Voyagers navigate rough seas from Hawaii in a canoe, found connection on Channel Islands

A double-hulled canoe headed south toward Ventura as it cut through 9-foot-plus swells as winds whipped the ocean. 

For the Hikianalia and its nine-member crew, it was one of the toughest days on Leg 2 of the voyage across the Pacific and down the California coast.

"Our roughest sail so far was going past Point Conception," said Capt. Mark Ellis, of Oahu. 

Leg 1 of the Hikianalia's journey – from Hawaii to San Francisco – was an ocean path taken for at least 150 years. Its crew sailed 2,800 miles across the Pacific in a canoe powered by the wind and the sun.

Navigators use traditional wayfinding techniques – in other words, no modern day equipment – to chart a route through the sea.

More:Crew uncovers ancient site under Channel Islands home

The mission: To study marine areas, learn from the communities they reach, and talk to people about the value of nature, the oceans and indigenous knowledge.

The same way they use traditional techniques to navigate the open waters, Ellis said, people can use traditional knowledge to solve complex modern issues.

Ellis joined for Leg 2 and Leg 3, which takes the traditional Polynesian voyaging canoe from San Francisco down the coast to San Diego, stopping at several ports along the way.

It was on a remote island off Ventura where they found a strong connection to home. They sat on a ridge overlooking the ocean Sunday and shared stories with local Chumash, who have a long history on the Channel Islands just offshore.

"Having two-sided stories gave us a more full perspective," Ellis said Sunday, as he stepped off a different sort of boat after the day in the Channel Islands National Park. 

He and the crew made it through the rough seas to arrive in Ventura on Oct. 7, docking in Ventura Harbor and then Channel Islands Harbor in Oxnard to offer public tours.

The plan had been to sail the Hikianalia to the five-island national park Sunday and spend the night before heading farther south on Tuesday. But gusty Santa Ana winds made docking the boat on the island overnight risky.

Instead, the boat stayed in Oxnard and crew members took a day trip with some new friends.

"It was great," Ellis said with a grin, after getting off an Island Packers catamaran from Santa Cruz Island. "It was even better that we had our Chumash cousins here."

It was local Chumash elder Julie Tumamait-Stenslie who had welcomed the Hikianalia 10 days earlier.

More:These Chumash storytellers share their tradition

A strong connection

But the relationship between the two native peoples goes back much further, Tumamait-Stenslie said.

"The connection between us and the Polynesians go way back," she said. "We have so many things in common."

Their traditional languages, canoes and stories all have similarities.

On Sunday, the group hiked on Santa Cruz and took turns sharing stories. "It just filled my soul," Tumamait-Stenslie said.

The Chumash people and their ancestors have been on the remote islands for thousands of years. Tumamait-Stensli has traced her family back to several villages on the islands. 

“Some of us believe that the Polynesian people sailed over here thousands of years ago,” said Alan Salazar, also a local elder.

“That connection of being ocean people and being on the ocean was tremendous," said Salazar, who paddles and has helped build traditional Chumash canoes for the past 20 years.

The canoes have the same basic structure. Both groups use traditional navigation techniques, guiding the boat using the environment around them.

One difference: The Polynesian canoe has sails. The Chumash canoe uses paddle-power.

“The Chumash are a strong people. We have thunder and lightning,” Salazar said pointing to his biceps with a smile.

More:Chumash share stories, music from their past in Newbury Park

He laughed and then explained.

“We didn’t make journeys like they did," Salazar said. "We would paddle up and down the coast 15 to 20 miles at a time, going from island to island.”

“Sail technology was developed to make long journeys.”

'Right thing to do'

Ellis said the crew tries to connect with indigenous people anywhere they go. They also ask them for permission before they show up.

"It's the right thing to do," Ellis said. "You don't just barge in."

Years ago, when he was on a worldwide voyage, he remembers a chief on the East Coast saying it was the first time anyone had ever asked permission before sailing into their area, Ellis said.

So far, no one has turned them away.

More:Tuqan Man, human remains buried 10,000 years ago, found on the Channel Islands

Ellis, who works as a program manager at Kamehameha Schools in Hawaii, hopes this voyage and others will inspire younger generations and give them a sense of pride in the Native Hawaiian culture and community.

He wants them to feel like they could do anything.

The canoe should make it home by December. For now, Ellis and crew headed south Tuesday.