Hokule'a – by Gary

While in US Samoa we were fortunate enough to see the Hokule'a and learn more about her.  The Hokule'a is a recreation of a Polynesian voyaging canoe.  Hawaiin based and operated by the Polynesian Voyaging Society, she is used to preserve and foster traditional seamanship and navigation skills – particularly among young people.  I first saw her in the mid 80s when she visited Bora Bora, but she has been going since 1975, making her quite an old vessel.

As the Society accumulates sufficient funds the Hokule'a is used for long distance voyaging, employing the same ancient navigation techniques used by Polynesians hundreds, if not thousands of years ago to explore, populate and trade across the vast Pacific Ocean.  At 61.5 feet and fitted with two traditional claw sails the Hokule'a is totally traditional in overall design, but employs modern materials.    She has absolutely no on-board navigation instruments.  The work of the Society through these voyages has been credited as a major factor in the revitalization of Polynesian culture across the Pacific.  Hokulea's last major voyage was completed in 2007.

This year she has embarked on her tenth and most ambitious voyage, a world circumnavigation.  Having already visited French Polynesia, she arrived in US Samoa just two days after us.  Great fanfare accompanied her arrival, with lots of boats honking and tooting in the harbour, speeches ashore and traditional celebrations.  While here the crew conducted workshops with locals on traditional navigation techniques – Zeke and Nina attended and thoroughly enjoyed the experience (click here if you would like to see Zeke's school report on the subject).

The Hokule'a arriving in Honolulu after voyaging from Tahiti in 1976.

Sternpost detailing.

Her steering paddle. Looks suspiciously like a GPS aerial on the back there huh? Nah couldn't be.

Provisions stowed in nets along her sides.

Her spars and steering oar are heavy, requiring a large, strong crew to sail her. 

While on passage her navigators are unable to sleep, they have to constantly pay attention to the stars, the wind, waves and the boat's progress.  They may only take very short cat-naps.  Training to become a navigator takes years.  A support boat accompanies the Hokule'a on her voyages, carrying modern navigation instruments as a 'just in case'.  Her crew changes at regular intervals during each voyage.

I love this little story, lifted from the Wikipedia's Hokule'a site:

… professional Tongan sea captain Sione Taupeamuhu was aboard during a night passage [in the 1985-87 voyage] from Tongatapu to Nomuka in the northerly Haʻapai Islands group of Tonga.. He was skeptical that Hōkūle‘a navigator Nainoa Thompson could find Nomuka without instruments. When Nomuka appeared on the horizon at dawn as anticipated, Taupeamuhu remarked, "Now I can believe the stories of my ancestors."

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Pago Pago Harbour, US Samoa – by Gary

 

Pago Pago US Samoa is a large natural harbour surrounded by steep, high and lushly vegetated mountains.  For many years, particularly during WWII, it was an important US naval base – but it has since been abandoned.  Popular wisdom is that yachties should give the place a wide berth on account of the major tuna fishery and cannery located there, making it a very polluted, stinky and generally objectionable place to be.  In addition it is said to be a very windy with poor holding.

So far in our visit we can confirm the windiness (yep it gets bloody windy here!!!), but luckily we have not had trouble with the anchor dragging (so far).  And as for being polluted and stinky – well we have been in many far worse places.  We reckon its a very picturesque location, and the canneries and constant fishing boat traffic just serve to make it even more interesting.  Apparently the fishery has decreased considerably in size in recent years, we had originally been told this was because of over-fishing, but others suggest it is more about the rising cost of labour and the partial transference of cannery operations to SE Asia.  Whatever the case, there is still a fair bit of fish processing happening here, and the fishing fleet is truly impressive.

A partial view of the canneries.  Apparently one has closed, with two players remaining.

The canneries occupy parts of the former US naval base.  I reckon this ship hauling facility is related to that former use.

The tuna boats come in all shapes and sizes, but these monsters predominate.  The high crows nest (presumably with boat controls) is standard equipment...

… as is the spotter helicopter.  They are used to locate the fast moving schools of tuna.

They are very impressive vessels, with long waterlines and big engines guaranteeing plenty of speed.  Those poor tuna don't stand much of a chance.

They employ seine nets, which are laid out around a school of tuna with the assistance of a separate small powerful launch which slides off the back of the main ship.  Just the nets alone are said to be worth in excess of a million dollars.

Not all the boats are that large or sophisticated – it seems these much smaller vessels are still viable.  You can kinda guess they are not paying huge amounts in labour.

From the number of boats rafted up and in-harbour we gathered it was not tuna high season.  On the knoll above these boats is the 'Governors' Mansion'.  So far we haven't been received there.

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US Samoa and the Buses – by Gary

There are somethings you just know are going to be here right?  I mean it might be a tiny island in the middle of the Pacific, but it's still part of the good old US of A.  But other things come as a real surprise – the buses for one!  They are just so... well... un-American.  They are not huge, brash nor noisome – but rather they are tiny, cute, inviting, quaint, fun, friendly bubbly (I just brainstormed a few adjectives with the kids!).

US Samoa is a village based society.  And each village appears to have a few entrepreneurial types who provide transport services for the clan.  If the village is small then the buses are small.  The bus drivers seem to know just about everybody who climbs aboard and where to drop them off – it seems to be more or less a door to door service.  And cheap!  Most often adults pay $1 a ride (longer rides cost a bit more) while kids pay 50c.

The bus bodies are built locally and many are highly individualized.  Music is pretty obligatory, sometimes a little loud, but mostly listenable.  The entire transport experience is surprisingly sane – not too loud, not too fast.  Samoan drivers are courteous and considerate while fellow passengers are friendly and helpful.  It is a wonderful way to move about and see the island.

The bus bodies are timber framed with perspex windows that slide down to let in the breeze and allow full enjoyment of the beautiful island scenery.

The name of the relevant village displays in the windscreen.  Vibrant colour is pretty much mandatory.

Samoans are often on the large size.  The juxtaposition can be hmmm.... interesting.

Interior décor is an important consideration.

Their fellow drivers might be courteous and considerate but a little extra insurance never hurts.

Like I said, its a great way to see the island.

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Suwarrow – by Gary

 

Another Pacific atoll, this one with a peculiar name, on account of the Russians arriving first, aboard the Suvorov in 1814.

It's about 60% inhabited, although that's a temporal indication rather that a spatial one, i.e. for much of the year the atoll is uninhabited, but during the yachtie season the Cook Island Government installs a ranger (his wife sometimes comes too) to keep us bums under control.

The islands has seen other human occupants.  Archaeology indicates Polynesians once lived here - but not for hundreds of years.  After them came various other, most especially Tom Neale an odd-ball Kiwi who lived on the atoll for a total of 16 years, with only the birds and the coconut crabs for company.  Not my cup of tea - but he apparently had amazing self-sufficient wilderness survival skills.

As always human occupation comes at great ecological cost –  between them they left rats, mossies, flies and European wasps, and I'm sure lots of other things.  To the credit of the Cook Island Government, with some generous outside assistance, they are doing their best to look after the place.  It is a protected area, a rat eradication program has been put in place and the ranger tightly controls the activities of visiting yachties – not so much fun for us, but good for the atoll.  Overall I think its good but many of my fellow yachties are unimpressed.

Coming ashore, one is confronted with the yachtie rules! Prominent signs on sticks is a pretty proud tradition with most park services around the world.  Did somebody mention wilderness?

The ranger, Harry, and his wife.  They do an eight month stint on the island, being removed for the cyclone season.  Harry says about 150 yachts are currently coming through each season – wow, that a lot of us!

Tom Neale's memorial.

Harry's house right, with what is left of Tom's house on the right.

It's a very pretty spot, but the anchorage didn't feel safe;  friends had had a very terrible experience with bad weather and poor holding here just a couple of weeks prior – so after just two nights rest we up-ed anchor and left.

A booby hitched a ride part of the way to US Samoa with us!

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Bora Bora – by Gary

Bora Bora; the very name conjures up a host of clichéd images:  dusky vahinis, lean handsome tanis, cool frangipani perfumed evenings, azure lagoons, palm tree shaded beaches, all that and more.  And guess what?  All those magic clichés are still part of the mix – but alas, shamefully diluted with dross.  In this, my third swing through this part of the world in the last 35 odd years, Bora Bora’s golden goose looks to me more and more like a crispy critter.  Tourism and the packaged tourist, pursued by endless gaggles of entrepreneurial remoras seeking a slice of the action, all amid the relentless march of modernity with its automobiles, outboards, computers, mobile phones and cheap food – well lets just say the magic is wearing thin, if not the people.

From a distance the principal town, Vaitape, still looks decidedly low-key, and that backdrop still majestic.

Robe has its Big Lobster, Goulburn its Big Merino, Berri its Big Orange, and Vaitape? The Big Vahini of course – why not?

The lagoon can be stunning...

... but these things are everywhere.

Still we managed to have some fun and enjoy a real David Attenborough moment.  With James and Hanna and their three small children, Josh, Sadie and Jacob aboard (we met them back in St Helena) along with Zeke and Nina’s friend Carolyn, we set off around the island in search of manta rays.

On the prowl for mantas...

... with the sun getting hotter most of our lookouts retired below for some kid action.  They had a ball.

And find some mantas we did – it was awesome swimming with these majestic 3m+ wide creatures.  At least it was fun until two snorkel tour groups of 15 plus people each descended upon us and scared them all away! Oh well.

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