BLUEGRASS IN THE KO`OLAUS

at HO`OMALUHIA BOTANICAL GARDENS, Kaneohe, O`ahu
Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, April 13-15, 2012

Contents

Hot News
Schedule of Events
Entry & Exit
Parking Passes (All Guests)
Late Arrivals
Rules of the Garden
For Campers Only
Past Events at Ho`omaluhia

Are you ready for the biggest bluegrass event of the year? Join us for our BLUEGRASS IN THE KO`OLAUS at Ho`omaluhia Botanical Garden on O`ahu!

If you're a musician, this is a great opportunity to do some serious jamming. If you just love listening, this weekend will make your ears very happy! It's a long way to the Mainland's awesome bluegrass festivals, but here's a chance to get a little taste of the festival experience. There's nothing quite as wonderful as picking around a campfire on a starry night! This event is FREE, but we will ask for voluntary donations to cover costs for the weekend.

The April camp out will emphasize making music, learning songs and improving skills by jamming as much as possible with other musicians. Bluegrass Hawaii will provide lunches and pot luck dinners so please provide side dishes if possible! We will be accepting voluntary donations to help offset the cost of the meals.

Show off your talent and practice your performance skills at an open mic during dinners in front of a friendly FORGIVING audience. There will be a sign up on the white board under the pavillion for those of you who enjoy performing!

Have too many instruments in your house or apartment? Trying to find a good home for that slightly used guitar or ukulele? We are looking for donated instruments to use as a "petting zoo" for children at the camp out and throughout the year to familiarize them with bluegrass music. Please bring your old instruments that you would like to donate, and they will be put to good use introducing kids to joy of acoustic music creation!

Campers and visitors, bring a folding chair and a piece of firewood for the nightly campfire.

HOT NEWS

Bluegrass in the Ko`olaus kicks off FRIDAY, April 13, at magical Ho`omaluhia Botanical Garden in Kaneohe! Join us for one, two, or all three days (Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, April 13 - 15), as a happy camper or as a "day tripper"... as an acoustic musician, or as somebody who just loves to listen to great homegrown bluegrass and traditional music! ALL ARE WELCOME, and it's all FREE (though we gratefully accept donations!) Don't know how to get to Ho'omaluhia? HERE for a map to the gardens and the camp site.

THE SALOON PILOTS RETURN! Yep, Oahu's own Saloon Pilots will be back for another wonderful performance, generously offering their expertise and knowledge to all of us on Saturday, at 3:00 pm. Those of you who saw them in April know this will be a first class opportunity. DON'T MISS IT!

Come set up your campsite (if you're camping) and start jamming anytime after 9:00 AM Friday when the park opens. Check out our park info, gate closings and MORE below!

We've got posters! Please click HERE to download a poster that you can print out and share. Let's get the word out about this event!

IF YOU WANT TO CAMP: Please email evelyn@bluegrasshawaii.com immediately to sign up for camping; include your phone number and the number of people in your party. And check out camp rules & regs at listed below!

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SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

Friday, September 9
9:00 amPark opens; find your campsite, set up your tent and START JAMMING!
12:00 pmLunch
1:00 pmOpen Jamming
4:00 pmPark CLOSES to general public; anybody who stays needs a parking pass--see EXIT AND ENTRY, below
5:30 - 6:30 pmGate open for entry (cars with permits only) and exit
6:30 pmPotluck Dinner, Greetings, and Open Mic
7:30 pm till ???Open Jamming, Campfire
9:00 - 9:15 pmGate open for EXIT ONLY
Saturday, September 10
9:00 amPark opens for entry and exit
10:00 amOpen Jamming
11:00 amInstrument Petting Zoo for Kids! (Tentative)
11:00 amAlternate Guitar Tuning with Lawson Cannon
12:00 pmLunch Break
1:00 pmSlow Jam
3:00 pmSaloon Pilots Workshop and Performance
4:00 pmPark CLOSES; see EXIT AND ENTRY, below
5:30 - 6:30 pmGate open for entry (cars with permits only) and exit
6:30 pmDinner and Open Mic
7:30 pm till ????Open Jamming
9:00 - 9:15 pmGate open for EXIT ONLY
Sunday, September 11
9:00 amPark opens for entry and exit
10:00 amGospel Sing-a-Long
11:00 amOpen Jamming
12:00 pmLunch Break
1:00 pmBand Scramble
4:00 pmOpen Jamming
4:00 pmPark CLOSES; see EXIT AND ENTRY, below
5:30 - 6:30 pmGate open for entry (cars with permits only) and exit
6:30 pmDinner and Open Mic
7:30 pm til ????Open Jamming
9:00 - 9:15 pmGate open for EXIT ONLY
Monday, September 12
9:00 amCLEAN UP!

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ENTRY & EXIT

This may be the most important thing you need to know about the park! Ho`omaluhia CLOSES at 4:00 PM every day, and the gates are closed and locked. However, there are two other gate openings:

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PARKING PASSES (ALL GUESTS)

ALL guests (campers and non-campers) who wish to stay past 4:00 PM on any day of our event must check in at the Visitors' Center to obtain parking passes for their vehicles. Please do this before proceeding to our site! The Visitors' Center is open between 9:00 AM and 4:00 PM all four days of our event. You will need to provide your license plate number, make of your car, number of people in your party, and the name of your campground (Kahua Nui), and please let 'em know you're with the Bluegrass Hawai`i group.

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LATE ARRIVALS

If you cannot arrive at the Garden by 4PM on Friday, Saturday or Sunday, there's another very short window of opportunity on each day during which you can enter the gates. But you'll need to call ahead to arrange for a parking pass! On the day you plan to come, call the Visitors' Center at 233-7323 and ask them to leave your parking pass with the security guard. (Remember, you'll need to provide your license plate number, make of your car, number of people in your party, and the name of your campground--Kahua Nui--and let 'em know you're with Bluegrass Hawai`i!) If you arrive between 5:30 and 6:30 PM, the guard will let you in. That's right: between 5:30 and 6:30 PM!

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RULES OF THE GARDEN

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FOR CAMPERS ONLY

Sign Up Now: Camping is exclusively by permit with our group from 9AM Saturday through 4PM Monday. Please contact evelyn@bluegrasshawaii.com if you want to camp, so that we can add you to the List. (You will still need to obtain a parking pass at the Visitors' Center, as mentioned above.)

Where To Camp: Please pitch your tent to the LEFT of the pavilion and up the gentle slope, as you're facing the mountains. If you pitch your tent close to the pavilion or restrooms, you will be asked to move it. Overflow camping is available across the street as well, but there's plenty of room on the Kahua Nui side!

What To Bring: The bathrooms have cold-water showers and sinks; the pavilion also has cold-water sinks. You'll need to bring your own food, drink, and gear, including...

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PAST EVENTS AT HO`OMALUHIA

Campsite Preview: Here's a video that shows beautiful Kahua Nui, our campsite for Bluegrass in the Ko`olaus at Ho`omaluhia Botanical Garden! Useful for those who have never been to Ho`omaluhia and want to get an idea of the layout of the place.

Pickin' Weekend I:

Here's a video from our very first Pickin' Weekend, held in September 2009.

And here's a PDF of the program for our first Pickin' Weekend!

PickinWeekendI.pdf

Pickin' Weekend II:

New video of our SECOND Pickin' Weekend, held in April 2010, is now available online at http://sites.google.com/site/bluegrasspickinweekend/! Special thanks to Don Hutton and Mike Mueller for their awesome videography!

And here's a PDF of the program for our second Pickin' Weekend!

PickinWeekendII.pdf

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