Hawaii’s Back Yard Cheryl Chee Tsutsumi

---

Guide shares lifetime love of outdoors

Betsy Morrigan's love affair with nature began when she was 6, paddling canoes at a summer camp in western Massachusetts.

"Being outdoors invigorated me; I couldn't get enough of it," she recalls. "I dreamed of owning my own little boat one day and paddling alone in it for miles and miles."

Hawaii Pack and Paddle Options: Day kayak/snorkel tour; four-day kayak/camp/hike trip; and a seven-day, round-the-island journey that includes hiking, kayaking, snorkeling, a bed-and-breakfast stay and upscale camping (the company provides roomy tents, clean sheets, Hawaiian-print fabric pillows and lightweight fleece sleeping bags). Prices: $95 to $120 per person for day trips, and $265 to $280 per person per day for four- to seven-day trips. There are reduced rates for children up to 12 years old (minimum age requirements differ for each tour). Private, customized four- to seven-day trips for up to three people start at $295 per person per day. Special itineraries, programs and rates are available for school, family, special-interest, convention and other groups. Call: 808-328-8911 E-mail: gokayak@kona.net Web site: www.hawaiipackandpaddle.com Kealakekua Bay guided kayak/snorkel trip Hawaii Pack and Paddle is the first company to obtain a permit to offer guided kayak tours in Kealakekua Bay, a Hawaii Marine Life Conservation District. The new Kealakekua Bay Legendary Kayak and Snorkel Day Tour includes a hot cup of Kona coffee at the meeting place, Kona Pacific Farmers Cooperative coffee mill; kayaking in the bay with dolphin watching from a distance; hiking in Kealakekua Bay State Historical Park; snorkeling by the Captain Cook Monument; a natural and cultural resources briefing; and a full deli lunch. Cost: $120 for adults, $75 for ages 5 through 12 Call: 808-328-8911 Web site: www.kayakhawaiitours.com

Time in fresh air, she found, gave her peace and solace.

"My most treasured memories are the feel of the wind, sun and water; the glint of the sun on waves; and the bright colors of leaves and flowers with light shining through them," she said. "Nature is expansive, varied and fascinating to me. I would live in a treehouse if I could."

The daughter of an Army surgeon who served during World War II, Morrigan grew up in Chicago, Boston, Cincinnati and Washington, D.C. After graduating from Southern Connecticut State University, she headed west to Denver, Washington state and Alaska, where she lived with her husband, two daughters and son for almost 20 years in rural villages among the Eskimos and Athabaskan Indians.

For six years they owned and operated the Ruby Roadhouse lodge in a small Gold Rush town called Ruby. "We had 40 sled dogs and did dogsled and canoe trips along the Yukon River," Morrigan recalls.

"The most interesting time was when the annual Iditarod dogsled race came through, and the lodge was full of mushers eating homemade bread and big bowls of moose stew. I couldn't keep the huge coffeepot filled fast enough, and we stayed up for hours listening to their stories."

But Alaska's long, dark winters took their toll, and the family's 1991 vacation to the Big Island began a new chapter in their lives.

"I was the one who wanted to move to Hawaii," Morrigan says. "I was ready for the warmth and sun of the islands. Try to imagine what the dark, cold, seven-month Alaskan winters are like! You get seasonal affective disorder, deep winter depression."

Like the 40 trees she has planted around her house in South Kona -- including kukui, monkeypod, fig, coconut, royal poinciana, papaya and mango -- Morrigan is firmly rooted on the Big Island.

"You couldn't get me to leave at this point," she says. "I've found my true home."

SHE ALSO HAS found her true calling. Divorced and with all her children grown up and on their own, she is the owner of Hawaii Pack and Paddle, which has been offering hiking, camping and kayaking excursions on the Big Island for the past 15 years.

The trim, energetic, 63-year-old Morrigan leads many of the trips herself, reveling in the opportunity she has to share her love of nature with others, among them a young man from Japan who went kayaking and camping with her on each of his three Big Island visits.

"Before he made his last trip, he e-mailed me to say that he was losing his vision, but he still wanted to do the trip," Morrigan says. "When he came, he couldn't see anything clearly, but he still really enjoyed paddling, mainly by feeling the wind, waves and currents, and smelling the air and the sea."

Exploring with families brings her the greatest joy.

"It's great to see how kids and their parents relate to each other in the outdoors," she says. "With computers, Xboxes, big-screen TVs and iPods being so popular these days, children don't seem to play outside very much, but on our trips they're so happy and excited to discover nature."

Itineraries run the gamut from well-known attractions such as Puuhonua O Honaunau National Historical Park to places off the beaten path where participants bird-watch, cook burritos over steam vents, paddle into sea caves, work on a taro farm, sunbathe on green-sand beaches, swim in waterfalls and geothermal pools, and meditate or do yoga beneath nodding palms.

Hikes go into fragrant rain forests and within a few feet of flowing lava, petroglyphs, heiau (temples), holua (sled) slides and ancient rock walls and fishponds.

"We view the sites close-up, very reverently and respectfully," says Morrigan. "There's a lot of mana (spiritual power) there, and I try to help guests visualize life there long ago and to feel the mana flow."

As you hike and kayak, you'll always be facing at least one of the five massive volcanoes that formed the Big Island: Mauna Loa, Mauna Kea, Kilauea, Hualalai and Kohala. Treks go no more than three miles each day; paddling segments don't exceed five miles.

Kayakers hug the coast close to shore. "Around each corner is an amazing sight -- a bay, cave, cliff, cove or beach," Morrigan says.

"No matter how many times I've seen them, they always thrill me. Even if you've never kayaked before, you don't have to worry; it's a lot easier to paddle in Hawaii than on the mainland because the water is warm and buoyant, and you don't have to deal with any narrow passages, long crossings, big ships or strong tides or currents."

FOR MULTIDAY multisport trips, Morrigan works closely with the group (minimum of four) to plan experiences that suit their interests, level of fitness and time frame.

"One group may prefer easy kayaking, hiking and touring during the day and staying at a bed-and-breakfast every night," she says. "Those who are more adventurous and in top physical condition may want to backpack and camp in remote valleys."

All of Hawaii Pack and Paddle's five guides are well versed in Hawaiian history, culture, flora, fauna, geology and the ocean, and can whip up delicious meals to boot.

"We buy organic fruits and vegetables from local farmers and get our fish directly from the fishermen," Morrigan says. "Dinner might be ahi (yellowfin tuna) or ono (wahoo) grilled over coals, fresh salad, brown and wild rice, and tree-ripened fruit. Bananas, papayas and pineapple are available year-round.

"In the summer we treat our guests to lychee and mango; in the winter there are oranges and tangerines. We always serve fresh-roasted organic 100 percent Kona coffee from my friend's farm."

Morrigan never tires of being out in nature.

"I love the feeling I get when I'm outdoors," she says. "I'm happy, confident, free! I forget about my troubles, and I'm far away, both mentally and physically, from paperwork, bills, phones, voice mail and e-mail. That's the mind-set I try to pass along to my guests: We're going to relax, clear the clutter from our brains and have fun."

Her tone is serious only when she encourages participants to tread lightly in the great outdoors.

"On our trips we respect the environment as the ancient Hawaiians did," she says. "We appreciate it with our eyes, ears and noses. We don't touch, move, stand on, sit on, add to or take anything. Our only souvenirs are photographs. We work hard to ensure that these special, sacred places are preserved and that we leave them in better condition than we found them."