Hōkūleʻa visits Kahoʻolawe and Miloliʻi

Hōkūleʻa’s voyage through the Hawaiian Islands continued with visits to Kahoʻolawe and Miloliʻi, Hawaiʻi Island.

Early Friday morning, Hōkūleʻa, along with Maui’s voyaging canoe Moʻokiha O Piʻilani of Hui O Waʻa Kaulua, departed Māʻalaea and arrived at Kahoʻolawe after sailing about seven and a half hours.  The crew was welcomed at Honokanaiʻa by the Protect Kahoʻolawe ʻOhana and Kahoʻolawe Island Reserve Commission, which have a long-standing history and connection with the canoe. 

The brief but emotional overnight stop at Kahoʻolawe included a visit to the island’s sacred navigation platform and the sharing of stories from the last 50 years of work to reclaim, restore, and heal the island.  In the 1970’s, the stopping of the bombing of Kahoʻolawe and the birth of Hōkūleʻa to revive ancient Hawaiian voyaging were simultaneously part of the movement of what would become the Native Hawaiian Cultural Renaissance.  

At 6 a.m. Saturday morning, Hōkūleʻa departed Kahoʻolawe and arrived in Miloliʻi at 5:30 p.m.  Originally, the crew planned to sail to southwest Maui’s Keoneʻōʻio Bay, also known as La Perouse, which voyagers call “the gate” to one of the most dangerous channels in the world, the Alenuihāhā channel between Maui and Hawaiʻi Island.  However due to weather, they sailed directly to Miloliʻi. The canoe will be in Hawaiʻi Island for a more than two-week engagement that includes Miloliʻi and Honaunau (Oct. 28 to Nov. 1), Keauhou (Nov. 1-8) and Kawaihae (Nov. 8-15).  A public engagement schedule will be announced soon.

The Pae ʻĀina sail is part of Hōkūleʻa’s larger mission to sail around the Hawaiian Islands, engaging communities in cultural and educational experiences and exchanges focused on mālama honua (caring for our island Earth). Each stop allows students and the general public alike to connect with the legacy of exploration, environmental stewardship, and aloha ʻāina that Hōkūleʻa embodies.

For the latest updates on the Pae ʻĀina Statewide Sail, visit hokulea.com and @hokuleacrew on Facebook and Instagram.  The seven-month voyage around the Hawaiian Islands will cover 3,000 miles, connecting with dozens of ports and communities, before Hōkūleʻa and Hikianalia resume the Moananuiākea Circumnavigation of the Pacific in March 2025.  The Pae ʻĀina Statewide Sail is lifted by the generous support of Hawaiian Airlines and DAWSON.