First Castlepoint waka visit in 175 years

OCEAN SPIRIT: Te Matau a Maui will ply coastal waters off Castlepoint next month during a five-day visit as part of Te Hononga ki Rangiwhakaoma ki Te Hika a Papauma.

The visit to Castlepoint next month of the double-hulled waka Te Matau a Maui could be the first of its kind in 175 years, says event co-ordinator Charles Morunga.

Te Matau a Maui will be moored at Castlepoint for five days from October 4 as part of an event titled Te Hononga ki Rangiwhakaoma ki Te Hika a Papauma and sponsors were now being sought, as well as schoolchildren and other groups keen to participate in the "unique" visit, Mr Morunga said.

"We were talking among the kaumatua and believe it could be the first visit to Rangiwhakaoma (Castlepoint) of a vessel of this kind since 1839. It will be absolutely unique."

Te Matau a Maui is a 22m ocean-going waka equipped to run a traditional Polynesian sailing rig as well as a standard Bermuda rig, and was constructed using a traditional Tipairua waka design.

The Ahuriri-based vessel belongs to the Te Matau a Maui Voyaging Trust, formed in 2013 by a group of experienced ocean voyagers trained in traditional navigation and Polynesian sailing, according to the trust website.

The waka has an average speed of seven knots and incorporates ecotechnology, with solar panels powering its auxiliary engines.

The trust runs the waka hourua (traditional double-hulled sailing vessel) in a scheme titled Waka Experience, which offers "a unique cultural and sailing experience for organisations and groups including schools, youth, iwi, community, and corporate groups".

Mr Morunga, who is also Te Hika A Papauma ki Wairarapa hapu spokesman, said everyone was welcome to take part in a powhiri (welcome), which will be held at the arrival of the waka and for the first two days of the visit. "Some might even be lucky enough to go aboard. Whether the waka sails or not will be weather-dependant and we don't envisage too many will get that privilege perhaps because there would be a limited number of sail journeys while they're here."

The final three days of the visit, which comes during school holidays, will focus on schoolchildren aged up to 11 in the mornings and 12-year-olds and older in the afternoons.