Sixty local rangatahi and their whānau came together on the shores of Ōkahu Bay, Auckland, for the official debut of Te Hau Wawara. Three years in development, this initiative brings together the Black Foils (New Zealand’s SailGP team), ocean conservation trust Live Ocean, and the Te Toki Voyaging Trust to introduce new generations to coastal sailing.
Black Foils Co-CEO and Live Ocean co-founder Blair Tuke said the project has been years in the making.
“Today was about providing rangatahi an opportunity to experience something new, here at Ōkahu Bay on small sailing waka,” Tuke said.
“Ultimately, we want to see more Māori and Pacific people out on the moana, feeling the power of the wind, strengthening their connection to their voyaging ancestors who were some of the best navigators in the world.”
Bridging the gap from paddling to sailing
Master navigator and Te Toki founder Hoturoa Barclay-Kerr (CNZM) notes that while competitive paddling disciplines and waka ama have massive engagement among Māori and Pacific communities across Aotearoa, the transition into competitive and recreational sailing remains low.
“There’s lots of Māori and Pasifika people involved in competitive paddling sports, and on waka ama and all that, but the numbers that actually come in to sail are very low and minimal compared to the paddling sports,” Barclay-Kerr said.
To help bridge this divide, Tuke and the wider team spent recent months helping refit three Ulua (small sailing waka). These traditional vessels have been re-engineered for increased stability, featuring an extra ama (making them a double-outrigger trimaran) and a simplified rigging system to speed up assembly, providing a safe entry point for beginners.
Alongside the sailing, participants strapped on Blake virtual reality gear to examine underwater ecosystems firsthand, such as schools of fish in the Poor Knights Islands, while mastering traditional star compass orientation and knotcraft with the Te Toki crew.
Moored just offshore, the grand voyaging waka Haunui served as a floating classroom, allowing whānau of all ages to step aboard and experience traditional waka hourua firsthand.
Gathered under the hospitality of mana whenua Ngāti Whātua, organisers chose a title rich with local resonance. Barclay-Kerr explains that Te Hau Wawara translates to a murmuring wind, springing from a local song of prophecy tied to the host iwi.
“Those words and that song were a song of prophecy to talk about new arrivals into this area actually,” Barclay-Kerr said. “I thought it was appropriate for us, because it’s not that we’re bringing something new in, but there’s a new wind that’s coming that brings in this kind of communal, collective mahi that we’re doing all together.”
Building permanent pathways
With the first public day done and dusted, the collaborative team is now looking towards the long-term impact. Their goal is to keep these specialised waka active in local communities, and set in stone a pathway that not only helps rangatahi build skills on the water, but keeps seafaring traditions alive.
“I’d love to see future races or distance races sailing big stretches of open water,” Tuke said. “I’d like to see different communities have these waka on the beach just like they are now, pulled up here and their whānau and communities are using them to learn the skills of sailing.”
