Traditional Polynesian voyaging canoe Hikianalia has arrived in Northern California after sailing 2,800 miles from Hawaiʻi to be part of the Global Climate Action Summit and to engage with communities along the coast from the Bay Area to San Diego.
The 13-person crew navigated to California using traditional wayfinding techniques that require following cues from the stars, sun, waves, wind, birds and other natural elements. The voyage highlights the important relationship between humanity and nature. As the public visits and tours the canoe, the crew hopes to inspire action that will lead to a culturally and environmentally thriving world. At each of its ports of call, the public is invited to meet the crew members, learn about life at sea, and hear the stories about the revival of Polynesian voyaging and the movement it is inspiring in Hawaiʻi and around the world.
Hikianalia and her crew are currently docked in Sausalito and will be offering the following public engagements:
- Friday, Sept. 21, 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. – Talk Story with Hikianalia Crew
Location: New Village School
- Saturday, Sept. 22, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. – Dockside Canoe Tours
Location: Spaulding Marine Center
The canoe will depart Sausalito on Sept. 23 and return to Half Moon Bay where the vessel made its first landfall after 23 days at sea. Below is the tentative port schedule. Please check www.hokulea.com and on social media for updates and the latest details on Hikianalia’s public engagements:
• Sausalito – Sept. 19-22
• Half Moon Bay – Sept. 23-26
• Monterey Harbor – Sept. 26-Oct. 3
• Ventura Harbor – Oct. 6 -10
• Channel Islands Harbor – Oct. 10-14
• Santa Cruz Island – Oct. 14-16
• King Harbor – Oct. 17-22
• Dana Point – Oct. 23-30
• San Diego – Oct. 30-Nov.5
About Alahula Kai o Maleka Hikianalia California Voyage
The Alahula Kai o Maleka Hikianalia California Voyage is a continuation of the Polynesian Voyaging Society’s Mālama Honua campaign to inspire action toward an environmentally and culturally thriving world. The name of the voyage, Alahula Kai o Maleka, honors the “frequented pathway,” alahula, across the ocean between Hawaiʻi and California, kai o Maleka. Kai o Maleka, literally means “sea of America,” a traditional reference to the Pacific waterway connecting the Hawaiian Islands and the West Coast. Additional purposes of the voyage are to celebrate the Polynesian communities of California; connect, learn and share the Mālama Honua message with schools and communities; continue developing the next generation of voyaging captains, navigators and crewmembers; and to share the story of Hikianalia, a canoe that blends ancient wisdom and modern solutions to address the environmental and cultural issues of today.
About Hikanalia
Hikianalia, the wind- and solar-powered canoe built by the Okeanos Foundation for the Sea is the sister vessel of the famed Hōkūleʻa. Hikianalia is the Hawaiian name for the star Spica, which rises together with Hōkūleʻa (Arcturus) in Hawaiʻi. They are sister stars because they break the horizon together at the latitude of the Hawaiian islands. Launched on September 15, 2012, Hikianalia was designed specifically for the Mālama Honua Worldwide Voyage. The canoe started as an escort vessel to Hōkūleʻa and is now used as a floating classroom blending ancient wisdom with modern solutions. Hikianalia specializes in scientific exploration of marine resources and training for the next generation of voyagers. Values and behavior practiced on the deck of the canoe including how to conserve resources, care for our oceans and fellow crewmembers are shared as a model for how we can live sustainably on islands or anywhere in the world. She combines the latest ecological technology with the heritage of voyaging tradition: each of her hulls contains an electric motor powered by onboard photovoltaic panels that convert sunlight to electric propulsive energy. With a zero carbon footprint, her design supports the “Mālama Honua” (care for Island Earth) mission.
Click here for California Voyage Fact Sheet
Click here for an overview video of Hikianalia
Click here for Hawaiʻi-San Francisco voyage photos, San Francisco arrival photos, file photos (past voyages) and b-roll of Hikianalia
Mimi Towle has been the editor of Marin Magazine for over a decade. She lived with her family in Sycamore Park and Strawberry and thoroughly enjoyed raising two daughters in the mayhem of Marin’s youth sports; soccer, swim, volleyball, ballet, hip hop, gymnastics and many many hours spent at Miwok Stables. Her community involvements include volunteering at her daughter’s schools, coaching soccer and volleyball (glorified snack mom), being on the board of both Richardson Bay Audubon Center. Currently residing on a floating home in Sausalito, she enjoys all water activity, including learning how to steer a 6-person canoe for the Tamalpais Outrigger Canoe Club. Born and raised in Hawaii, her fondness for the islands has on occasion made its way into the pages of the magazine.