Dedicated to Alifereti Bogiva a modern giant

Fiji Islands Voyaging Society

Established 2009

Bula

My name is Peni Vunaki

I am a crewman on Uto Ni Yalo, Fiji’s voyaging vaka.

This is my story of my adventure on the Pacific Ocean

My home is Solodamu, a small village on the island of Kadavu.

In Solodamu, I was a yagona farmer. I never believed I would leave the village, let alone travel the world. But in 2008 I started sailing in Fiji on Hibiscus III and Ratbag.

And in 2011 I had the opportunity to sail across the Pacific on Uto Ni Yalo.

As Fijians, we grow up knowing about the drua.

We know our ancestors were great sailors and boat builders.

But our generation has never sailed. Even for my grandfather, it is a distant memory. We only know the 40hp Yamaha. And pre-mix gets more and more expensive.

Today, we are joining with other voyaging societies across the Pacific to re-learn and re-claim our sailing history.

We hope we can use these skills and knowledge to highlight the pressing environmental concerns facing our islands and our ocean.

We want to learn to use sailing for everyday use and reduce our dependence on fossil fuels.

Modern Voyaging or Wayfinding

1947 Kon Tiki

Thor Heyerdahl, was out to demonstrate how South American Indians could have settled Polynesia by raft

1964 Rehu Moana

New Zealander David Lewis navigated his catamaran from Tahiti to New Zealand without instruments

HOKULEA launched 1975

Hawaiian artist Herb Kane designed Hokulea, a 19-metre-long voyaging canoe.

Hokulea was built mostly with modern materials .

However, it sailed like a traditional canoe.

July 12th, 2010Papa Mau, master navigator, died on his home island of Satawal in the Federated States of

Micronesia, aged 78

The success of Mau's navigation sparked pride in Pacific sailing culture and a rebirth of voyaging and canoe building that has continued to grow

Hokulea has been followed by vaka from across the Pacific – Aotearoa, Rarotonga, Tahiti .. and now the fleet of Te Mana o Te Moana

Uto ni Yalo – Heart of Spirit

•22 metres or 72 feet in length•Weighs 14 tons•16 crew members•Average speed 8 knots or 15 kilometers per hour•Top speed recorded on 2010 voyage 22knots or 41 kilometers per hour

Historically, the majestic ocean voyaging canoe, “The Drua” was once the domain of only high ranking chiefs who had the means and vast resources to build and maintain such a vessel.

2010 - A Total distance of 7,000n.m or 13,000km

Last year 112 voyagers from Aotearoa, Cook Islands, Fiji, Kiribati, Samoa, Solomons, Tahiti, Tonga & Vanuatu set

out on a voyage called Te Mana O Te Moana” - The Spirit of the Ocean.

A Total distance of 19,000n.m or 35,000km

TE MANA O TE MOANA – 2011/2012 VOYAGE

Arriving by canoe was very unique.

We were treated with dignity and great respect.

Fiji Islands Voyaging SocietyAIMS AND OBJECTIVES

• To undertake open ocean voyages along ancient Pacific migratory routes to contribute to revival and strengthening of Pacific regional links

 • To form alliances with other Voyaging Societies and projects to contribute to the Pacific movement of ocean voyaging revival, and cultural and environmental sustainability

• Revive and sustain traditional Fijian canoe building, sailing and navigational knowledge, skills and customs

• Contribute to sustainable development and the preservation of the Fiji Islands marine and land environment through resource renewal and public education programs

What have we achieved so far?

• Since early 2010, the Fiji Islands Voyaging Society has trained over 50 sailors to New Zealand Coastguard standard (Day Skipper, Boat Master and Coastal Skipper)

• By the end of the current voyage, these sailors would have covered 27,000 nautical miles or 50,000 kms

• More than once around the earth at the equator (1.35 x)

• These sailors are now future leaders and “Ocean Champions” who have the ability to become Canoe Captains in their own right

Voyaging has taught us that our ancestors were great people who lived in tune with nature. Today we are a testimony of their skills, confidence, courage and intelligence in building and sailing these magnificent canoes, thousands of miles

across a vast ocean to discover these islands.

Navigating into the future

For the first time in hundreds of years, Fijians have navigated a canoe using traditional methods over 2200 nautical miles from Nuku Hiva in the Marquesas to Hilo in Hawaii.

These are the men Captain Johnathan Smith, Setareki Ledua, teacher Jack Thatcher (Aotearoa), Kai’afa Ledua (Head Navigator) and Angelo Smith.

Saje kia