Hōkūleʻa and Hikianalia voyage to Fiji and Tuvalu postponed due to weather conditions

The ongoing weather uncertainty associated with super El Niño continues to impact sail plans for the Moananuiākea Voyage. The voyaging canoes Hōkūleʻa and Hikianalia, along with their crews, were prepared and ready to depart Auckland for Fiji and Tuvalu last week to support Pacific leaders and communities gathering around the UNFCCC Pre-COP. However, a series of cold fronts and gale-force winds delayed the canoes’ departure from Aotearoa. 

These conditions are unsafe for the voyaging canoes and have now made it impossible for Hōkūleʻa and Hikianalia to safely reach Fiji and Tuvalu in time for the planned engagements. Safety of the canoes and crews remains the Polynesian Voyaging Society’s (PVS) highest priority. Delays would also leave too little time for the meaningful community engagement that is central to the purpose of the Moananuiākea Voyage.

One of the voyage’s most important goals is to visit communities with purpose and respect — to listen and learn, build relationships, and strengthen connections with the extended Moananuiākea family throughout the Pacific.

This would have been the first visit by Hōkūleʻa and Hikianalia to Fiji and Tuvalu, and PVS believes these important engagements deserve the time, preparation and care to be done properly. For these reasons, PVS leadership has made the difficult decision to postpone the canoes’ visits to Fiji and Tuvalu, potentially until May 2027.

PVS and the crews are deeply grateful to the leaders, voyaging families, communities and partners in Fiji and Tuvalu who have extended a welcome to Hōkūleʻa and Hikianalia and worked to prepare for their arrival. 

“We remain committed to visiting both island nations when conditions allow us to do so safely and with the time needed to engage, with the respect and intention these relationships deserve,” said Nainoa Thompson, Pwo Navigator and CEO of PVS.

In the meantime, Hōkūleʻa and Hikianalia will remain in Aotearoa (New Zealand) where crews will continue sailing and training in the waters around the North and South Islands as part of preparations for the next phase of the Moananuiākea Voyage.

Back in July of this year, PVS announced a revised schedule for the Western Pacific portion of the Moananuiākea Voyage in response to confirmed elevated weather risks caused by El Niño and our changing climate.  The revision will add one year to the Moananuiākea Voyage.

In that July announcement Thompson said that he had spoken with the Climate Prediction Center forecasters and he shared their prediction that “the winds are not going to be in your favor.  The risk of typhoons is going to be very high, and the heat that’s coming out of the ocean is going to create convection, convection creates thunderstorms, thunderstorms create lightning.  So there is a whole menu and safety checklist we look at in terms of determining where we go.”   

The Moananuiākea Voyage is a 43,000-nautical mile circumnavigation of the Pacific by traditional voyaging canoe, aiming to ignite a movement of cultural and environmental stewardship, youth leadership, and community resilience. Learn more at hokulea.com.  For the latest updates on the voyage, follow Polynesian Voyaging Society’s social media: @hokuleacrew on Facebook and Instagram. The live voyaging tracking map and updates can also be found at www.hokulea.com.  

Founded in 1973, the Polynesian Voyaging Society is dedicated to perpetuating the art and science of traditional Polynesian voyaging and the spirit of exploration through experiential educational programs that inspire students and communities to care for themselves, each other, and the natural and cultural environments that sustain us.