Hōkūleʻa returns for dry dock during the holidays

After four months and more than 20 community engagements around the Hawaiian Islands for the Pae ʻĀina Statewide Sail, traditional voyaging canoe Hōkūleʻa is back home at the Marine Education Training Center at Sand Island for the holidays. 

The canoe was hauled out of the water Monday afternoon for four-weeks of dry dock so the crew can clean, inspect and repair parts of the canoe before resuming the Pae ʻĀina Statewide Sail in mid-January. 

Upcoming stops in 2025 include the following (dates and ports are weather permitting and subject to change):

• Jan.18-24 – Puʻuloa (Pearl Harbor)
• Jan. 29-Feb.4 – Ko ʻOlina
• Feb. 5-7 – Pōkaʻī
• Feb. 8-14 –  Maunalua (Hawaiʻi Kai  & Koko Marina)
• TBD – Hilo

Throughout December, Hōkūleʻa spent time along Koʻolaupoko on the Windward side of Oʻahu with stops and engagements at Heʻeia Kea Pier, Kāneʻohe, Kailua and Waimanalo.  During that time, the crew conducted tours and educational presentations and activities with approximately 1,500 students.  Hōkūleʻa also stopped at Waimea Bay on the north shore for the opening ceremony of The Eddie Big Wave Invitational In Memory of Eddie Aikau and the awarding of the inaugural Eddie Aikau Foundation Kahiau Award to lifeguard and Hōkūleʻa captain Noland Keaulana. 

The Pae ʻĀina Statewide Sail offers a special opportunity for Hawaiʻi’s communities to step on board the deck of Hōkūleʻa, learn about the revival of voyaging and traditional navigation and the Polynesian Voyaging Society’s mission of Mālama Honua (caring for our Island Earth).

The Polynesian Voyaging Society is preparing to celebrate the 50th birthday of Hōkūleʻa on March 8, 2025. This milestone marks a half-century of cultural revival, environmental advocacy, and a renewed connection to the earth and ocean.

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 2025.  The Pae ʻĀina Statewide Sail is lifted by the generous support of Hawaiian Airlines and DAWSON.

For the latest updates on the Pae ʻĀina Statewide Sail, visit hokulea.com and @hokuleacrew on Facebook, Instagram and TikTok.