Polynesian Voyaging Society News

Canoe Crew Glimpses Easter Island

The crew of a replica of an ancient Hawaiian canoe reached their final destination - Easter Island - traveling some 15,000 miles (24,000 km) and using only the stars and weather patterns to navigate. The Polynesian Voyaging Society said the Hokulea, which left Hawaii on June 15 on a voyage that first took them to the Marquesas Islands and Mangareva, was set to land on the remote Chilean island early on Oct. Hawaiian navigator Nainoa Thompson relied on the stars and currents to steer the double-hulled canoe, a wood and fiberglass replica of the type used by ancient Polynesians to settle the Pacific some 2,000 years ago. "They're just very…