Taiohae, Nukuhiva--Departure of Hokule'a to Hakahau, Ua Pou, was delayed till midnight tonight. An ARGOS transponder for tracking the canoe and a charger for a Betacam that will be used to document the voyage came in on a flight from Pape'ete to Nukuhiva yesterday but got stuck at the airport after the delivery truck broke down.
The airport closes down for the night and does not open till the next flight comes in at 11 the following morning. Ro'o Kimitete, the mayor of Taiohae, was going out to the airport to pick up his wife Deborah, who was returning from Pape'ete, so he offered to pick up the equipment for us this morning.
Our camera man Hugh just came out to the escort boat Kamahele with the charger in hand...so it made the 2.5 hour journey over the mountains safely. It's too late to depart for Ua Pou now...the five hour sail would take us into the harbor of Hakahau at nightfall...a dangerous maneuver in an unfamiliar place. So Captain/Navigator Baybayan decided to sail at midnight and arrive at the harbor at dawn. The new plan is a plus for the crew, as we will be sailing at night under the stars--a good time to orient the new crew members to navigating by celestial bodies.
The nights have been mostly clear, with passing trade wind clouds... full of star, the Milky Way stretching from the Southern Cross setting in the west to Vega and Altair rising in the east... Musca, the Pointers, Atria in the Southern Triangle, Maui's Fishhook (Scorpio), and the Peacock in the Southern sky, which is fully visible (mountains surround Taiohae on the east, north, and west). The Milky Way is known as the Shark in some parts of Polynesia and Maui's fishhook is set in it.
The navigators have been studying their southern pointers...pairs of stars that point to the South Celesital Pole, which is 9 degrees above the horizon in Taiohae (but below the horizon in Hawai'i.)
Plan is to pull two of the three anchors at 4 p.m.today, have dinnner at 6 (final farewells) and rest on the canoe before getting under way at midnight, when the last anchor will be pulled. The crew members who have been here since the canoe got in three weeks ago have been adopted into the community and feel like they are leaving home again. Many thanks to the Nuku a Hoe canoe club for hosting us at their club house and the rest of the community of Taiohae for all their support. The crew has been well taken care of.
Winds have been easterly trades at 10-15 knots for the whole week. Today the winds were E by S, a good wind to get us to Ua Pou.
The new plan (ever changing) is to stay in Ua Pou until 10 p.m. tomorrow, then depart for Ua Huka on another night sail. Arrive at Ua Huka the next day at dawn and spend the day there. Depart for Tahuata at 4 p.m.
Captain Baybayan has been invited by the mayor of Vaitahu on Tahuata to visit, so we will be anchoring there rather than at Hana moe noa. The village of Vaitahu has a canoe building project going. The rest of the schedule remains the same, with a stop at Hanavave, Fatu Hiva, on August 6, before arriving at Atuona, Hiva Oa on Saturday, August 7.