A 60 foot polynesian voyaging canoe docked in Haines yesterday afternoon. The Hokulea is about to embark on a trip around the Pacific.
The Hokulea is a traditional polynesian sailing canoe, built for crossing oceans. The Polynesian voyaging society is reviving the indigenous sailing techniques of the Pacific ocean, without instruments, navigating by the stars and a deep knowledge of the ocean. The boat is built of fiberglass, and was shipped from Hawaii to Juneau. The crew put the boat back together and they are visiting the towns of Haines, Hoonah and Yakutat to honor old friends in the Lingit community. This is a preamble. Volunteers plan on sailing the boat around the Pacific, with the official start of their tour in Juneau, their next stop.
Hundreds of people came to the Chilkoot Indian Association dock on Monday afternoon to welcome the Hokulea and it’s crew . Two crews in traditional lingit canoes paddled out to meet them in the Lynn Canal. Tribal members wore regalia, danced and sang to welcome the crew.
The visitors offered their own song in return.
Moani Heimuli arrived on Hokulea.
Heimuli: “My name is Moani Heimuli and I am the captain from Hoonah to Haines.
KHNS: “How was sailing?”
Heimuli: “We didn’t do any sailing. We just towed up here, just for time, but it was beautiful, the trip up here.”
KHNS: “Are you navigating with GPS and modern instruments?”
Heimuli: “Yes, currently we are using a GPS because of the inland waterway. But normally in the deep sea, we’ll use all our non-instrument navigation.”
KHNS: “Are you rotating the role of captain as you travel?”
Heimuli: “Yes we are. This crew here started in Yakutat, so from Yakutat to Hoonah our fellow crew member Molako was the captain, and from Hoonah to Haines I was the captain. And from Haines to Juneau, we’ll have another crew member, Mark Ellis, be the captain. Alaska is our first stop and it’s the start of a bigger four year voyage called Moananuiakea. Moananuiakea is the name in Hawaiian for the Pacific ocean. It’s a four year voyage starting in Alaska and ending back home in Hawaii. So we are sailing around the pacific rim for four years. It’s a mission of ours to protect our island Earth. And what better way than to start in a beautiful place like Alaska. And really it’s so that we can learn from all these other cultures and people who are fighting the same battles as we are in Hawaii. Things like clean water, and education for our kids. And then it’s also to perpetuate our culture by doing this non-instrument navigation.”
KHNS: “Are you going to be on the boat for four years?”
Heimuli: “I won’t’ be on the boat for four years, we are all volunteers, so we do about a month and a half on, and we go back to our lives and our jobs back home, and then when we get the call from captains we go again.”
KHNS: “What’s your life back home? “
Heimuli: “I’m a boat builder back home, and also a teacher. Yeah, I build canoes back home, and then teach kids to sail them.”
After exchanging songs, the crew went to get some rest before the potlatch style dinner planned for the evening. They will visit Klukwan on Tuesday,
The Hokulea and its crew will depart for Juneau on thursday.
