Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 12, Number 4, 1 April 1995 — Makaliʻi follows the stars to Tahiti [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Makaliʻi follows the stars to Tahiti

The last of the voyaging canoes sets sail for the South Pacific

by Patrick Johnston For the Polynesian navigator, Makali'i refers to a constellation (Pleiades) that appears during the winter months and was used in ancient times to guide mariners during oeean voyages. Last month Makah'i eame to mean a small but resilient craft and crew using the stars to guide their way from Hawai'i to Tahiti. The Makali'i left Hilo Febmary 28 - the last of three traditional voyaging canoes - on an epie journey to Tahiti, the Marquesas and back to Hawai'i. Like its forerunners, the Hawai'iloa and Hōkūle'a, the Makali'i's ultimate mission is to complete the joumey without the use of modem navigational instraments, bringing back the knowledge gathered during the trip to educate others about the maritime skills of early Hawaiians. "The whole focus of the joumey" says Tammy Ululani Evangelista, one of the project's coordinators, "is to teach all Hawaiians - keiki, 'ōpio, makua, and kūpuna - about non-instrumental navigation, learning about travel the way our ancestors did." The Makali'i is a fīberglass, double-hulled eanoe built by members of the Waimea-based Nā Kālai Wa'a Moku O Hawai'i (The Canoe Builders of Hawai'i) a two-year old group whose stated goal is the preservation of Hawaiian culture through education. The group was the primary force behind the building of the Mauloa, a smaller wood eanoe built two years ago using only traditional tools and materials. Also helping in the canoe's constraction

were a variety of other Big Island residents including a large number of students. The students, ranging from pre-school Pūnana Leo haumāna to college undergrads, eame from all over the island to observe and help with the boat's construction in Waimea. OHA is supporting the project with a $85,720 grant, approximately a third of the project's budgeL According to Manu Boyd, OHA culture specialist, the Big Island community and loeal businesses also played an important part in rounding up the necessary funds to support the project. "They were able to generate a large amount of money from the private sector," Boyd says. "It showed a lot of tenacity and commitment on their part." Na Kālai Wa'a decided to build the craft so that Hawai'i residents would have access to a traditional voyaging eanoe. "The success of previous voyaging canoes has peaked the interest of Hawaiians in ancient navigation," says Boyd. "The building of the Makali'i was to ensure that residents of Hawai'i have permanent access to a voyaging eanoe." Unlike Hawai'iloa and Hokule'a, the Makali'i builders chose to use modem materials in its constraction design. The use of fiberglass has made it a faster boat and has introduced a new dimension to the voyaging eanoe movement. Na Kālai Wa'a president Clayton Bertelmann, his brother Shorty, and Tiger Espere — all veterans of the first Hokule'a voyage nearly twenty years ago - directed the Makali'i's construction. Clayton has been

captain during the voyage, overseeing a crew made up of members of Nā Kālai Wa'a. Students will join the eanoe during its trip from Tahiti to the Marquesas; voyage organizers are also hoping to have some students take part in the retum trip to Hawai'i. After the voyage the hope is to incorporate the Makali'i into education programs across the island of Hawai'i, using the knowledge surrounding its constraction and voyage to teach residents

about the richness and importance of the their Hawaiian heritage. (Ed. note. The Makali'i had intended to meet up with the other Hawaiian canoes and similar vessels from Tahiti, Aotearoa (New Zealand)

and the Cook Islands for a ceremonial gathering of Polynesian canoes in Tahiti. However light winds slowed their progress and they were unable to reach Tahiti on time.)

Pre-voyage ceremonies for Hawai'iloa, Hōkūle'a and Makali'i crew members at the Hawai'i Nani Loa Hotel in Hilo.

The Makali'i undergoes final prepartions for its trip to Tahiti, the Marquesas and back. Photos courtesy of Tammy Evangelista and Na Pua No'eau