The open ocean voyage of the 30-foot outrigger canoe “Jitdam Kapeel” from Majuro to Aur Atoll — a distance of about 90 miles — is the first time since World War II that a voyaging canoe has attempted to sail between atolls in this country of scattered low-lying islands relying only the art of traditional navigation, according to Alson Kelen, who runs a canoe building and training program to pass these skills onto young people in the Marshall Islands.
Kelen was the captain of the canoe with seven men who set sail Thursday night from Majuro, the capital of the Marshall Islands.
Word from Aur Atoll — which has no telephones or electricity, relying entirely on high frequency radios — confirmed the canoe’s arrival on Aur at 3 p.m. Friday, approximately 33 hours after they set sail.
“Our main guide is the northeasterly waves,” said Kelen as he was preparing to leave Majuro.
Kelen has studied under Korent Joel, one of the last master navigators still alive in an island group known for navigational and canoe building prowess. Kelen said they would also use the moon and stars to guide them on the sail that aims to demonstrate the skills that Marshall Islanders have used since they first settled these western Pacific islands 2,000 years ago.
Master navigator Joel is on board a motorized vessel that will be following the canoe and communicating, if necessary, by radio with Kelen.
“He’ll help us only if we have a problem or get off course,” Kelen said.
“We want to learn from the master navigators and pass it down to younger generations to come,” he said.
Kelen’s program is called Waan Aelon in Majel, or Canoes of the Marshall Islands, and trains about 50 young Marshallese men and women each year how to build outrigger canoes and sail them. The program focuses on developing cultural knowledge and pride among younger Marshall Islanders, as well as sponsoring an annual national cup race involving many of the country’s 24 inhabited atolls.
//
