HEALING THE WA'A: A New Year visit to the Puakea Foundation

On the first day of the year, while many were resting, I found myself at the He’eia State Park. There, inside the open-air canoe shed (Halau), a quiet kind of magic was happening.

I imagined the master craftsmen working on several Koa outrigger canoes. These vessels are more than just canoes; they are living lineage of wood and water. Some were in for minor “tender loving care”, while others were undergoing massive restorations.

One particular canoe caught my eye- half of the hull was being entirely reconstructed. To ensure the new koa plank followed the original lines of the canoe, the builders used wooden templates resembling bulkheads. These ribs act as a guide, keeping the hull’s iconic “U” shape true to the original shape as the new pieces of wood are placed and glued down.

I saw custom-made clamps designed to apply pressure at just the right angles, grafting new koa onto sections where the original wood had succumbed to time or rot. It’s a slow, precise process- a labor of love that ensures these “old souls” will eventually return to the sea.

For me, who has been dealing with canoes for so many years, albeit on scaled down dimensions, there’s something so moving about seeing those koa canoes in the middle of a “healing” process.

Big Mahalo to the Foundation for perpetuating this craft. It’s not just about building or repairing canoes; it’s about carrying a culture forward, it is about “mana”.

The Navigators' Legacy: Canoes of Oceania by Origin and People

Welcome to my two years of research dedicated to bridging the gap between the canoes of Oceania and their precise cultural and geographical homes. Visit my page:

A LOVE FOR CANOES, preceded by THE PROPOSAL or the vision of a few man to build an ancient Polynesian voyaging canoe, which became HOKULE’A, the most famous and most travelled of all contemporary voyaging canoes.

As a dedicated builder of model canoes, I've always admired the seminal works of scholars like A.C. HADDEN and Jean NEYRET .. Their comprehensive catalogs provide an invaluable foundation for anyone studying the history and construction of these incredible vessels. However, when seeking to understand exactly where and by whom a specific canoe type was built—down to the atoll or island—the process often requires extensive cross-referencing, especially in relation to Melanesian type canoes.

My goal with the listing of all those canoes is simple: immediate geographical and cultural context.

Connecting Craft to Culture

This resource is designed for the modern reader. Every entry provides not just the canoe’s type or name , but a direct link to its place of origin, whether it is a small, remote island or a major archipelago. When you navigate my list, you will be able to:

  1. Instantly Locate: Find the canoe's home on a map via a direct geographical link (e.g., to the island’s Wikipedia page or a reliable cultural atlas entry).

  2. Learn the People: Discover the history, language, and unique heritage of the tribe or culture that designed and built that specific craft.

  3. Appreciate the Engineering: Understand the local resources and sometimes the needs that drove the canoe’s unique construction features.

By connecting the reader immediately to the place and the people, I endeavor to transform a technical listing into a rich cultural history.

My canoe listing is organized geographically (Polynesia, Micronesia, Melanesia) and is continually updated with new information verified against historical records and contemporary ethnographic studies. As as said in the intro to my page POLYNESIAN CANOES I intend to list the canoes, which so far are listed by the broader regions of Oceania, by archipelago, atoll or island.

The Journey Continues

This project is a labor of love, developed in parallel with my primary work of crafting detailed miniature models of these very vessels. The insights gained from building these canoes—understanding the sheer scale, the materials, and the skill required—deepens the respect for the original builders.

Thank you for joining me on this journey. Please explore the A LOVE FOR CANOES and use the links, when available, to immediately anchor these incredible feats of ocean engineering within their vibrant cultural contexts. If you have corrections or additional information, please contact me, as this is a living document dedicated to accuracy and accessibility.

Note: The listings are a personal research project, based to date on two years of work by the author, a dedicated model canoe builder. Please contact the author shall he have omitted to give credit to an image or document.

MAYOTTE

I have recently been approached by a member of the University of Mayotte with the question whether I could make them a scale model of a typical "Malagasy" fishing canoe. The University of Mayotte is eagerly preparing for their Festival of Science, a significant event towards the end of the year, and they believe that a scale model of a typical 'Malagasy' fishing canoe would be a valuable addition to their exhibits.

Mayotte is a French territory situated south of the Comores Island and half way to Madagascar.

The malagasy canoes belong to the Austronesian type canoes like those from New Caledonia, Philippines, Madagascar and some from Indonesia.

A traditional Malagasy fishing canoe

CELEBRATING 30 YEARS OF BUILDING MODEL CANOES

HOW IT ALL STARTED. It was the year 1993. When moving to Hawaii from the UK, I was surprised to notice that, with one or two exceptions, nobody was building scaled-down Polynesian canoes, the very symbols of Polynesian culture and seamanship. My love for boats and ships, particularly catamarans and trimarans, dates back to my time in the French Forces near Brittany, where famous sailors like ERIC TABARLY set sail to win many races. Being passionate about boats, I was fascinated by the exploits of HOKULE’A, a voyaging canoe built in 1974, which sailed to Tahiti and back in 1976 solely guided by the sun, stars, waves, and wind. And then, in September 1992, I was given the chance to go aboard HOKULE’A which was docked at Pier 38 in Honolulu at the time. By chance, Wright Bowman Jr., who established "The Friends of HOKULE’A and HAWAI’ILOA, was on the deck of HOKULE’A; he graciously accepted my request to come on board, take pictures, and make measurements to make a model of the canoe.

Present that day was also Ben Finney, a renowned anthropologist known for his expertise in Polynesian navigation and canoe sailing, and a founder of the POLYNESIAN VOYAGING SOCIETY. Having the opportunity to meet and interact with these influential individuals solidified my determination to help preserve and celebrate Polynesian culture.

Inspired by the rich history and significance of the HOKULE’A, I embarked on a personal endeavor to construct scaled-down replicas of Polynesian canoes. My passion for accuracy and authenticity drove me to study the many canoe types across Oceania and their construction methods, materials, and designs, ensuring the utmost fidelity in his creations.

Through tedious craftsmanship and unwavering dedication, I painstakingly constructed these scaled-down models starting in 1993, seeking to capture every intricate detail that made HOKULE’A and other Polynesian canoes such marvels of maritime engineering. From the elegant curves of the hull to the intricate lashings and rigging systems, each model was a testament to my commitment to reviving the art of traditional Polynesian canoe building in the form of scaled-down models.

I have never stopped doing it, professionally, since that first day in 1992 when I stepped onto what I still consider the most elegant voyaging canoe ever built across Oceania

I hold the deepest admiration and respect for the late BEN FINNEY, TOMMY HOLMES, and HERB KAWAINUI KANE. They possessed the rare courage to pursue a shared dream- a vision that didn’t just navigate the physical oceans, but charted a course for the rebirth of Hawaiian culture. Their legacy lives on in every swell the HOKULE’A climbs.

HOKULE’A in the lobby of the FOUR SEASONS HOTEL RESORT, MALAMA BAY, LANAI, HAWAII

Home and Garden TV (HGTV) featured Francis Pimmel and his work on their nationwide show "MODERN MASTERS" on November 4, 2001. Details on HGTV.com


PRICING

PRICING. When creating a model, such as a model canoe, the key factor affecting its cost is its size. This is because the model's size determines the level of detailing required, which is a labor-intensive process. So, if your 12-inch model costs $200.00, you cannot simply multiply by 3 for your 36-inch model, since it is much more detailed and requires more work.

MO'OLELE CANOE

It has been said that Mo’olele perished in the Maui wildfire, and that all that remains is the scale model I built some time ago, which now belongs to Rob S., who used to sail on it.

MO’OLELE Thanks Rob for that incredible shot.

MO'OLELE CANOE

I was recently commissioned to build a scale model of the MO'OLELE. I have never seen this canoe in real life, nor did I have much material to work with. Actually, I found a total of 3 videos about MO’OLELE on YouTube, of which one was instructive on sail rigging. The other finally answered how many seats are installed in each hull, and the shape of the spreaders. Besides all this, I had to calculate the canoe's hull dimensions, the beam, draw the lines of the vessel and so on.

Line drawing of the Mo'olele

Line drawing of the Mo’olele

About CANOES OF OCEANIA by Haddon & Hornell

There is no doubt that "Canoes of Oceania" by A.C. Haddon and James Hornell, Volumes I, II, and III, is the authoritative source on canoes that have sailed across all the islands of the Pacific Ocean, from Hawaii down to New Zealand and from the Philippines to Easter Island.  The various canoes from Polynesia, Micronesia, and Melanesia are described in minute detail, which can be difficult to understand or visualize.

I really love consulting "Canoes of Oceania" to get an overall picture of the vessel in question.

But once I decide which canoe to replicate in a scaled-down version, the 2 volumes written by Jean Neyret in 1976, entitled PIROGUES OCEANIENNES, provide a trove of extremely easy-to-understand descriptions and drawings of the hundreds of different types of canoes ever built across Oceania.

Whereas the writing by Haddon & Hornell is very academic, at least this is how I feel it to be,  the one by Jean Neyret is easy to read, and nearly every construction detail is illustrated with numerous drawings.

I realized not everyone is fluent in French, since PIROGUES OCEANIENNES is written in French and hasn't been translated into English. 

The 2 volumes by Jean Neyret are listed in the books section of this site.

About Austronesian canoes

For the last few days I was reading the work “WANGKA The Austronesian Canoe Origins” written by Edwin Doran, Jr., with a foreword by Ben R, Finney.  While going over the pages I came across a line drawing of a typical Sulu Archipelago double outrigger.  The Sulu Archipelago is a chain of islands in the Southwestern Philippines that forms the northern limit of the Celebes Sea and which is predominantly Muslim.

For most Filipino a canoe, regardless of its type, is just a “banca”. But the Sulu double outriggers are of the type vinta nardi rigged with spritsails of exceptional beauty.  Further study of this particular type of vessel led me to discover, online, copies of 18th Century drawings of more than 280 different type of canoes, whether single or double outriggers, dugouts or double canoes distributed all along the South East Asia, from Taiwan to Malaysia, Vietnam, Thailand, East Timor, the Philippines, Borneo, Indonesia, Brunei, Java, Bali, Singapore, Orchid Island. That multitude of canoes and the familiar sight of their outriggers and floats, not mentioning common words used by the Tao of Orchid Island and Maori in New Zealand,  cannot but live you with the undeniable impression that the Polynesian, Micronesian and Melanesian have all their origin in South East Asia.

Sulu Canoe

Sulu Canoe

Over the last 20 years I did build up a large collection of books, archival papers and photos about Oceanic and Austronesian canoes but little did I expect to be able to add another 280 drawings . I cannot wait to replicate some of them, in particular the Sulu type canoe.

About Writing

Have not been writing much in the last 2 years and this for 2 reasons.

When you have been working hard the whole day, I mean physically, the mind , at the end of the day, is just not geared to sit down and write stuff, although I would want to talk about my work, the more so since I like what I am doing.

My day starts at 5.00 am. Checking emails, do paper work, do garden and yard work for about 2 hours starting sunrise, and after that work on some canoe models until 5.00 PM. The garden work is good physical exercise, I really love it. Some, who may watch me carving or sanding a larger canoe hull will say that this looks very physical as well, that it is hard work. But it is a different kind of physical activity, monotonous, standing or sitting at the same place for hours , the arm going back and forth, the fingers holding the carving tools or clenching sandpaper. After a few minutes of this I always need a brief stoppage. At the end of the day, the shoulders are hurting, the fingers are somewhat stiff , the mind and body ready to relax.

Another reason is a kind of incertitude regarding my written English, I always feel not being very good at it, making grammatical errors that will make me look silly. But isn’t it that what we have to say is more important than some stupid grammatical errors? Suffice is to say that English is not my mother tongue. I speak and write fluent French and German which is more than  what most people can do, so I hope I will be forgiven to sometimes fracture grammatical rules.

Hokule’a

It happens frequently, when surfing online about canoes, amongst others Hawaiian voyaging, surfing or racing canoes, that I come across websites using the picture of one of my earlier Hokule’a model as an attention getter. 

Some companies or webmasters asked permission to publish that picture on their site, others did not.

This scale model of the Hokule’a is one of my creations and it belongs to a private collection .

I am not aware that it is for sale at any art galleries on the islands of Hawaii.     

Back on the “block”

Was it writers block or busy doing other things? I believe it’s a bit of both. Anyway I am back on the block after a sabbatical lasting a few months. I really like this word “sabbatical” as it translates with “Forshungsurlaub” in German, which really means a vacation of studies and research! Well, this is exactly what I have been up to ever since bailing out the water from my flooded workshop.

Never short of work been commissioned to build model canoes of Oceania, I also spent much time and effort building up my photo albums on Flickr and Picasa. Most recent photos do illustrate 2 very beautiful surfing canoes and a Samoan one man fishing canoe been auctioned at Niketown in Waikiki.

The Hawaiian canoes were quite old, carved out of Koa tree logs.

Need a workout?

If living in Hawaii is a dream for many, dealing with flash floods and landslides is not what most people think about our islands.

It all happened very fast, just a few days ago on December 11th at 5.30 AM.

The heavens opened up to torrential rain causing extensive flash flooding and a landslide just on top of my property.  Within minutes a river of mud, rocks and other detritus run into my sloppy backyard and towards my front gate. I did not realize that the mud and branches will get stuck at the gate and therefore stop the proper flow of the mud and water. The water level rose so fast that in no time it runs into my workshop, flooding machinery, lumber, templates etc.

Towards 10.00 PM the rain stopped and it is only than that the extend of the damage caused by the flash flood became apparent to me. My yard was filled with 2 feet of mud.

My pick-up truck was stuck in the mud, so was another car, my drive-way was busted and the roots of a gigantic Albizia tree were laid bare.

First thing first, I immediately started to pump out the one foot of water that had flooded my workshop and installed fans and heaters to dry some motors . But clearing the mud and rocks will take days. I guess that at the rate of 2 hours a day this will be a good and cost free workout. Want to join ?

Flooded table saw, planer etc.

Flooded table saw, planer etc.

Sail away

What happen with my 28″ Hawaiian double hull voyaging canoe you may ask ? 

Well I had to make a new sail and finished the rigging by August.. A few days later the canoe was sold and sailing, or rather shipped, to a collector on the mainland. And here I am again, thinking about a more efficient, more hydrodynamic racing canoe..

Days 3 to 12

Ten days have gone by since writing my last post. The building of the 28 inch double hull canoe I had designed a few days ago was finished yesterday August 2nd with the rigging being the remaining task to be done.


I was near to mount the sail today would it not have been for a moment of inattention.
 

Indeed I had spend several hours crafting the sail when, within a fraction of a second everything went to waste. In wanting to clean the sail I somehow lifted one corner of it to fast and it broke. That was the end of that. I will have to make a new sail tomorrow.
 

Otherwise I am very satisfied with the canoe. I used highly figured Koa for the bow and stern tops as well as for the stacked up rims.

Day 3

The entire day I was occupied in finishing a Solomon Island war canoe, the famous “Tomako” used to go hunting for ‘heads”. But this model has been commissioned to serve as a gift to be offered to a famous author about Pacific history and culture. I am posting here a picture of the prow ornaments of the canoe but further details can be seen in my Hawaiiancanoes Flickr album. I have a special liking for the Solomon Islands canoes.

Indeed I find them to be some of the most gracious canoes ever built in the South Pacific. Ingeniously plank built, rather than carved, the prow and stern of those war canoes are exceptionally tall and beautifully decorated with shells and feathers, as well as with the famous nguzu-nguzu figure. Another type of canoe very similar to the Tomako, and plank built as well, is the Filipino banca (boat) from Lake Taal.


If their hull shape and impressive prow and stern looks very much alike the Tomaka, they differ however in that the Tomako has no beams and floats whereby the Filipino banca is invariably equipped with a set of 2 double outriggers, sometimes 3 for the larger bancas. And again, there is a further type of canoe whose hull shape and construction is remarkably similar to the two previous ones, and this is the Perahu katir from Java.

After spending most of the day on the Tomako model, I hurried to draw the lines for the 2 hulls of the voyaging canoe as viewed from top. Without that set of line drawings I would not be able to calculate the height of the beams nor have a proper idea regarding the shape and width of the beams.

My double hull sailing canoe

Its one of those days again when I get impatient to make something different, and it does not really matter whether it is a Hawaiian or any other type of canoe or ship, but simply one that is not alike the canoe models I made in the last few months and which invites to be imaginative and creative to build it.
 

This process mostly starts in the middle of the night. I wake up and pictures start forming in my mind. I see the lines of the boat or canoe, I can visualize its beauty. I go through the mental process of building or carving the model, piece by piece, step by step but fully aware that things are easier done in one’s imagination than in reality. And it’s with this in mind that I try to foresee the difficulties in wanting to build this or that model and figure out solutions to resolve them.
 

The entire visualization process will stay fresh in my mind for days and I put some of those mental pictures onto paper today by drawing the lines of that Hawaiian sailing canoe that kept me awake for a couple of hours in the middle of last night.