Say aloha as the traditional Polynesian voyaging canoe Hōkūleʻa is set to arrive at the Maritime Museum of San Diego on Wednesday afternoon as part of a Pacific tour.
The visit – its arrival is expected at 4 p.m. – is part of the Polynesian Voyaging Society’s four-year Moananuiākea Voyage, a circumnavigation of the Pacific Ocean, and will be the last stop on the West Coast before the canoe returns to Hawaiʻi, then resumes its voyage.
The stop in Hawaii was dictated by tragic circumstances – in the wake of the devastating fires on Maui, the Hōkūleʻa crew plans to be home by late December.
But San Diego will offer a big welcome this week, as the double-hulled canoe and its crew will be led into the harbor by Kumeyaay Nation representatives and accompanied by dozens of outrigger canoes. The public is invited to share in the welcome ceremony at Waterfront Park.
While Hōkūleʻa is docked at the museum, crew members will hold dockside canoe tours and share lessons about the canoe’s storied history, ancient wayfinding and navigation and the mission to build a collective movement to care for our oceans.
The free canoe tours will be offered Friday, from 9-11 a.m. and 1-4 p.m., and Nov. 13, from 1-4 p.m.
Even better for the Maritime Museum, Hōkūleʻa arrives just three days before ceremonies honoring San Diego’s iconic Star of India and her 160th birthday.
“We are so excited that our festivities can include the Hawaiian canoe in the commemorative sail activities planned for November 11 and 12,” Raymond Ashley, president/CEO of the Maritime Museum
The Star of India is the last ship still sailing that once flew the flag of the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi – before it became a U.S. territory in 1898, and ultimately a state. To honor Hōkūleʻa’s visit, Star of India will fly that flag once again.
Note: Photo credit, Hōkūleʻa, a traditional Polynesian voyaging canoe. Photo credit: Jason Patterson/Oiwi TV