Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 23, Number 12, 1 December 2006 — Hōkūleʻa to head west [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Hōkūleʻa to head west

Epie voyage will deliver tribute eanoe to grandmaster navigator Mau Piailug in Micronesia, then head for Japan By KWŪ staff In January, the famed dou-ble-hulled voyaging eanoe Hōkūīe'a will embark on a

journey of gratitude to the small Micronesian island of Satawal, home to master navigator Mau Piailug, who helped revive traditional navigation in Hawai'i. Thirty years ago, Piailug guided Hōkūle'a on its maiden voyage to Tahiti without the use of modern navigational tools - a feat that had not been achieved in more than 600 years. Since then, Piailug has taken on the role of father figure to the everexpanding Hawaiian voyaging community, imparting his tradi-

tional navigational skills while helping Hawaiians reconnect with their culture. On the first leg of the 7,000mile trip through the western Pacific, dubbed "Kū Holo Mau - Sail On, Sail Always, Sail Forever," Hawai'i's voyagers hope to return the favor to Piailug, now in his mid-70s and in fragile health. Hōkūle'a will be accompanied to Satawal by Maisu, a deep-sea eanoe built by the Hawai'i Island voyaging group Nā Kālai Wa'a Moku o Hawai'i as a gift to Piailug and See HŪKULE'A on pagE 22

NŪ HOU • NEWS

Hōkūle'a will accompany the new eanoe Maisu to Mūu Piailug's home island, then head to the "Land of fhe Rising Sun" - Phoīo: Monīe Costa

HŌKŪLE'A

CūntinuEd fram page 07 his people. It is Mau's desire that Maisu will be used as an educational tool to help rekindle interest in voyaging among the youth of Micronesia. Apprentice wayfarers from both Hawai'i and Satawal will be included among the voyage's crews. A medical mission will also accompany the voyage to provide services on the islands along the route. From Satawal, the canoes will journey west to the Micronesian states of Yap and Palau. Then, on the second leg of the voyage, named "Kū Holo Lā Komohana - Sail On to the Western Sun," Hōkūle'a will head for Japan, making port at destinations that master navigator Nāinoa Thompson says were chosen to honor both early Japanese immigrants to Hawai'i and

King Kalākaua's 1881 visit to meet the Japanese Emperor Meiji. The eanoe will also pay a visit of healing to the home port of the Ehime Maru, the fishing training vessel that was sunk off O'ahu in a collision with a U.S. Navy submarine, killing nine aboard, including four high school students. S

Kōkua the voyagers Find out how to help provide needed fwancial support for the voyage at www.pvs.hawaii.org. The crew will a!so be carrying messages of thanks to Mau and the Micronesian peop!efor helping Hawai'i rediscover its voyaging tradition. Email your message to pvshawaii@hawaiiantel.net, or mail to: PoIynesian Voyaging society, 191 Ala Moana BIvd. Pier 7, Honolulu HI 96813.