With visits to O‘ahu’s West Side and other communities across the island, Hōkūle‘a returns home in an act of solidarity following the Lahʻāina Wildfires

Less than six months after embarking on the four-year Moananuiākea Voyage, a circumnavigation of the Pacific initiated in June of 2023, Hōkūle‘a—the first wa‘a kaulua (Hawaiian double-hulled canoe) built in modern times—headed back to the Hawaiian Islands. As acting captain at the time, Polynesian Voyaging Society CEO Nainoa Thompson made the tough call to return home, echoing his crew’s desire to offer support and solidarity in the wake of the devastating August 8, 2023 fires in Lahʻāina, Maui.

Embodying the spirit of ho‘omau, the Hawaiian value of perseverance, the Polynesian Voyaging Society later went on to rekindle its plans for the Moananuiākea Voyage. But before venturing back out into the big, wide world, Hōkūle‘a had to say a proper goodbye: The proud wa‘a kaulua traveled to Lāhainā on August 8, 2024— the one-year anniversary of the fires—then charted a course for a 7-month, 31-port Pae ‘Āina Statewide Sail that included several stops along the West Side of O‘ahu.

“The Pae ‘Āina speaks to the essence of Hawaiian voyagers of the past,” says Waiʻanae native and regular Hōkūle‘a crew member Isaiah Pule, who participated in the statewide sail. “Before they went out to sail or find new land, they had to ensure that their home lands were OK. ”

Pule recalls being introduced to Polynesian voyaging as a seventh grader, when his class at Kamaile Academy spent a day on Pōka‘ī Bay, learning from the navigators of E Ala, a 45-foot wa‘a kaulua constructed in 1982 for outreach along the Waiʻanae coast: “Talking to crew members, seeing that E Ala belongs to Waiʻanae, and I belong to Waiʻanae, gave me a connection to my community that was bigger than anything else I had seen. After that day, I was hungry to learn more.”

As executive director of E Ala Voyaging Academy, the Native Hawaiian nonprofit organization offering voyaging training on E Ala, Pule helped to organize Hōkūle‘a’s West Side landing and departure events during the Pae ‘Āina. At Ko Olina, Waiʻanae’s Pōka‘ī Bay, Mākaha, and Nānākuli, families were invited to learn about time-honored Polynesian wayfinding techniques— using natural signs and methods to navigate vast ocean distances without the use of modern technology—straight from Hōkūle‘a’s skilled navigators.

Although E Ala was absent from the Pae ‘Āina events due to ongoing restoration, West Side residents had the opportunity to climb aboard Hōkūle‘a, as well as several smaller canoes designed for short, near-shore sails. These included the 30-foot Kūmau from the youth-focused ocean safety and conservation organization Nā Kama Kai, the 29-foot Kānehūnāmoku from Kānehūnāmoku Voyaging Academy, a wayfinding program for Native Hawaiian youth, and Ka ‘Uhane Holokai, the 24-foot training wa‘a kaulua from Polynesian Cultural Center.

“It’s like stringing flowers on a lei. Each community is special in its own way,” says Polynesian Voyaging Society apprentice navigator Kai Hoshijo, who sailed aboard Hōkūle‘a during several West Side legs of the Pae ‘Āina. In Pōka‘i Bay, Hoshijo and her fellow crew members engaged with over 600 secondary students at the Ho‘ākea Mauka to Makai, an annual event featuring dozens of community partners united in their efforts to offer hands-on ocean education grounded in Native Hawaiian values.

“A big part of modern wayfinding is carrying out our kuleana (personal and collective responsibility) of giving the younger generations access to these voyaging vessels and making sure that canoe culture is present in their life at a young age,” Hoshijo adds

“The West Side is particularly special, since many of the students we serve are Native Hawaiian. Their parents and grandparents have known and loved Hōkūle‘a longer than some of us have been alive. It’s important to listen and hear their stories because, in a way, they’re part of our crew, too.”

In summer of 2025, Hōkūle‘a and her sister canoe, Hikianalia, are set to resume the global Moananuiākea Voyage, with plans to return home in 2028. Though the recently wrapped Pae ‘Āina Statewide Sail marks the last Hōkūle‘a visit to the West Side for a few years, both Pule and Hoshijo are preparing to join various legs of Moananuiākea as crew members. Along the way, they’re hoping to leave a lasting impression on future navigators who may one day follow in their wake.

“When I see the kids standing on the ocean looking at the canoes, wanting to learn more, I see myself. And that makes my heart so full,” Pule reflects. “We’re inspiring the next generation to navigate the challenges of not just the ocean, but the challenges that they face every single day.”

Track the voyage on hokulea.com | Folow the journey on Instagram @hokuleacrew