Sunset Ranch Joins Forces With Aloha Harvest

We are excited to share that we are partnering with Aloha Harvest to schedule monthly volunteer days at Sunset Ranch. They will initially be assisting with assembling volunteer groups to help manage our avocado and lychee orchards, including plantings, maintenance and harvests. We are grateful to have been introduced to the idea of working with Aloha Harvest by Gabriella (Gabi) Fasi last year. As a consequence, Aloha Harvest ended up assisting (along with The Pantry) with our first major avocado harvest! The effort resulted in a harvest donation of approximately 2275 pounds of avocados distributed island wide to over a dozen agencies. We look forward to working with Aloha Harvest in the years to come to assist with more community sustainability efforts at Sunset Ranch. Please check out their 2022 Impact Report below:

Sunset Ranch in Pacific Weddings Magazine

Congratulations and Best Wishes to Josh and Landess!  Below is a link to a wonderful article on their wedding in Pacific Weddings.  And thank you to Absolutely Loved Photography for capturing Sunset Ranch so beautifully, as they always do.

Waimea Valley Now Whole and Forever Protected

We have some wonderful news to share.  The last piece of Waimea Valley has finally been purchased and integrated into the entire valley.  Consequently, Waimea Valley is now whole and forever protected.  We are grateful to have been involved with this transaction as a result of our involvement with the Trust for Public Land.

The article below was published by the StarAdvertiser on February 17, 2019.

The transfer of the last privately owned piece of Waimea Valley to a nonprofit cultural conservation group was marked Saturday with a blessing and dedication ceremony.

On hand were representatives from Hiipaka LLC, the Trust for Public Land, and North Shore Community Land Trust, which teamed to raise state, county and private funds to purchase the 3.75-acre property, called Puukua, when it was put up for sale in 2014.

Also in attendance were officials from the state Department of Land and Natural Resources, the City and County of Honolulu, the Office of Hawaiian Affairs and Ahahui Kaahumanu and the descendants of Kahuna Nui Hewahewa, the high priest who presided over Waimea Valley after Kamehameha I’s unification of the islands.

The ceremony coincided with the 182nd anniversary of Hewahewa’s death.

The nonprofit Hiipaka was established as a steward for the valley after some 1,800 acres of land were transferred to its ownership and management through a collaboration between the city, DLNR, the U.S. Army, the Trust for Public Lands and OHA in 2003. With the purchase of Puukua by the Trust for Public Lands earlier this year, Hiipaka is now responsible for management of the entire valley.

Hiipaka will work with the Hewahewa family to care for burial sites and other culturally significant features within the property, conduct native reforestation work and host volunteer days for community members.

Puukua sits adjacent to an ancient heiau honoring the Hawaiian god Lono and is itself home to two burial sites and traditional dry-stack stone structures, according to the Trust for Public Land.

Sunset Ranch in HI Luxury Magazine

THE NORTH SHORE OF O‘AHU IS KNOWN FOR ITS WORLD-CLASS WAVES, PHOTO-READY BEACHES, AND WIDE OPEN SPACES... AND GREG PIETSCH, owner of Sunset Ranch, which sits high on top of Pupukea overlooking the ocean, wants to keep it that way.

Born and raised in Hawai‘i, Pietsch became an accidental advocate for conservation when he purchased the 30-acre parcel of land for the ranch from his grandmother in 2005. “My initial impulse was to subdivide the land,” Pietsch says, pointing to the most obvious way to cover his costs while keeping a plot of his own. But as he went through the approval process, dividing up the property, which had been in his family since 1960, became less appealing. “I fell in love with the land and wanted to explore other options,” he says.

One opportunity Pietsch, an investment banker with a focus in mergers and acquisitions, found intriguing: he stumbled upon government grants that would help property owners retain ownership of the land in exchange for giving up development rights in perpetuity. “I got a fire in my belly and my thought process shifted to ‘O.K., as opposed to getting the property subdivided, if I can make the economics work and protect the land, what if we were to establish a ranch as a model or platform to advance not only these land conservation platforms but also a true sustainability model,’” he says.

Fast forward through a tricky two-year approval process—these type of grants had never been utilized in Hawai‘i—and Pietsch set out to run the ranch as a four-pronged outfit. The events department— perhaps the most visible operation— throws everything from weddings to private dinners to wellness tours on the expansive property. Horsemanship programs, with an emphasis on therapeutic and leadership-building experiences with groups such as Wounded Warriors and HUGS, make up another element. Farming and native forest restoration in collaboration with Waimea Valley Park round out the offerings.

The last eight years have involved some recalibration on Piestch’s part. A planting of 800 coffee seedlings failed. Overcoming tropical pests for in-ground farming proved challenging. But other opportunities not originally in his business plan, such as an 60-tree avocado orchard, a native fern restoration plot, and an aquaculture pond for tilapia, are now thriving.

For Pietsch, it’s the intangible elements, such as native koa planting ceremonies for terminally ill children in the HUGS program, that have provided the most reward. “That’s why I’m doing it,” Pietsch says. “I’ve done so many deals and projects and it doesn’t come close.”

Going forward, Pietsch wants to bolster his offerings and use the ranch as model for land conservation. “It’s been 12 years and I feel like in many respects we’re still in the beginning stages—especially in regards to food and sustainability—but we’re continuing every year to strengthen all four pillars,” says Pietsch. “For me, the important thing is the balance.”

And in the meantime, beyond the big picture projections, Pietsch says with a laugh, “I like to spend days [at the ranch] getting my hands dirty.”

The Private Dining Experience at Sunset Ranch

Sunset Ranch Hawaii is excited to introduce the Private Dining Experience!  We're confident this experience is one of the most private and elegant tour offerings on Oahu.  Guests are provided exclusive access to Sunset Ranch for a tour on ranch history, land conservation and sustainability, a private photo shoot and an exquisite locally sourced meal.  Please review our brochure and menu options below for more details. We're so grateful to be working in partnership with Chef Elmer Guzman to provide this unique tour experience in Hawaii.

Please contact us at admin@sunsetranchhawaii.com or (808)638-8333 for more information or to book your Private Dining Experience today. Whether a surprise proposal, anniversary, holiday or some other special occasion, we would absolutely love to host this elegant experience for you. Mahalo nui loa for your interest and support in Sunset Ranch Hawaii.