#Pacific circumnavigation

After 17 days and more than 1,600 nautical miles of open-ocean voyaging, traditional double-hulled voyaging canoes Hōkūleʻa and Hikianalia made safe landfall Friday morning at Aotearoa’s Bay of Islands. The arrival marks the successful completion of Leg 15 of the Moananuiākea Voyage, a multi-year circumnavigation of the Pacific.

Hōkūleʻa and Hikianalia continued the French Polynesia leg of the Moananuiākea Voyage and 50th birthday celebrations of Hōkūleʻa this past week, sailing from the island of Tahiti to Moʻorea to deepen cultural ties and spark dialogue around ocean protection.

 The four-year journey spans an estimated 43,000 nautical miles, 36 countries and archipelagoes, nearly 100 Indigenous territories and more than 400 ports.

The Polynesian voyaging canoe, Hōkūleʻa, is expected to depart Prince Rupert in British Columbia today, for a 12-hour sail to Hartley Bay. The Moananuiākea Voyage to circumnavigate the Pacific launched last month.  The 41,000 mile journey will take 42-months to complete, and includes stops in 46 countries and archipelagoes.