Meet Nainoa Thompson, the Hawaiian Navigator Who’s Preserving the Ancient Art of Ocean Wayfinding

Nainoa Thompson did not set out to rewrite history. He was simply looking for adventure.

He accomplished both. He is now known as the greatest person to have ever lived in Hawaii, and a symbol for seafaring folk around the globe. He learned that intense preparation can overcome risk. It is possible to take no action at all, which can make it the most risky. Sometimes, even deep knowledge is insufficient to make a decision.

But all of that happened later when he discovered what is known as “The Way of the Canoe.” He first set sail on an adventure in a Polynesian canoe voyaging vessel.

Manning the tiller is a key role aboard the Hokule’a–especially on rough seas. (Courtesy of Polynesian Voyaging Society)

” All I knew about myself was that I loved the ocean, Thompson said. Thompson grew up on a dairy farm just outside Waikiki. Thompson’s earliest memories are of him as a five-year-old milking cows. One day, he was introduced to the Pacific by a fishing expedition. He was immediately drawn to the ocean and his love for it shaped the rest of his life. Although I didn’t know exactly how I would get on the sea, I knew that it would be .”

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Rediscovery

As it turned out, Thompson’s first real ocean adventure, at the age of 22 in 1976, was not only an amazing odyssey; it caused a complete upheaval of Western attitudes about the Polynesian settlement of the Pacific. He and his friends sailed from Hawaii to Tahiti in a traditional oceangoing boat, making use of only sun, stars and wind for navigation. This ancient art is known as wayfinding. Their journeys concluded in Thompson’s native Hawaiian islands about 1,500 years ago.

Old histories and some very obvious logical thinking suggested that Polynesian myths were, in fact, fact. However, Western Anthropologists long rejected the notion. No compasses, no sextants, no printed maps? Impossible. It was impossible. In the 1950s, New Zealand anthropology professor Andrew Sharp dismissed the idea of deliberate voyages as nonsense.

Wayfinding navigators such as Nainoa Thompson keep constant watch over the horizon; the weather; the wind, sun, and stars. (Courtesy of Polynesian Voyaging Society)

Then, in the early 1970s, a group led by native Hawaiian artist Herb Kane and radical young anthropologist Ben Finney decided to prove academic gospel wrong. They searched for Mau Piailug on Satawal, Micronesia, and found him. They built a 61-foot Polynesian double-hulled voyaging canoe named Hokule’a: “Star of Gladness.” They asked Piailug to teach them wayfinding, and to guide them 2,750 miles to Tahiti.

That was 1976; Thompson was onboard as an apprentice navigator, and violent conflicts among the crew kept them from taking Hokule’a back to Hawaii using wayfinding. Piailug went back to Micronesia and the canoe returned home using modern navigation. It looked like it was the end of their adventure.

The crew of the Hokule’a receives a greeting. (Courtesy of Polynesian Voyaging Society)

Setting off on One’s Own

*Thompson was not ready to give up. After studying Piailug’s methods carefully, four years later he led Hokule’a from Tahiti to Tahiti as chief navigator. Again, only stars, currents and waves were his guideposts. Piailug was an adviser, but not the leader. That was the first such voyage in 600 years, but it was no lark.
*) First, Thompson needed to persuade Piailug that he could teach him how to find his way. After that, years were spent studying charts and star maps of the ocean, currents and prevailing winds. These charts were often drawn on beaches near the Pacific’s shores. Many years of watching birds fly and learning how to spot them. You can measure the speed of a boat by counting the bubbles that move past its hull. The direction and how to separate the water from the surface waves. This is a skill that a skilled navigator can practice while sleeping below decks.

After learning all that came–enchantment.

The Hokule’a en route from Tonga to New Zealand, on a voyage in November 2014. (Courtesy of Polynesian Voyaging Society)

” Mau said to me that he would teach you how you can go back and get there, but Thompson remembered. You have to do that. That’s how it was for me ever since–the magic and canoes

In the years after that 1980 Tahiti-and-back voyage, Thompson and his compatriots at Polynesian Voyaging Society (PVS, founded by Kane and Finney) sailed Hokule’a and her sister canoe Hikianalia to Rapa Nui (Easter Island); to Rarotonga; to New Zealand; to California.

Thompson and his team realized, over thousands of nautical miles, that Hawaiian voyaging was more than just proving incorrect past European academics. The “Hawaiian Renaissance” was a revival of interest in island culture. This included food, language, chant, dance, and spirituality. Hawaiian language was first taught at the University of Hawaii when Hokule’a first set sail. Many students from Hawaiian descent are still learning the language of their ancestral ancestors until they reach fifth grade. Hokule’a’s success inspired other islands to form groups and build their canoes. Wayfinding was introduced to classrooms and even into academic astronomy. The first navigation courses were sponsored by PVS. They then spread to other locations and groups. Thompson was instrumental in not only wayfinding education but also in the concerted campaign for young women to be involved in this art. Thompson said, “This is the dawn of a new age.”

(Courtesy of Polynesian Voyaging Society)

*) Today, Hawaii has many navigators who are qualified to lead traditional over-ocean journeys. They are not only responsible for leading canoes but also shaping popular thinking. Timothy Lara from Maui, who is a navigator and explorer said that the Western idea of the ocean divides us. The Polynesian view of the ocean is that it joins us .”

In 2013, 33 years after that path-breaking 1980 voyage, Thompson, now president of PVS, led Hokule’a around the world on a journey called Malama Honua (“care for Earth”), covering 40,000 miles, 150 ports, and 18 countries. Hokule’a’s return to Waikiki in June 2017 drew 20,000 celebrants.

Future Journeys

But the 68-year-old Thompson is not done yet. Next year, Hokule’a will depart Hawaii once again to circle the Pacific, a 41,000-mile journey to 46 lands and 345 ports that will span 42 months–a journey that more closely resembles those made by ancient Polynesian mariners at a time when European explorers almost never sailed out of sight of land.

Thompson’s definition of magic is “magic” which means something that goes against the norm. He is a compact, spare individual, who carefully measures words and actions. This allows him to balance risk with preparation. Take for example his many years of studying the wayfinding techniques under Piailug, or even more importantly, Hokule’a’s worldwide circumnavigation. Thompson stated that this is an inherently risky endeavor and that intense preparation can make it a success.

Sunrise over the ocean calls for “E Ala E,” the sacred Hawaiian chant that thanks the sun for returning to bring another day. (Courtesy of Polynesian Voyaging Society)

” I’ll do things like charting out a course one million times,” he said. It frustrates people that it takes me so long. ‘Malama Honua’ took 37 months on the water, but it was actually a 10-year voyage because it was preceded by more than 6 years of preparation.” Many argued that the voyage should not happen at all–too dangerous–but Thompson countered that the greatest hazard was to do nothing. He refused to take Hokule’a aboard a cargo vessel to cross the most dangerous waters in South Africa during the voyage.

“Which one is more deadly, the hurricane or pirate? Or keeping Hokule’a tied to the Dock because we are afraid to go?” Thompson asked skeptics.

As Thompson and PVS prepare to travel the Pacific from Alaska to New Zealand, to South America with their adventure ship, he insists that all acts of adventure have to be purposeful and valuable–recognition and common ground being one example. Thompson, like most native people, has a broad heritage, which includes European and Hawaiian. Thompson stated that navigation is not just about sailing. The values-based humanity is essential. We don’t have another .”

world. This one is the best.

(Courtesy of Polynesian Voyaging Society)

*) Like all great leaders, he is able to communicate universal truths and exemplify them in a way that everyone can understand. While he is a good balance of risk and precaution, he rejects artificial safety.

” “Home and my family are the most important things in my life,” he stated. He said, “And that really is our entire planet. The Way of the Canoe is a good guideline for humanity .”

Thompson’s answer to the question “What is his legacy?” was as simple as it has ever been.

“I stood for something .”

Wa’a–The Way of the Canoe

Care for your canoe

Look after your team

Prepare for the weather

Know your course

This article was originally published in American Essence magazine.