header image
header image

March 11, 2009

A Wonderful First Night At Sea

Aloha kākou,

Mahalo to everyone who came to bid us a bon voyage. We truly appreciate it.

Hōkūle‘a and Kama Hele enjoyed a beautiful night of sailing under mostly clear skies with good breezes and gently rolling swells.  The nearly-full moon was beautiful, but obscured some of the available stars, yet there seemed to be plenty of stars and other clues for Bruce’s navigation – he is spot on. Of course, we cannot let Hōkūle‘a know this, but we wanted our virtual voyagers to know how great the skills of this crew are.

from the Hōkūle‘a

We made great speed for much of the night (6+ knots) but slowed in early morning hours. The weather was fine, mostly clear with 1/8 cloud coverage - small puffs of low cumulus, no high clouds.  No precipitation through the night.  Barometer fell ever so slightly to 30.2" or 1023 mb.

Sunrise reports from all vessels indicated vessels and crews are fine.  At 6:43 am, we were on a course of 175 degrees True and making 4.5 knots at that time.

Winds:  NE 10 knots
Sea state: NE swell 3-4 ft

Aloha,

Mike, Kama Hele Escort Boat

Comments

Mon, 03/30/2009 - 13:40 — E2a STUDENT (not verified)

Today's question for the crew......

WHat do you guys eat? Do you fish a lot?

Wed, 03/11/2009 - 14:35 — Micah M (not verified)

How is it

What is it like at night? Do you guys have comfortable beds?  What do you guys also eat?

Wed, 03/11/2009 - 19:07 — hokuleawwv

How is it

Night time aboard Hōkūle‘a is amazing. To be on the vast ocean, looking at the stars without any light pollution from land is an unforgettable experience.

There are 10 bunks on board, and when I say bunk I mean basically a board atop storage. Each bunk is a little bigger than a sleeping bag. One of our crew members, Pauline Sato, did a video journal showing her bunk. You can find it by clicking here.

As far as what we eat, we've brought along some dry staples like rice and pasta. Some fresh fruits and vegetables. And, some of the students of Wai‘anae were kind enough to dry fruits and vegetables for us so we're well stocked. One of the foods we enjoy most though is fresh fish… if we catch any.