The stars can never go wrong

Thousands of years ago, when most sailors were still hugging the coast, the island peoples of the Pacific held the knowledge and skills to explore the great ocean paths extending far beyond their homes. Modern instruments didn't exist - no compasses, no radio, no radar GLOSSARY radar - a system that uses electromagnetic waves to locate surrounding objects , no GPS GLOSSARY Global Positioning System (GPS) - a handheld computer that tells your position by communicating with satellites . The Pacific peoples found their way across the ocean, guided by the wind, waves, stars, and sea life.

Ancient voyagers did not use metal or fiberglass to make their boats, nor plastics to make rope or dacron for their sailcloth. They did not use outboard motors or diesel engines. They made sturdy boats from natural materials: rope from plant fibers to lash the canoe together, the leaves of plants to make their sails. They used the wind to move across the ocean. Their knowledge was built up through generations of experience. It was handed down through teaching, stories, and songs.

An experienced Tongan wayfinder once said, “The compass can go wrong, the stars never.” From David Lewis in Bader, H. and McCurdy, P., eds (1999). And that is the beauty of Pacific wayfinding. Voyage into this website to find out more…


Recovery of the knowledge for vaka building

Maori master canoe builder, Hekenukumai Busby (New Zealand):

“I hope that our youth recover the art of vaka building as the vaka is a mainstay of our culture. We must not forget that it was the canoe that brought our ancestors to this land. If we were to lose this part of our culture, we lose our heritage. I want to share this knowledge with youth today. My dream is for all the tribes of New Zealand to choose a suitable tree each and I could travel to each of these tribes to teach them how to build their own canoe.”