Hokule'a - THE PROPOSAL

Images related to the history and construction of Hokule’a and its subsequent voyages.

Hokule’a has undergone many small modifications over the years, most visibly to its splash guard, beam width, mast steps, and the size and shape of its two sails.

THE PROPOSAL OF 1974

Of all the items I have collected over the years related to Hokule'a and its voyages, none is as historically significant as the "Proposal for an Experimental Voyage Between Hawaii and Tahiti," written in 1974. I will share a few pages from this document.

The proposal outlines the dream of several individuals:

- Herb Kawainui Kane

- Ben Finney

- Tommy Holmes

- August Yee

- Larry Burkhalter

- Kala Kukea

Their vision was to build a replica of an ancient Polynesian voyaging canoe and conduct a round-trip voyage between Hawaii and Tahiti during the U.S. Bicentennial Year in 1976.

These men could not have envisioned that their canoe would one day circumnavigate the globe and become an object of admiration for people around the world. They could not have foreseen that Hokule'a would be at the root of a Hawaiian, Polynesian, and even Micronesian cultural renaissance. No, they could not have imagined that in 2025 there would be a 50-year celebration of Hokule'a's journey.

Hokule'a has become a symbol of Polynesian culture and a promoter of how to care for our oceans and our planet.