does she fit in?
00:39:52And it doesn't have to be this painful, miserable experience.
00:39:57It can actually be the most fulfilling, rewarding thing you could ever do.
00:40:01See how we're like cockamamie'd and we're not a right angle?
00:40:04Mm-hmm.
00:40:05How do you find that right angle?
00:40:07With the measuring tape?
00:40:08Yep.
00:40:08And with the 3-4-5 method.
00:40:11You measure three feet out from the corner,
00:40:14then four feet out from the corner,
00:40:16and then five feet across from mark to mark.
00:40:22Three, four, five.
00:40:24It will give us a perfect angle and then the square structure.
00:40:27So here we go.
00:40:28Where's that pencil?
00:40:30Tool.
00:40:31Ooh.
00:40:32Any homestead is just this massive puzzle, right?
00:40:36We're all little pieces and you just got to find where you fit in.
00:40:39And for Hazel, we just have to figure out where her passion is,
00:40:42where that drive is, figure out what she loves to do,
00:40:45and then do that.
00:40:48Wow.
00:40:48You're impressively good at using a hammer.
00:40:52So are you.
00:40:53No, no.
00:40:54I know my skills.
00:40:55Hammer's not one of them.
00:40:56We're going to put in the other two,
00:40:58and then we're going to start framing.
00:40:59I want to see the trail cam footage
00:41:06because this looks like it got hit.
00:41:09Wow.
00:41:10Look at this.
00:41:23It's day four on the MP family's seven-acre Hawaiian homestead.
00:41:28Good morning.
00:41:29And a surprise rainstorm reveals an unrealized opportunity.
00:41:35Hey, check this out.
00:41:37I'm a little surprised at how much it did rain.
00:41:41See this?
00:41:41Yeah.
00:41:42Right at about two inches of rain fell last night.
00:41:45Now, this is a good thing.
00:41:47It's also bad.
00:41:50We have no catchment in place.
00:41:53Yeah.
00:41:53I'm not happy we didn't capture it.
00:41:55We're wasting, you know, a good life that can be had in this homestead.
00:42:01I just didn't have the resources for myself for the money and all that.
00:42:04And by the way, that's a very legitimate reason.
00:42:07But the problem is you only have a 1,000-gallon tank.
00:42:10And just with the roof systems that you have right now, we could have probably captured 1,000 to 2,000 gallons last night.
00:42:21Yeah.
00:42:21As soon as we finish this building, we're going to add another significant roof system that can catch more water.
00:42:29So, this is telling me we're going to need more tanks, okay?
00:42:35So, we're going to have to figure out how to get more catchment tanks on the property before I leave here.
00:42:40Yeah.
00:42:40All right.
00:42:40That's what's going to happen.
00:42:40Sounds good.
00:42:41Let's do it.
00:42:41At the edge of the homestead.
00:42:56We're going to go check in on the bamboo.
00:42:58I handed the X baton to Clint, and he's been cutting down bamboo trees.
00:43:03So, let's see how he's doing.
00:43:04Let's take a look.
00:43:07Yay!
00:43:07Very impressive.
00:43:09Oh, my gosh.
00:43:10Look at this.
00:43:12How's it going?
00:43:14Good.
00:43:15So, you already got the bamboo down, and you're just getting out the clumps?
00:43:18Yeah.
00:43:19The roots?
00:43:19Making out the roots.
00:43:20Obviously, getting rid of the bamboo was the first challenge, but how do we keep the bamboo back for all time?
00:43:27The only way that I can think of is driving on it.
00:43:31So, I think that if this becomes a massive circle driveway, bamboo is never going to grow back.
00:43:36I think that's a good idea for driving over every day.
00:43:38I don't think it'll give it a chance to, like, come back.
00:43:40So, parking lot slash driveway slash road access, we'll get it all in one on the bamboo highway.
00:43:47That's what I just named it.
00:43:49Fire.
00:43:49Look at this.
00:43:59Wow.
00:44:00On the outskirts of the homestead...
00:44:02A lot of, a lot of macadamia nuts are gone.
00:44:05Yeah.
00:44:06A lot of activity through here.
00:44:08This looks pretty hot.
00:44:10I want to see the trail cam footage, because this looks like it got hit.
00:44:15Before we put our other trap here, I'm going to do something a little different here.
00:44:20I want to see if we're on the right track when it comes to our baited areas.
00:44:26And let's check and see what's on here.
00:44:29There it is.
00:44:30It's really grainy.
00:44:37But you can for sure see that right there.
00:44:41Yeah, that's a pig.
00:44:42That's guaranteed a pig.
00:44:44So, they came through here, right past our bait.
00:44:47I think we should put a trap right here.
00:44:49We should get more of a variety of bait, because these mac nuts, they have a nice smell.
00:44:55But I feel like if we added, like, avocados, some other good things that they like to eat,
00:45:00they'd go off through the roof.
00:45:02Let's go.
00:45:03Yeah.
00:45:05Now, straight back.
00:45:08Oh, no, we're tipping.
00:45:09Okay, set it down.
00:45:10Finding a pig on our trail cam, eating the macadamia nuts, confirms this is the right area
00:45:17to put a trap.
00:45:18Okay.
00:45:19I love Sage's idea.
00:45:22It shows me that he's getting into this.
00:45:24This almost looks like a pig's den.
00:45:27This homestead needs Sage to do all kinds of projects, all kinds of work.
00:45:33But predator protection is a really good first job.
00:45:37Let's sweeten the pot.
00:45:39Those oranges are so juicy.
00:45:43I think we're going to get a pig.
00:45:45I got a good feeling.
00:45:46I have a good feeling also.
00:45:48One, two, three.
00:45:57All the way up.
00:46:01You ever seen one of these before?
00:46:02Yep.
00:46:03You ever used one before?
00:46:04No.
00:46:04Do you want to learn how to use one?
00:46:06Yep.
00:46:07Okay.
00:46:07So you have that line, right?
00:46:09Yeah.
00:46:09To tell you where to go.
00:46:11So you have your hand here.
00:46:12You never have it up here.
00:46:14Okay.
00:46:14Sometimes you're nailing.
00:46:15The gun bounces up.
00:46:16And you potentially could nail yourself.
00:46:20Okay.
00:46:21Here we go.
00:46:21So let's touch it to the lumber.
00:46:24Pull the trigger.
00:46:26Pull the trigger.
00:46:27Building the structure, what's new for me, is using a nail gun.
00:46:30You do it.
00:46:31This is, like, the first time I've really, like, jumped in to build.
00:46:38It was all kind of new for me, the whole build.
00:46:40All right.
00:46:41So you got this thing nailed together.
00:46:42Yep.
00:46:43By the way, it looks really good.
00:46:44Let's stand it up.
00:46:45You're welcome.
00:46:45One, two, three.
00:46:46I definitely feel inspired about actually building stuff and putting it together.
00:46:51We got to fasten these corners together.
00:46:56It's hard work.
00:46:57I'm building muscles all over my body that haven't opened a path.
00:47:01Looking good.
00:47:01Looking strong.
00:47:02Other side, please.
00:47:04I would like to use these skills in the future.
00:47:06So I want to make the most of it.
00:47:08You're a pro.
00:47:11I love it.
00:47:12Now let's talk a little bit.
00:47:14Where have you fastened this wall?
00:47:17And to the sidewalls.
00:47:19Yeah, exactly.
00:47:20You think there's another place we should fasten it?
00:47:22The floor.
00:47:23What are you waiting on?
00:47:25Hey, hey, get back here.
00:47:26I was not.
00:47:27No.
00:47:28I don't bump.
00:47:29I was looking at my watch.
00:47:31Oh, man.
00:47:33You snuck in a bump.
00:47:35I'm teasing.
00:47:36Right there.
00:47:36Along the bottom.
00:47:39Yep.
00:47:39That's a girl.
00:47:40You're a fast learner.
00:47:42Let's build another wall down here.
00:47:46With the coffee station's structure nearly complete, Misty shifts her focus to providing
00:47:58Hazel with the knowledge and the means to process and generate revenue from the property's homegrown
00:48:05beans.
00:48:05So when it comes to coffee processing, they need a wash, they need to dry, and eventually
00:48:12we'll roast them.
00:48:13So the first thing I was thinking we could build would be a water basin out of lava rocks.
00:48:18There's a bunch just lying around.
00:48:20Look how many.
00:48:20Right here.
00:48:21And just start stacking them up, get some cement, and just build one by hand.
00:48:25When it comes to a garden bed, usually you don't build those beds over four feet because
00:48:29it's hard to reach.
00:48:31So the same rule is going to apply to the wash basin.
00:48:35We're kind of restricted by the coffee trees.
00:48:38So I'm going to jump in the miniacs, and we're going to level out a spot that's four by
00:48:4212-ish.
00:48:43And then we're going to build a lava rock wash basin.
00:48:46Easy enough.
00:48:47Yeah, I'm down.
00:48:51It's a little tight, folks.
00:48:54Good thing we've got the miniacs.
00:48:56Oh yeah, a big one would not have fit.
00:48:59Super exciting moment for us.
00:49:01We've started leveling out an area.
00:49:03One by one, I'm unearthing all of these lava rocks.
00:49:06We're going to use those and build a massive washing stone basin.
00:49:13All right, let's just check the trap.
00:49:28Let's do it.
00:49:29On the MP family's Hawaiian homestead.
00:49:32What is that?
00:49:34Oh, what?
00:49:36Feral hog activity triggers one of the property's new traps.
00:49:41Uh, where's our bait?
00:49:49Oh no.
00:49:52Look at all this.
00:49:54It got torn to pieces.
00:49:57Investigating the trap, the door was closed, and all the pig bait was gone on the inside.
00:50:04It's the perfect crime.
00:50:05Do you think they grabbed it from the outside?
00:50:08No.
00:50:09Can't be.
00:50:10No way.
00:50:11That makes no sense.
00:50:12Okay, where's our string at?
00:50:14String's over here, all the way over there.
00:50:16Okay.
00:50:17Looks like it might have...
00:50:19Oh, it snapped.
00:50:20It like ripped off.
00:50:22Yeah.
00:50:22Completely ripped.
00:50:25Let's check the trail cam.
00:50:27Grab that card out of there.
00:50:28I'm not surprised that this happened, because they're slippery, they can get out of anything.
00:50:35I think we're dealing with an expert pig here that's seen a lot of traps.
00:50:40A hog, a hog, Dini.
00:50:41Oh, right there.
00:50:43Yeah.
00:50:46Like he's in there.
00:50:48Oh, yeah.
00:50:51Set the door off.
00:50:53That's a bummer.
00:50:54Dang it.
00:50:55You know what this tells me?
00:50:58Somewhere between our string line and the trigger for our door, something didn't work.
00:51:04Follow me.
00:51:07Take the whole thing, get yourself a lot of slack.
00:51:09And then wrap it around.
00:51:10And wrap it around itself, like that.
00:51:12Yeah, I understand.
00:51:14Pigs are super smart, so when you're building a trap from scratch, we're going to have to
00:51:19do some intricate, you know, tweaking here and there to make sure that this thing is
00:51:24going to actually catch a pig.
00:51:27Okay, set it again.
00:51:33I'm going to start doing sheets.
00:51:35In the middle of the homestead...
00:51:39Marty and Erica close in the water catchment bathhouse that will provide some real-world
00:51:45privacy and comfort for the family in the wild.
00:51:49Just keep in line.
00:51:55I'm having a good time up here.
00:51:58It makes me feel like I want to be a carpenter.
00:52:00She's worked on the foundation.
00:52:02She's worked on the subfloor.
00:52:03She's worked on the walls, the sheeting, the roof.
00:52:06She's had her hands on every aspect of a bathhouse.
00:52:10Good thing, because she needs to learn all these skills if they want to succeed.
00:52:16Okay, how far do I have to go?
00:52:19Two inches.
00:52:20Everything is coming together, and being able to see the structures now, the more I realize
00:52:25that things are going to move forward in the right direction, and my kids will be so much
00:52:30happier living here.
00:52:32I still have a lot of work to do, but that's okay because there's kind of an end in sight.
00:52:38Woo-hoo!
00:52:48While the concrete cures at the new coffee basin...
00:52:53Cool!
00:52:54Well, there's one rock!
00:52:56...Misty and Hazel scavenge for additional building materials.
00:53:00We need rocks for the wash basin.
00:53:04I see them lying everywhere, all over the seven-acre homestead.
00:53:09Okay, buddy, we're just going to load rocks.
00:53:12We'll take any size.
00:53:15What I'm really loving about our build is we're just using materials at hand.
00:53:20Right now, we have a ton of lava rocks.
00:53:22There is a ton of bamboo.
00:53:24And today, I'm going to turn one into a wash basin, the other into drying racks.
00:53:30So, right now, we're skim-coating the wash basin.
00:53:33This will help get it nice and watertight.
00:53:35No pressure, but this has to be Marty Rainey approved.
00:53:39As the plaster on the wash basin dries, Misty calls in a special visitor,
00:53:45another single mom on the island, who she hopes will be a resource
00:53:49and a positive example for Erica and her children.
00:53:53I brought some friends of ours!
00:53:55Oh, so great!
00:53:57Meet Annie and the kids!
00:53:59This is Erica and her kids!
00:54:02Annie Ridgely.
00:54:03She's a single mom, four kids, with a homestead on the big island of Hawaii.
00:54:09Last year, we helped her, and now she has a very productive macadamia nut farm.
00:54:15She took time out of her busy schedule because she, too, knows what it's like to be a single mom in over her head when it comes to farming.
00:54:26We wanted to connect you to somebody that, in so many ways, is kind of dealing with what you're dealing with.
00:54:32Yeah, and we just wanted to tap into, like, any knowledge that you could share with Erica.
00:54:38And, at this point, we'll take any help we can get.
00:54:42We hate to put you to work, but we kind of need you.
00:54:44We're like workhorses.
00:54:45We're happier the more work we have, the more we're working.
00:54:49Boys are going with him?
00:54:50Yep.
00:54:51Girls, you want to come with me?
00:54:52Yeah.
00:54:52Okay, girls, come on.
00:54:54This feels amazing to be helping the Rainies, helping a fellow farmer, fellow single mom.
00:55:00Homesteading is a family lifestyle.
00:55:03And so, to incorporate your kids into what you're doing, that's the most important part.
00:55:12Okay, girls, Hazel and I are making this coffee shack, and we need drying racks.
00:55:18So, I was thinking we could cut some of the bamboo because it's such a pain in the neck anyways, and it has to go.
00:55:24And then use that to build these big drying racks out of.
00:55:29That's kind of what I'm thinking.
00:55:30And I'm so excited Joy and Matea are here, just connecting them with Hazel, and I've already just been hearing them talk.
00:55:38Nice, Hazel.
00:55:40Just like nobody understands you like somebody living and breathing your same existence.
00:55:49You are a total pro.
00:55:52Oh, oh my God, thank you.
00:55:54She's new to the farm, but look at her go.
00:55:57Yeah, I wouldn't even guess.
00:55:58I mean, they absolutely, 100% get each other.
00:56:04Hopefully, this is just the beginning of a very long friendship.
00:56:08It's so nice to meet you, and it's so inspiring, too, because while I'm doing all this work, like, I don't know anybody else, especially a woman who has, like, done the whole homestead thing.
00:56:23Yeah, and we don't have to do hard things alone, and that's my big takeaway, and I just admire what you're doing, and just the choice to be here and to do this.
00:56:33I just know right away that you're brave.
00:56:35Brave?
00:56:35Slightly crazy.
00:56:36There's that fine line of brave or not so smart.
00:56:40Yeah, no, very brave, and it's worth it.
00:56:44How are you doing 80 acres?
00:56:45Like, for me, this feels unmanageable, almost.
00:56:48Living on your farm, you're always seeing what needs to be done, so it's so overwhelming.
00:56:55All the things you have to do on top of being a mom and, right, and paying for all of this.
00:56:59How are you doing it?
00:57:00Right, so, so.
00:57:03You know, I've learned that it doesn't all have to be done right now.
00:57:06Okay.
00:57:07And to know that I'll never be caught up.
00:57:09It's definitely the long game, and it's the lifestyle, and it's worth it to be able to be here with your kids.
00:57:16And that's your full-time thing.
00:57:17Full-time.
00:57:18That's what I do.
00:57:19Okay, good.
00:57:19Yeah, that's what I'm trying to work towards as well.
00:57:21You can do this, and I know a lot of coffee farmers, and it's a great business to be in.
00:57:25Okay, that's a good thing.
00:57:26Yeah, absolutely.
00:57:28Meeting Annie was amazing, and it's good to have somebody be like, I know exactly how you feel.
00:57:33You feel like you're going to fail.
00:57:34You feel like nothing's going to come together.
00:57:43It's just good to see someone on the other side of that.
00:57:48She's amazing.
00:57:49We just became past friends.
00:57:51You've been here a year.
00:57:52You've been here a year.
00:57:53Like, I could feel what that first year felt like.
00:57:57Yeah.
00:57:57And I just want you to know it gets better.
00:58:00Yeah, it gets better.
00:58:02I love that.
00:58:03This is a big day.
00:58:17We've reached the point where there's metal on that roof, that roof, and those two roofs, and it's time to catch rainwater and put it somewhere.
00:58:35Let's do it.
00:58:36Okay, so what I'm thinking is this.
00:58:40If we could build a bit of a mound here, about three feet, and set the 1,000-gallon tank that I see you already own, then connect the gutters to the downspouts with gravity feed right into that bathhouse.
00:58:53Okay, I like it.
00:58:55It's now or never because you've got two days.
00:59:03I'm studying and working on a farm without the water.
00:59:06It's been a struggle.
00:59:07So I really need this to work because to be here living this life without having to haul water would be such a huge relief for me and for my kids.
00:59:18It would just be such a huge blessing for all of us.
00:59:25We're running out of time, so we'll grab all the material we can that's already here.
00:59:30She's got a tank on the property.
00:59:31All we have to do is pummel some volcanic rock down in the petals, pound it into place, and we can move that tank and use it for the first time.
00:59:41The bad news is it won't be enough water.
00:59:45We're going to need more storage.
00:59:52With the clock counting down on the rescue and the upgraded pig traps awaiting their first capture,
00:59:58Matt learns that neighbor Mike has a tripped trap of his own.
01:00:04I would have loved to get a wild pig in the traps that we put on Sage's property,
01:00:08but I don't have time to wait around.
01:00:11If this pig is the right size, we can use it to be able to continue Sage's homesteading and livestock journey.
01:00:23Yikes!
01:00:24So you got a pig in there.
01:00:26That's awesome.
01:00:27Yeah.
01:00:27We have built two traps and put them on Sage's homestead.
01:00:32Ultimately, I don't really know what's going to happen, but the fact that you have this pig in this trap,
01:00:37I think that maybe we should prepare this pig as our pig that we're going to roast.
01:00:42Yeah, awesome.
01:00:44What we have in this trap is about an 80 to 90 pound sow.
01:00:48It's the perfect pig to teach Sage how to process meat on his homestead.
01:00:53What's the time frame from, like, slaughtering the pig to, like, cooking the pig?
01:00:57I figure about a week for a pig before you've got to either freeze it or cook it.
01:01:01Okay, so we're definitely going to use this pig.
01:01:03If we get more pigs, we'll roast two.
01:01:06Absolutely.
01:01:07Thanks a lot.
01:01:07You're the man.
01:01:09We'll be talking real soon.
01:01:10Over at the completed coffee station.
01:01:23All right, Hazel.
01:01:25You ready to wash some coffee cherries?
01:01:27Misty teaches Hazel how to take the reins on the family's bean processing operation.
01:01:32The coffee shack is done.
01:01:34The lava rock stone basin is finished, and we just completed the bamboo drying racks,
01:01:39and now it's time to start processing coffee.
01:01:43So we already started to collect some rainwater,
01:01:47so this and the off-season can be for water storage.
01:01:50But in the coffee season, it's going to be for washing the coffee cherries.
01:01:54This is where we're washing and separating the good from the bad.
01:01:58I'm going to get a little bit more water, fill this bad boy up.
01:02:04I did a lot of research about this because I want to show Hazel that it's not that complicated.
01:02:10It can be fun, and that this is just the beginning for the coffee farm.
01:02:15Okay, let's wash!
01:02:17Woo-hoo!
01:02:20You're just going to grab the bad cherries right off the top,
01:02:24and then all the good cherries are left on the bottom,
01:02:26and we'll scoop those out and get them drying.
01:02:30I can get used to this.
01:02:31It's not so bad.
01:02:33Originally, I did not want to move to off-grid or, like, the coffee farm.
01:02:37What do you think of the wash basin?
01:02:39Super cherry.
01:02:39It's cool, right?
01:02:41Yeah, but I'm feeling pretty good right now.
01:02:44I'm honestly just shocked by the amount of stuff that we were able to get, like, done with their help.
01:02:49One day, you're going to be a full-blown coffee farm.
01:02:53This coffee shack and water basin, I think it's really great.
01:02:57So anything that doesn't look like it's great, he goes.
01:03:00Look at this.
01:03:02That guy goes.
01:03:03What do you think?
01:03:04He definitely goes.
01:03:06Seeing Hazel kind of come to life over this week is what it's all about.
01:03:10Just any of them that aren't perfectly red, I think, got to go.
01:03:13Right, yeah.
01:03:14This isn't Erica's homestead.
01:03:15This is the family's homestead, and clearly, it's not a one-man show.
01:03:19We're going to leave these to dry, and they'll dry in the sun for two to four weeks, and then they kind of turn into this beautiful, like, dark color.
01:03:27And then you take that pulp and skin off, and then you're left with that green bean, and then you're ready to roast.
01:03:33I love it.
01:03:35Let's go.
01:03:36I really want Hazel to be a part of this whole process.
01:03:39I'm so excited.
01:03:40This is when all the hard work pays off.
01:03:43And right now, we have coffee cherries drying in the sun, but I have a bag of raw coffee beans, and we're ready to roast.
01:03:50The fruit of the harvest, your green coffee beans.
01:03:55We're just going to kind of cover the bottom of the pan, and then light it.
01:04:00Oh, okay, here we go, babe.
01:04:02We're going to listen for the first crack, which happens when the moisture is kind of leaving the coffee bean, and it's all about trying to roast evenly.
01:04:11Misty showed me the coffee shack.
01:04:14It was pretty cool.
01:04:15Look at your view.
01:04:16That's fire.
01:04:18I love coffee.
01:04:19I love going to the local coffee shops, and I love the idea of roasting the coffee here.
01:04:25Do you like a light roast?
01:04:26Do you like a dark roast?
01:04:28I like it when I'm bouncing off the walls immediately.
01:04:30Woo-hoo-hoo-hoo!
01:04:32This is the coolest thing I've ever done on a homestead.
01:04:37Let's torch it.
01:04:40Now, it's time to roast a pig.
01:04:43Tomorrow morning, we're going to have a feast.
01:04:46Yeah.
01:04:46Yeah.
01:04:49There are 12 hours left in the Empey homestead rescue.
01:04:58From slabs to painting.
01:05:00At Hazel's new coffee shack cabin, Misty adds a coat of paint.
01:05:06There's a big rock right there.
01:05:07All right.
01:05:08All right.
01:05:09I love it.
01:05:10While across the homestead, Matt teaches Sage the off-grid way his fellow islanders have made
01:05:16Kahlua pork for more than 1,000 years.
01:05:19The traditional way to cook pigs in Hawaii is by using an emu.
01:05:27An emu, or earth oven, is an underground slow cooking method used by native Hawaiians during luau's and special celebrations.
01:05:35Steam generated from hot rocks and wood produces tender, smoky flavors in island staples like pigs, bananas, and sweet potatoes.
01:05:47All you need to do is build yourself a hole in the ground that you can roast a pig in and then source lava rocks.
01:05:56You build the emu with the rocks from the earth, you get the pigs from the jungle, it's all on their property.
01:06:05All right.
01:06:06Let's torch it.
01:06:11Having an emu on our land is super cool, and I'm happy that we're rusting this pig, and I'm looking forward to rusting more pigs throughout this life.
01:06:22The thing I love about the emu more than anything is everything is sourced right from the land.
01:06:28No buying anything from the store, you're trapping the pigs, you're using the rocks to build the emu, all the wood grows here, the leaves.
01:06:40This island, it has so much to offer.
01:06:43The fire has burned down and the rocks are red hot.
01:06:48Now it's time to roast a pig.
01:06:52Hey, how's it going?
01:06:53Hey, how's it going?
01:06:54What's your name?
01:06:55My name's Cove.
01:06:56It's good to meet you.
01:06:57Yeah, what's going on?
01:06:58We're doing an emu.
01:06:59Oh, that's epic.
01:07:01Have you ever done this before?
01:07:04Only school projects.
01:07:06At school, we've done this before.
01:07:07Oh, really?
01:07:08You do this in school?
01:07:10Yeah.
01:07:10That's awesome.
01:07:12Having Cove step in and help me put this pig in the ground is really fun.
01:07:16You know, he's Sage's younger brother, but he's strong, mature, and he's done this before.
01:07:24It's going to be hot.
01:07:25Oh, that's...
01:07:27That's insane.
01:07:28That's so gnarly.
01:07:29You know, what did I do in elementary school in Alaska?
01:07:32I learned how to make a snowman.
01:07:34Cove learned how to put a pig in the ground and roast it.
01:07:37Put it right on top.
01:07:39Right here.
01:07:42Okay.
01:07:42You okay?
01:07:43Yep.
01:07:43Perfect.
01:07:44Okay, step back.
01:07:45Level it up.
01:07:47Kick it in there.
01:07:48We're going to have so many layers on this that there's not going to be any smoke escaping.
01:07:55This is the last step.
01:07:59Let's make all the smoke disappear.
01:08:00Let's make all the smoke disappear.
01:08:04Working with Cove to put this pig on the hot rocks in the emu is definitely exciting.
01:08:11The rocks are so hot, it feels like the earth opened up and just started pouring out lava.
01:08:19Dude, you can smell it cooking.
01:08:20Oh, yeah.
01:08:21It smells good.
01:08:22It smells really good.
01:08:24Come tomorrow morning, we're going to have a feast.
01:08:28Yeah.
01:08:42You got to cool them and get rid of that chaff.
01:08:48Give them our little anti-strain bearer.
01:08:52Woo!
01:08:53Woo!
01:08:54One of the things this homestead was lacking was infrastructure.
01:08:56For me, this coffee shack and the processing station is just the beginning for Erica and
01:09:02the kids.
01:09:03Let's do our pour-over.
01:09:04Also, all week long, we have been trying to figure out Hazel's place on the homestead.
01:09:09And I think starting with this little coffee shack is key.
01:09:13Woo-hoo-hoo!
01:09:14Woo-hoo!
01:09:15Woo-hoo!
01:09:16Woo-hoo!
01:09:17That looks good.
01:09:18And here we go.
01:09:19Taste test.
01:09:20How'd we do?
01:09:21Here's to us.
01:09:22Cheers.
01:09:23Cheers.
01:09:24Cheers.
01:09:25Cheers.
01:09:26Cheers.
01:09:27Cheers.
01:09:28Cheers.
01:09:29Cheers.
01:09:30Cheers.
01:09:31Cheers.
01:09:32Cheers.
01:09:33Cheers.
01:09:34Cheers.
01:09:35Cheers.
01:09:36Cheers.
01:09:37Cheers.
01:09:38Cheers.
01:09:39Cheers.
01:09:40Cheers.
01:09:41Cheers.
01:09:42Cheers.
01:09:43Cheers.
01:09:44Cheers.
01:09:45Cheers.
01:09:46Cheers.
01:09:47Cheers.
01:09:48Cheers.
01:09:49Cheers.
01:09:50Cheers.
01:09:51Cheers.
01:09:52Cheers.
01:09:53Cheers.
01:09:54Cheers.
01:09:55Cheers.
01:09:56Cheers.
01:09:57Cheers.
01:09:58Cheers.
01:09:59Cheers.
01:10:00Cheers.
01:10:01Cheers.
01:10:02Cheers.
01:10:03Cheers.
01:10:04Cheers.
01:10:05Cheers.
01:10:06Cheers.
01:10:07Cheers.
01:10:08Cheers.
01:10:09Cheers.
01:10:10Cheers.
01:10:11Cheers.
01:10:12Cheers.
01:10:13There's enough covered space to do whatever you need to do for farming, but I wanted you to have your own space on the farm
01:10:20Well, I I don't thank you so much. I I I wow
01:10:25I'm stoked on my own space and I have to share room with sage
01:10:28Misty far exceeded my expectations. I'm super grateful. Do you want to be here on this coffee farm now? Yeah, it's growing on me
01:10:37I'm very happy. Thank you so much. I
01:10:39I I don't I don't know
01:10:44I appreciate it like a lot. It's it's great
01:10:49I'm so glad that he's old loves her bedroom clearly having your own space after a year makes all the difference
01:10:54But really for me spending this week with her seeing her have the connection with the homestead and kind of finding her role
01:11:02She's no longer along for the ride just on the outskirts. She's in the driver's seat
01:11:06I got the best if you probably had everyone you do
01:11:13Seven days ago the MP homestead was under threat from fast-growing invasive bamboo and had no efficient way to prep
01:11:22Wash or roast their own coffee beans while Hazel and her brother were forced to share a room in a small cabin
01:11:29today
01:11:31Today Hazel can enjoy her own space in the new coffee shack with a covered kitchen area to prep and a large lava rock tub for washing beans all
01:11:43accessible by a newly cleared road
01:11:47reclaiming the farmland from the bamboo
01:11:50Thank you. You're welcome. Great
01:11:52As daylight fades on day six just put it right here
01:12:06Marty and Erica take a crucial step towards creating the homesteads new water storage system
01:12:13Here it comes
01:12:15All right
01:12:17Come all the way to the edge
01:12:25Keep them coming. All right, so what we'll do is spread a little gravel. I just want a nice clean base
01:12:33Every water tank has to have a base
01:12:41But since I'm not going to do it on concrete for time and I need to do it this second
01:12:46I'm gonna make a gravel pad spread it out and put the tank there and start running pipes
01:12:52Bring that in it's ready
01:13:00All right, tell them where to go kind of just right here
01:13:09Thank you
01:13:10There is a potential nine hundred and fifty gallons of catchment looks good are we at a point right now where you see there is actually hope?
01:13:19Yes, definitely that I see the water tank in place and now we have like this little area here
01:13:24It's like a little park like just like right here. It just feels like a little thin spot
01:13:29Look out there again. What else do you see? I see the ocean the view the trees a cloud
01:13:35Rain cloud
01:13:45Oh
01:13:47What is this?
01:13:48All right, we thought maybe we would upgrade the dining room table kitchen area. Oh, wow
01:13:54Once upon a time this was a huge
01:13:59Obesia tree on her 80 acre mac nut farm
01:14:02Marty made us a dining room table just like this
01:14:09There's a little philosophy that revolves around the kitchen table you want me to round these edges before I leave I'm thinking I do a
01:14:18Hundred years ago every night a family worked hard together in a field
01:14:25And then they all sat around the kitchen table at night
01:14:32I
01:14:34This is the most Alaskan thing that could be done in Hawaii
01:14:39I love it
01:14:50What's better than one catchment tank? Oh, yeah two catchment tanks
01:14:55Thanks, Marty
01:14:57You guys have done so much
01:14:59It's amazing. We do good things for good people
01:15:04Bring it in quick
01:15:06I
01:15:08Almost can't even put it into words what this all means to me on the most basic level it means that we get to have water
01:15:13On a whole other level we get to take showers
01:15:17People don't know what that's like to not even be able to use a bathroom
01:15:20Thank you
01:15:22I'm gonna stop crying I swear
01:15:24Thank you
01:15:26Got to put up some gutters got to connect some downspouts
01:15:30Hard pipe all of this plumbing into not one but two tanks
01:15:34And we've got to introduce hot water cold water a shower and a bath and a toilet
01:15:41There's a lot of work to do, but we are seeing the light at the end of the tunnel
01:15:48Well before I got here you hadn't built a trap or put it on this property at all
01:16:04But now you're confronting the pigs with two separate traps
01:16:08New skills that we've learned and you know how to build a trap
01:16:13This trap will do the work for you
01:16:15Having pig traps set up on this homestead is the first big step
01:16:21To confront the pig problems and sage is gonna keep it going long after I leave
01:16:28I've learned a lot in this past week
01:16:30I'm happy that we got this pig trap and I can finally start like
01:16:34Hunting more on our land and expanding like what I can do
01:16:38That's music to my ears man
01:16:40Seven days ago
01:16:41The MP homestead was threatened by wild hogs that destroyed coffee trees and left the family vulnerable to attack
01:16:50Now they have a baiting and trapping system that will help eliminate them and provide fresh meat for a traditional emu oven
01:16:59Oh it's hot
01:17:02That's a good sign
01:17:04That's a good sign
01:17:06Super happy that we have these resources and now I can
01:17:09Chop pigs and have food and feed the family and not having to worry about them tearing up our trees
01:17:17And all this stuff
01:17:20This smells so good
01:17:22Dude it's already falling apart
01:17:24Mmm
01:17:26Is it good?
01:17:28Oh my god
01:17:29Oh my god
01:17:31I can't stand here with my beard and these traps and not kind of feel like I'm the big bad wolf
01:17:37But I've been huffing
01:17:40I've been puffing and I can't wait to share this meat with everyone
01:17:45Yeah, that's the good stuff
01:17:47About a week ago I met a desperate coffee farmer
01:18:06Yes
01:18:08You were a little short on space and room but more importantly a place for sanitation
01:18:13Yeah
01:18:14So I have something for you
01:18:15I'm going to follow you and we're going to walk through this building
01:18:24Cool?
01:18:25Yes
01:18:26This building's bigger than the normal bathhouse
01:18:29What homesteader can't use more space?
01:18:32But I don't see a bathhouse in this part of the room
01:18:37Nope
01:18:38Okay
01:18:39I love it
01:18:46Okay
01:18:47I love it
01:18:48You can take a shower or a bath
01:18:50You can use a flushing toilet
01:18:53And let's lift that lid and see if there's any water on the homestead
01:18:58Oh my god
01:19:00Absolutely crazy that I haven't heard that sound in a place that I've lived in over a year
01:19:11It's weird to say a flushing toilet is music to your ears but it literally is
01:19:16So much of my time goes into having to go into town to take my kids places to shower
01:19:24It's hours out of my week to go do laundry
01:19:27We haven't even had clean dishes in maybe three months which means I'm not making dinner at home
01:19:32It gives me so much more time back into my life
01:19:35That's going to make us cleaner and healthier
01:19:38And healthier
01:19:40If you walked with me over here please
01:19:42You will see a solar panel
01:19:44Oh my god
01:19:46And if you look down there is a propane bottle
01:19:48Yeah
01:19:49And a battery
01:19:50Yep
01:19:51You don't have to do anything
01:19:53And most likely you'll never run out of electricity for the pump
01:19:57Cool?
01:19:59This is a piece of art
01:20:01Let's see if you have any hot water
01:20:03Right here
01:20:04You got it?
01:20:05Yep
01:20:06I know
01:20:08I know what you want
01:20:09I'm imagining a shower
01:20:11One week ago
01:20:13Erika and her family lacked a sufficient water source
01:20:18Forcing them to haul in water
01:20:20And their only bathroom was an outdoor composting toilet
01:20:24That was driving her adolescent kids away
01:20:27Now, they have a bathhouse with running water and additional living space
01:20:32Along with a new rain catchment system
01:20:36Funneling clean water into two 950 gallon storage tanks
01:20:41Follow me, let's have some fun
01:20:42Welcome to the luau
01:20:52Welcome to the luau
01:20:54My homestead has come years ahead
01:20:58My kids are going to have so much more space and be so much more happier with each other
01:21:01You guys, you did so good
01:21:04Mmm
01:21:06Mmm
01:21:08How's it taste?
01:21:09So good
01:21:10I'm extremely grateful for the rainies
01:21:12I couldn't have even imagined doing everything they did by myself or with my family on our own
01:21:16Me and Hazel brought coffee that we roasted ourselves
01:21:20No way
01:21:21Here we go
01:21:22I'm just super thankful they like saved this land and this family
01:21:29It's amazing
01:21:31I just want to thank Marty and Misty and Matt like truly from the bottom of my heart
01:21:38They are like just gems on this planet
01:21:43Day one, you probably couldn't make a cup of depresso on this farm
01:21:48Now we got this farm percolating
01:21:54I can truly say for the first time in my life
01:21:56I've been there and done that
01:22:00Holy moly, that was beautiful.
01:22:19Since the rainies have left, it's been going pretty good around here.
01:22:23I've been enjoying my new space quite a bit.
01:22:26I think that's really improved my life on my homestead.
01:22:28And I've continued to help my mom on the coffee farm with pulling weeds and cutting vines off the trees.
01:22:35And starting August, that's when the real coffee picking is going to come in.
01:22:40Our water catchment system is working.
01:22:43We're loving the bathhouse and having water for showers has been nice.
01:22:49Our bamboo situation is looking a lot better.
01:22:52The goal now is to keep it back until we get a barrier in.
01:22:56And so far, I've been able to do that.
01:22:57One of our pig traps did catch a pig, but the pig broke out and broke the trap.
01:23:04So soon, we're going to repair the traps and hopefully get back on the pig hunting.
01:23:09Long term, I plan on going to college and coming back and helping out on the farm after.
01:23:15The homestead has a bright future.
01:23:17I think there's going to be more generations that come on this land.
01:23:20Sotaking of a tree.
01:23:21And that's pretty well our big sweet last eye.
01:23:22Once that's so loud.
01:23:23We're going to keep it again.
01:23:24That's pretty well.
01:23:25The foodĂa is going to take all the fruits and fruits.
01:23:27The foodier, the foodiest time and holy plants all come on it.
01:23:37Welcome to the farm.
01:23:38It's a great place for everybody, men-
01:23:41This week, the shelter in the professions will grow all the
Recommended
28:07
|
Up next
27:28
44:00
47:46
1:21:23
1:04:35
1:17:57
44:12
1:23:05
1:23:27
1:23:20
1:23:17
1:23:08
40:13
1:23:16
1:06:47
1:21:23
53:57
55:28
22:44
22:24
22:51
22:48
Be the first to comment