Aloha e,
Keili here! Today I wanted to talk about our anticipated voyage to bring ʻAʻĀ to Hawaiʻi from California, and to go through a mental prep list for myself being a worrier. But first I wanted to take a moment to extend a big thank you to everyone who showed support at the art show last weekend. Not only was it showcasing a bunch of never seen stuffs made of new mediums that Chris has been experimenting with, but it was also Tristanʻs and my sister, Hanaʻs first art show!! so proud of them, so thanks to everyone who made their dreams come true!!
The reason we started this newsletter was 1) to share what we are learning about sailing, navigation, ocean conservation and create a community and platform for likeminded people who care about our planet. 2) And, to hold ourselves accountable. Having this newsletter has really given us the lil extra push to research and practice the things we want to. So that is pretty amazing.
At the art show a few people were asking about our voyage, any updates or what date we were thinking and I realized we have not done an update on it in quite a while! Yes, ʻAʻĀ is still stored on dry dock in California at our friends place in the fairy forests on San Diego. Chris has a trip planned now where he is going to be getting started on some super exciting projects prepping for our voyage from California back home to Hawaiʻi!!
We are very blessed in that, when Uncle Rod sold us ʻAʻĀ, she was probably in better shape than any other Wharram sailboat in the world. Fresh paint, new rigging, wiring and all the works. But- we still have some updates we got to do in order to be confident, safe, and in the modern age out there in the middle of the ocean.
Our biggest undertaking will be our shelter that Chris will be taking measurements for and crafting up out there in California with the help of some woodsmen and good friends. Luckily, James Wharram had already created plans for a similar structure on the 26ʻ Tiki, so we have a good blueprint to go off of, and will be brainstorming with Hanneka.
Second big project Chris will be getting a head start on is replacing our steel rigging with this new stuff that is 1/4 of the weight. This will help with what had become one of my more serious concerns - our weight. Shoutout to our good friend and rigging master, Garret, who has been helping Chris with all that kine stuffs.
Other than that the updates we need aren’t so much a labor of love as they are another paycheck lol. Becoming somewhat modernized will mean that we need to invest in newer technologies for navigation, communication, and weather forecasts. We are going with very light high efficiency equipment mixed with old school technologies - such as as satalite phones, Garmin inreach, paper charts, Starlink for AIS (Automatic Identification System) and weather and a big memorized library of polynesian star and wind paths. These advancements are great, but pretty pricy, so we are hoping to connect with sponsors especially like bigger items like a Starlink, desalinization machine, and good reliable solar panels. Then we will be pretty high tech which I am excited to learn about and experience!
Sailing this passage would be a honor. For me, it is a homecoming to the place my family had journeyed to all those years ago… to the place I call home…. and following a path alongside many animals that take the route in their great migrations across vast oceans. I know that though I will learn much personally and internally, I have much more to learn and discover about my fellow life forms in accordance with my passion, studies, and career following marine life and sustainable systems.
Of course dates and set course will all be decided by ke akua and the weather. But, the first window is looking like it is opening for us right now in April! This and any journey we go on will be documented here where we will share challenges, research and experiences along the way. That is another reason we are really hoping to acquire a Starling and compatible energy unit so we can stay connected with all of our ʻohana through substack and email and all of that. It is pretty amazing that we have the ability to stay connected out in the middle of the ocean nowadays. Really puts things in perspective for how things were back in the days of traditional way finding practice.
One more exciting thing I want to share is that our good friend, talented chef and gifted forager, Yuda, will be chefing up some gourmet preservations for us during our long voyage. Chris and I have many love languages but a big one is food. I know we will be stashing a lot of yuda gifts to lift our spirits on tough days. So, mahalo for those bottled up sunshine packets! And definitely if you guys have not checked out his work - you should go learn from him!
If you guys are interested or curious about voyages across the ocean, safety and just how it all works I will plug some resources here. There are so many amazing stories out there, and people doing some pretty powerful stuff in the sailing world.
Youngest to solo circumnavigate, 14 year old girl sailing solo
Wharramʻs voyage across the Atlantic.
That’s the juicy update for everyone, I wanted to share the logistics part of our journey and will try and sprinkle more details into our posts as we figure it all out. We are so excited for what is to come and cannot express our gratitude enough towards all those who have helped us grow, and pushed us to become better people for a better planet. Talking with others in the community, and around the world, about sailing has really provided me with such a foundation and excitement I’ve never found before.
-Keili
Mahalo to everyone who has been curious about sailing and who have taken on their own voyage! Thank you to everyone who has extended a helping hand or past experience, to my family especially my mother Illa McEvilly.