Historic Hawaiian Ship ‘Hokule’a’ Was in Cape May

CAPE MAY — Usually, Kevin Vrieze and his conch shell can be seen and heard at sunset on the shore of the Delaware Bay at Cape May Beach. In the Hawaiian tradition, Kevin spreads “New Jersey aloha.” He blows to the north, the south, the east, and finally to the west as a universal blessing and thanksgiving for the day that is done and the day that is starting. Fishermen and beach-walkers pause, appreciating this tradition; many come night after night as the sun dips into the Delaware Bay, lighting the sky with color.
And so it had been a very great honor for Kevin when he was invited, by the Polynesian Voyaging Society, to come from Cape May and blow his conch as part of a Hokule’a welcoming in Alexandria, Virginia on May 15 and also the following week at the U.S. Capitol, Emancipation Hall. The “Hokeul’a,” a sixty-foot, wooden, double-hulled sailing canoe held together by ten miles of lashing and not a single metal bolt, had come 25,000 nautical miles, having started out in July 2014 from Hawaii on an around-the-world voyage. Her historic mission is to prove it possible for Polynesian islanders in 300 AD to have founded Hawaii using only the wind, stars, and ocean swells for navigation.
At the Capitol and in Alexandria, these welcoming ceremonies were grand, with the presentation of 18-foot flower leis, 12-piece conch-orchestra greetings, hula dancing, and First Nation Tribal Leader and U.S. Senatorial speeches. After all the Washington, D.C. festivities ended, the mighty little ship, Hokule’a, again set sail, making her way towards New York for World Ocean Day Celebrations at the United Nations on June 5, 2016. The Hokule’a sailed down the Delaware Bay, scheduled to pass by Cape May around sunset. Unexpectedly, she decided to overnight here. The crew docked and were graciously taken care of by an anonymous Cape May host who offered these celebrities quiet, comfortable, non-rocking shelter and fine sea food, passing on to them an “aloha/love” for Cape May.
The next morning, Kevin and his family stood on the dock to say goodbye to the Hokule’a at 4 a.m. His ten-year-old niece, Karley, had brought a bouquet of pink garden flowers, and Kevin brought his conch. The Hokule’a’s crew, who had trained for six years, stood in dark silhouette on the deck, completely one-with-the-boat. “Go safely,” onlookers silently prayed. Majestically, Hokule’a eased away from her mooring and set off in the Cape May mist to continue her mission of spreading love and respect for all and for our island earth.
You can follow this continuing historic voyage on the Hokule’a’s website as they continue from New York up to Nova Scotia, then down to Panama and then homeward bound.
Aloha, Hokule’a.