The Va'a Have Converged in New Zealand

The network of va’a from around the South Pacific have converged in Auckland, New Zealand, and are once more finding themselves home among their pacific brothers and sisters.

It is beautiful seeing old faces from last year’s voyages, with time spent sitting around the Fijian ava bowl reminiscing of old times and the voyaging experiences all crews have had over the last year or so. Our Samoan crew is sleeping, eating, training, and most importantly laughing alongside crews from Fiji, Vanuatu, Tonga, PNG and the Solomon Islands.

With 40 to 50 hungry mouths to feed, the kitchen is always in full swing before dawn - preparing breakfast for the crews as they head out to do their daily duties. The Gaualofa is currently at Salt House Boats on the north Shore where she is getting a little TLC (tender loving care) from the Samoan crew. You can spot them lovingly sanding and painting Gaualofa, getting her ready for the epic voyage which all are about to embark upon.


Most importantly, all of the va’a will be outfitted with solar panels and an electric outboard motor in order to eliminate the reliance upon fossil fuels. No longer will this stunning fleet of va’a (seven in total) from around the Pacific expel greenhouse gasses through burning fossil fuels in order to propel themselves through the water (e.g. when in the harbour or in poor wind conditions).

All crews are eagerly preparing and anticipating our departure (which at this moment is projected for 11th April, 2011). In the meantime, the sense of community developing amongst the crews from varying backgrounds and a multitude of different Pacific Island nations is incredible to witness and even more lovely to partake in.

For now, the marae (Maori meeting house) in Mangere will be home to these voyagers, until they make their way to their true homes on their respective canoes at sea.

I must be off now - the lights have been turned off, and it is always best to be asleep before the cacophony of snores from around the hall takes off.

All the best from the crew of Gaualofa - safe and sound in New Zealand.

Fealofani Bruun

Sailing from Samoa to New Zealand - February/March 2011

9th March 2011
Position: Neiafu, Vava’u Islands, Kingdom of Tonga

The morning started out with a phone call for Kalolo, an old friend asking him if a couple of preschool students could visit the Gaualofa that morning. The crew prepped themselves and the Gaualofa for the presentations.

We welcomed, presented and entertained 3 preschools consisting of over 40 children all in less than 2 hours. Later in the day we received a surprise visit from 2 elementary schools. The crew presented the va’atele Gaualofa to the preschoolers and set up a little presentation on the marine monitoring that occurs on the va’a.

We have two different marine monitoring forms onboard that we have to fill out every time we see any form of marine life or trash on our course. We’re required to log position, time, state of sea, state of weather and description of what we saw. In this way the data we collect will be informative for environmental groups like SPREP, CI and ICUN that record specific coordinates of high and low density areas of marine creatures and trash.

The school visit went quite well considering the challenge in holding the attention of the age group we had to present to.

13th March 2011
Position: 23˚ 41.7’ S 175˚ 58’ W
After days on end without a nice hard gust of wind, it shifted direction last night. More SE than E. The day was another scorcher and the crew on watch amused themselves with watching Lolesio (the cook) scamper around the va’a seeking for shade on deck.

We were sailing and not using our engine, even though we weren’t going very fast - just 4 knots. And still no fish since the day we left Vava’u. We were all keen on having fish on the menu that day. Lolesio had even made mayonnaise which was on standby.

Alas the day was coming to an end and still no bite; throughout the day we were accompanied by schools of skip-jack, which just wouldn’t seem to throw themselves on the lures we had hanging off the stern. And flocks of various marine birds seemed to do a better job at fishing then we did.

The swells were growing larger and steeper with dark clouds just on the windward side of our beam. The low that we were avoiding seemed to catch up with us. Were hoping that we’re still outside of the low’s eye and just skirting around it. Winds were picking up and the va’a was making good speed, from 4 knots to 9 knots.

Suddenly the sound of the fishing reel running caught the watch’s attention, just in time to see a large marlin jump out of the water. Shouts of glee and triumphant cries filled the air, which woke up the other crew members who were resting. The whole va’a kicked into action when they figured out their prayers were soon to be answered with having fish on the menu.

After almost what felt like an hour of trying to reel the fish in but was only 15 minutes, the fishing rod broke at the top. All the boys immediately wanted to stop playing around and just hook the fish in. Not only were we impatient with getting the marlin onboard but the dark clouds on our windward side were even more visible. It looked to be one large squall coming our way.

Without any further adieu, the marlin was quickly on board and fish orders were flying around.

The squall hit us about 15 minutes later which seemed to put the crew in even better spirits.

I guess the meat on the menu and a good fresh water shower makes for a happy crew. Soifua.

18th March 2011
Position: 34˚ 59.48’ S / 175˚ 31.32’ E

It is a clear blue day with a cool breeze filling Gaualofa’s sails and blowing her speedily towards Aotearoa.

In the distance Senio eyes something ahead of us, by now it’s my watch and already half an hour has passed.

Everyone on deck ran to the bow to get a better look. Scanning the horizon ahead in a wide arc the splashes were familiar to me: WHALES! I guess they were 12 miles away and from that distance I wasn’t sure what type they were.

As we got closer other whales were spotted in a 90 degree angle all over the horizon. I guess there were 15- 20 whales in this pod and by now everyone was on deck getting excited, particularly the new crew.

Cap (Marc), ordered Salai, who was on the foe, to head for the closest whales. Fani got out her camera, Lolesio stopped making lunch and I monitored and recorded the whole activity.

As we got closer I identified them as sperm whales which are common in New Zealand’s waters. I think the whales were having a sports day or something. One, a female, I believe, as there was a calf near it, would breach and the calf would follow suit: female tail slaps, calf tail slaps; female would pec slap and the calf would copy.

All the while the whales around were also doing their ‘whale activity’. Fani and Cap (Marc) both armed with cameras took some really cool pictures. I clapped in appreciation at the show the whales were giving us.

These are magnificent creatures and always a sight to behold. We stayed with them for half an hour before Cap (Marc) decided we should continue our course.

Breaching: when a whale is leaping in the air rotating and landing on its back or side or forward in a head-lunge.
Tail slap: slapping flukes on surfaces.
Pec slaps: laying on its side or back, hitting the surface with one or both pectoral fins.
Soifua,
Kalolo Steffany


18th/19th March 2011
Position: From Great Barrier to Viaduct, New Zealand
‘They that go down to the sea in ships that do business in great waters; these see the works of the Lord, and His wonders in the deep’. Psalms 107:23-24.

It’s almost 5 hours until arrival to our meeting point with Uto-Ni-Yalo, and we can already see New Zealand. The crew is happy when they first sight land. A lot of them are too excited that they actually don’t go straight away to rest. A few of them have started on cleaning and preparing the va’a for inspection done on arrival by the quarantine and customs.

It’s now day break and we’re in Hauraki Gulf. Cap (Marc) tells us that we won’t be able to make the meeting time with Uto-Ni-Yalo as there are still a few miles between us. Lolesio makes rice, pisupo with canned spaghetti, what a treat for the majority of the crew!

2 hours until arrival at the Viaduct we changed our booms from the Bermuda rig to the Marquesas rig, which has become a tradition for everyone on arrival or departure of a country.

After we thoroughly cleaned the va’a, we started practicing our sivas. By now we have come upon Rangitoto Island, on the western coast. There were small fishing boats around - and so many yachts!

There were so many boats with sails and motorboats, I was amazed. The only boats I’ve ever seen are the ones in Samoa and those are the small fishing alias and the ferries that go around the islands. We also saw penguins, this was the first time I’ve ever seen them.

Siaosi was on the foe and he had to constantly adjust his course as there were so many va’as around; there were over 20 va’as that he had to try not to hit. I was quite happy to arrive in a traditional voyaging canoe, it was something new to my life and a lot of people were watching from their own boats.

We stopped for a short time, out of the channel to do our custom belief tradition, as we were about to step onto shore we needed to close our passage from the sea. After our ‘custom belief’ ceremony was over we continued on towards Auckland wharf. We saw a va’atele from our fleet sailing our way and the closer it got, we were told it’s the newly transformed Va’atele Haunui.

Our crew became very excited to see fellow voyagers. The crew, we soon found out, was the Hine Moana, to which they welcomed us with a haka in the middle of Waitemata Harbour . We continued on to the customs wharf to get all the official details out of the way. After that was done we motored on to the Viaduct where we were to dock at. We were once again greeted by the Hine Moana crew at the dock.

While tidying up and getting ready to join the other crew for a late lunch, we received a pleasant surprise when Fa’amatuainu Sa, Tuatagaloa Joe Annandale and other members of the Aiga Folau o Samoa soon arrived at the Viaduct. It was a nice feeling to see them. They were there when we left Samoa and then to see them when we arrived, it felt like they never left us.

We soon left the Viaduct for our base camp. We were informed that we’ll be staying together with three other crews- Hine Moana, Uto-Ni-Yalo and Haunui in a marae, Te Karaiti te Pou Herenga Waka, in Mangere.

Soifua,
Akenese, Fialelei ma Lolesio

Samoa Farewell Ceremony - 26 February 2011

Overnight Sail from Apia - 21/22 February 2011

The day of our farewell from Samoa was rapidly approaching. With almost 20 new crew-in-training, many of whom had never sailed before, we urgently needed some experience. Our chance finally came on the 21st February.

For those waiting on the va’a the day was long, hot and slow. Marc, our captain, was busy the whole day trying to get crew visa applications submitted. By late afternoon it wasn’t clear whether we would have our sail at all. But finally at about 6pm everyone was on board. This was to be our ‘exposure’ sail. For most of us, the first chance to feel what it’s like to crew the va’a on the open ocean.

After a meal of coconut rice and bananas we gathered around, gave thanks and prayed for a safe return. Then, just as the sun was beginning to set behind Apia we raised sails and slipped quietly out past the breakwater and beyond the reef. Soon the lights of Apia came on behind us, snaking their way up the hill around Mt Vaea and up to the top of the pass. The lights were to be our backdrop for many hours, gradually sinking towards and eventually below the horizon as we put in distance from them.
Our sailing instructions were simple: sail away from Upolu! There was a constant and reassuring easterly tradewind blowing throughout the night. By sailing north-northeast we had the wind sitting just fore of the starboard beam all the way out [that is, the wind was blowing across the va’a from just less than 90 degrees to the right of our direction of sail – slightly to the front of an imaginary line running perpendicular to our direction of sail (the beam)]. With no outward destination we held our course according to the wind as much as to any precise bearing.

We were divided into three watches of three hours each. I was on first watch from 8pm-11pm. After 11 I would be on standby for the 11pm-2am watch, then go below deck and rest from 2am-5am in readiness for my next watch. There were six on my watch, including the watch captain (responsible for the va’a whenever the captain is absent). With only occasional adjustments needed to the rigging our main task was to take turns on the foe – the four metre long pivoted rigid wooden pole that is both tiller and rudder on the traditional va’a. Handled from on deck it curves down into the water between the hulls, where it opens into a rudder paddle. In rough weather it may require several crew on the foe to maintain a heading. In gentle conditions like tonight one was enough, but we paired up anyway so that we could experience handling the foe as a team. To keep our bearing we shifted the foe to keep the va’a ‘s heading constant relative to selected reference stars. If our reference star disappeared behind clouds we would switch to another. Simple principle, but physically hard work, especially for a novice like me! One important lesson: if possible, choose a reference star that is close to the horizon -it’s a long time to stand straining your neck skywards!

With my watch over I could relax and take in the spectacular night sky. At 2am the moon was rising and the lights of Apia almost gone. Unfortunately I could not sleep. Below deck it was hot and stuffy and the hulls amplified the sound of the waves sliding between them. No doubt you would adapt, but for me for now the whole experience was too new and exciting.

At 5am we were back on deck for our next watch. As darkness became dawn then a glowing sunrise we could not see land in any direction – a great feeling to be on the open ocean. Early in the watch we about-turned and made back for Apia. We had sailed 45 Nautical Miles out to sea.

On the way home there were a few squalls about but they passed us by. We made it back to Apia harbour just in time for lunch.

The perfect introductory cruise.

Owen Martin

2010 Highlights and Future Plans...

Dear SVS members, supporters and friends,

We would like to update you on activities this year of the Aiga Folau o Samoa or Samoa Voyaging Society (SVS).

2010 Highlights

2010 has been a huge year for our young society; here are some of the highlights:

• Our Samoan crew with Captain Marc Gondard sailed more than 4,000 nautical miles from New Zealand to Tahiti, Cook islands, Samoa and then to Tonga on the va’atele “Hine Moana” from April to July this year. We sailed as part of the Pacific Voyaging Fleet with 4 other traditional va’a and visited five countries The attached photos show the arrival ceremony of the voyaging fleet in Samoa, with our patron His Highness the Head of State of Samoa and the Hine Moana leaving Sinalei

• On this epic journey the Samoan crew were environmental ambassadors- promoting the need for marine conservation and wise stewardship of the oceans.

• In August we had the maiden voyage of our own va’atele “Gaualofa” to Vava’u, Tonga and back a distance of almost 1000 nautical miles

• In September we went to Tokelau and back, a distance of 800 nautical miles return. We took with us Foua Toloa, the former Ulu or Head of Tokelau, who taught the crew star navigation techniques

• Between October and December many school groups and overseas and local visitors have visited the va’a and more than 100 Samoan children have had the opportunity to sail and learn about traditional voyaging and navigation. This has been a hugely successful part of the program as a core goal of our society is to promote pride and knowledge in traditional navigation amongst the youth

• We went on many short voyages to different parts of Samoa, including to Manono island where there was huge interest from the community and where we discovered that the ancient skills of traditional navigation are still alive in Samoa

• We are developing a close partnership with the Samoan Ministry of Education, Sports and Culture whom we hope to be working hand in hand on further outreach activities in 2011 and beyond

• Our young local crew have grown and matured and are now ready to take on the world with confidence in their skills as sailors and with enhanced pride in their culture

Faafetai tele to our sponsors and supporters

We would like to thank all our sponsors for their generous support this year especially the Okeanos Foundation who have provided us our va’a on very favorable terms and continue to fund much of our core running costs.

We also thank the Samoa Tourism Authority for a very generous donation for our official launch a year ago and to cover some running costs and also SPREP who gave us a grant to promote ocean conservation in early 2010. We would also like to thank Stuart Chape of SPREP for taking the most incredible photographs of our va’a and crew, including the ones attached. We thank UNESCO for giving us a grant to develop a strategy to promote traditional navigation and improve out outreach activities in Samoa. Other sponsors include Apia Concrete Products (ACP), the Apia Yacht Club, Big Bear, Samoa Ports Authority, Silva Transport, Tony Hill and Sinalei Reef Resort.

Last but not least we would like to thank the wonderful hosts who fed and hosted our crews on our voyages this year- in particular our hosts in Rarotonga, Tahiti, Tokelau, and Vavau, Tonga. We hope to have the opportunity to reciprocate one day when you visit Samoa.

Planning for 2011 Voyage

We are now in the throes of preparing and training for another epic journey-from Samoa to Fiji, Tahiti, Marquesas, Hawaii and back to Samoa starting in February 2011. Once again we will be joining with va’a from NZ, Fiji, the Cook Islands and Tahiti on the journey which has as its main objective the promotion of ocean conservation and sustainable management, and in particular to raise awareness of the impact of climate change on the oceans. The voyaging fleet will all congregate in Honolulu harbor, Hawaii in early July 2011 where an Ocean Climate conference to raise awareness on these critical issues will be held. We hope that our patron, His Highness the Head of State, will sail with us for part of the voyage.

Crew needed

We are still seeking crew for the voyages in 2011 and will be interviewing for new crew in early January. We will be advertising interview times in the press and on the radio. For more information please call Ame on 7510693

Donations needed

We are in desperate need of more funds to support our va’a’s ongoing running costs, outreach activities and to provide some financial support for our volunteer crew. We also need to raise 200,000 NZD (360,000 tala) before the end of 2012 in order to purchase the va’a outright from the Okeanos Foundation. Please consider a generous donation for this worthy cause- our account details are below:

Bank account details:
Account Name: SAMOA VOYAGING SOCIETY INC main branch Apia
Account N°: 3803142

Membership

The Samoa Voyaging Society exists only because of our members. In particular we need members who are willing to volunteer part time for a few hours a week to assist with a range of activities, including fundraising, marketing and crew training. Membership is currently 10 tala per person and we would like to encourage you to renew your membership as soon as possible. Membership entitles you to discounted sailing trips, participation in ocean voyages (subject to passing basic fitness and other training) and to participation in the Annual General Meeting of the SVS.

You may renew your membership through a direct bank transfer or just contact us and we will provide you with a receipt. We would be grateful if you would also encourage others members of the community to join the SVS!

Please contact the SVS Secretary, James Atherton on 7770787, Captain Marc Gondard on 7720276 or myself on 7773949 if you wish to renew your membership or make a donation.

We look forward to another exciting year of development and adventure for the SVS and thank you all for your engagement and support this year.


Ia manuia le kerisimasi ma le tausaga fou.


Soifua and God Bless,


Tuatagaloa Joe Annandale
Aiga Folau o Samoa President

Manono Expedition

24.11.10

Location: due west of Apia Harbour
Time: Wednesday midmorning
Destination: Manono Island via Mulifanua
Mission: Meeting the Elders of Manono Island and request upon them in teaching and bestowing Gaualofa and her Crew their blessings in reviving the old ways of how our ancestors came to these shores. And taking school children and locals out for a sail.
Present: It’s Wednesday morning and we have just left Apia Harbour. Our first stop is Mulifanua and second is Manono Island, both are due west. We will be spending the night in Mulifanua as our actual destination is Manono Island. It lies between the Main Island, Upolu, and Apolima. We’ve finally dredged up enough courage to call upon people of Manono for aid.
In the History of Samoa during times of constant warring, any district that had the backing of Manono was sure to win. Manono not only had the largest naval fleet that halted any surprise attacks and patrolled the sea trade but it also had strong ties with neighboring islands: Tonga and Fiji. If dire need of assistance was requested by either of the countries the call was always answered. Manono is said among the locals, to be the last place in Samoa to conform to modern-day sea vessels.
The crew is looking forward to this trip as it will also mean possible recruitment from people who know a vast deal more of the canoe culture. We have our traditional rig on: crab claw/ marquises rig; we’ve also constructed new jowls for the traditional booms, as the former design wasn’t quite user friendly for winds of over 15knots. They had completely cracked on the first time we set them on, so with our spanking new boom jowls, our course was set due west. As winds were blowing NE, averaging 14 knots, we were sailing ca. 7 knots having the wind on our starboard quarter. It was a fairly easy run all the way. We caught a good size trivielly just in time for an early dinner. The only thing that marred our sail was the high concentration of trash which was in the ocean. We arrived in Mulifanua lagoon and laid anchor and rested up for the big day tomorrow. This anchorage was chosen as it is the safest and closest anchorage from our appointed meeting with the people of Manono, tomorrow at 09.00. So for now, soifua.
Time: Morning of the BIG DAY
Present: Morning was beautiful and we were joined by two members of our society as well as a local ex-pat and his family (they coincidentally run a sailing venture based in this part of the main island, Samoa Sailing Adventures).Breakfast was quickly inhaled as the hour of our appointment was rapidly approaching; though we still managed to not arrive on time. As we’re based in Samoa and keeping with local customs is of the utmost importance, we arrived just in due time. Local time etiquette: either be very early or very late, it’s rude to be on time. Finer details aside we were still greeted with smiles and not a fleet of paopaos .We quickly laid anchor like so: stern to shore bow to lagoon and a stern line to the beach tied around a niu. Faapau (crew member), bravely sacrificed his dry self to ferry the children on board Gaualofa, with the dinghy as it was too shallow to attach the outboard to it. When everyone was finally onboard, we were soon introduced to the chiefs and orators of Manono Island! And they had brought a minister along! After the service, you could clearly see and hear the relief that was being voiced by the crew. We’ve been accepted by the people of Manono Island, now the second part of the mission- Prove that their blessings are and will be put to good use. A demonstration was required- we were still able to sail around in the lagoon, even though there were slight winds and we were making only 5-6 knots. A couple of the Elders got into explaining the Samoan terminology for the different parts of the Va’a. We soon found out that the main parts of the va’a are used in Samoan idioms! The elders and the children clearly enjoyed their little outing on a double hulled canoe. None of the children seemed to be frightened by the maneuvers the Va’a went through, we had little young uns’ vying to stand by the foe!(note for you safety alarmists, just to touch it!) After a thoroughly satisfying sail we made our way back to Apia harbour. Winds were still blowing NE at the same speed which we then optioned to motor sail back, which we did in 3 ½ hours.
Mission accomplished! Gaualofa and her crew are looking forward to their next adventure to Manono Island, and hopefully will stay longer. Faafetai tele lava. Soifua!