Voyage Update | Canoes Sail South of Hawaiʻi Island

Voyaging canoes sail south of Hawaiʻi Island and continue training in Kealaikahiki

(Moananuiākea) — The crew of Hōkūleʻa and Hikianalia spent the day sailing from Kalae, or South Point, down Kealaikahiki (the ancient sea road that connects Hawai‘i with its ancestral homeland of Tahiti) and into Moananuiākea – the deep region of the Pacific Ocean.  As of 8:00 pm (HST) this evening, the canoes were approximately 70 miles south of Hawai‘i Island.

Due to the weather delay in Maui, the canoes will not be able to reach the Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone (the doldrums) as originally planned, however, sailing into Moananuiākea will give the young crew the experience of sailing in the deep, open ocean.  The canoes are tentatively scheduled to return to Oʻahu by this Thursday evening or Friday morning.

“It’s been a great voyage. It’s tested us. It’s forced us to navigate change given Mother Nature wouldn’t open the gateway to the Alenuihaha Channel because it was too rough,” said PVS president and Pwo navigator Nainoa Thompson.  “There have been many gifts of learning that we never ever imagined, because we were forced to change.  It’s been a spectacular training program,” he added.

Track the canoes live at http://www.hokulea.com/waamoana/hokulea-live/.