Hōkūleʻa Update | August 21, 2015

Written by Naʻalehu Anthony.

Miles since departing Christmas Island: 186 as of sunset
Weather: Clouds on the horizon are few. Overhead is clear with a waxing moon and many stars visible.
Birdlife: We had a red footed booby on the back deck this morning. We fed him a malolo we “caught” and he left soon after.

As it turns out, the update I wrote will have to wait for tomorrow to allow for the tale of this afternoon’s exploits. But first a quick breakfast tale. I’m really not sure if Gary was just bored or if he had an idea brewing. But I had to ask him what he was making for breakfast when I saw him kneading dough and rolling it out with the can of spray oil. When he told me he was making pop tarts from scratch, I was really intrigued. As it turns out he did. Sort of. There weren’t any colorful sprinkles on top, but he made us pop tarts filled with peanut butter and jelly for breakfast. They were really good, and we had enough for second breakfast as well.

Apparently we only catch fish after Gary commits to a meal that already has a protein. I promise not to write about our fish meal every time we catch a fish, but this rendition of incorporating a fish into an already on going meal was epic. The 6 pound mahimahi came up on the port line at about 4pm. Gary was already well into the prep for a simple saimin dinner with some side dishes including Patagonia salmon. The mushrooms had been soaking for a few hours to get them tender and easier to cut, and the stock was in the process of production when the fish got on. Gary was the one who yelled “MAHI!” and ran to the back of the canoe to retrieve the line. We had had a bite earlier in the day, and the fish took the lure so everyone was trying to be cautious to land this precious creature. Once on board, Bruce and Gary took care of the mahi jumping about. Once the jumping was done, Gary and Kealoha got to work. Gary was very excited about the possibility of mahi fish head saimin soup.

I must say Gary and Kealoha make a potent team. They are both top canoe chefs in their own right, but when they start in together it’s really fun to watch. Gary went to break down the head of the fish for the soup stock and Kealoha took to the rest of the fish to break down cubes to cook and sashimi as and entrée for the buffet.

Fast forward about an hour later and we had the following for dinner:
-Saimin noodles with a mahi base broth
-Cooked squash
-Mushrooms
-Nori as a garnish
-Cubed tofu
-Cole Slaw
-Mahimahi sashimi with two different shoyu sauces on a bed of cabbage and assorted cooked mahimahi.

The moral of the story: mahalo i ka loa’a – be thankful for what you got. We got two guys on board who love to cook and they turned a perfectly fine meal into a stunning one using the 6 pound gift from Kanaloa, and for that we are truly blessed and grateful as a crew.

Please help keep us sailing for future generations. All contributions make a difference for our voyage. Mahalo nui loa!