Welcome home! Hokulea, Hikianalia return to Oahu after Tahiti voyage

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – Favorable sailing conditions greeted voyaging canoes Hokuleʻa and Hikianalia as they approached the Hawaiian Islands this 7 days.

The crews returned to Hawaiʻi on Thursday soon after a months-very long journey to Tahiti.

Grasp navigator Nainoa Thompson pointed out the voyage was complicated at times, but the crew associates experienced persistence and dealt with the problems that arose.

“Everybody was navigating on the canoe as a team,” Thompson claimed. “It was an epic voyage. In terms of learning, it was much more than we experienced envisioned. We’re quite grateful that we are in which we are.”

Navigators are buying up lessons in each and every journey. This excursion, named the Kealaikahiki Voyage, is a precursor for their Spring 2023 Moananuiākea Voyage to circumnavigate the Pacific Ocean.

“We’re below to train, but we’re also in this article to master. And our endeavor is to get 20 new captains by 2024.”

“And so we heading commence off with 10 new captains future calendar year, and double that the pursuing year. This is the finest schooling ground for that variety of management,” Thompson extra.

[Related report: A warm welcome: Arrival of Hokuleʻa, Hikianalia celebrated in Tahiti]

Hawaiʻi’s Mauna Loa mountain was very first spotted by the crew on their way back on Tuesday — 17 days after they departed the French Polynesian Tuamotu Island of Rangiroa.

Pulling off these voyages necessitates sacrifices by crewmembers and their households back dwelling, which is some thing Thompson acknowledges and will take to heart.

“Now this voyage on the Kealaikahiki trip has been finished, our entire concentration is now on just one point: Spouse and children,” Thompson explained. “We’re coming home to target on them.”

To learn additional about their journey, click listed here and watch the ‘Voyaging Dashboard’ tab.

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