Alingano Maisu
Alingano Maisu, also known as Maisu, is a double-hulled voyaging canoe built in Kawaihae, Hawaii, by members of Na Kalai Waa Moku o Hawaii and Ohana Wa'a members from throughout the Pacific and abroad as a gift and tribute to Satawalese navigator Mau Piailug, who navigated the voyaging canoe HÅkÅ«lea on her maiden voyage to Tahiti in 1976 and has since trained numerous native Hawaiians in the ancient art of wayfinding. The word maisu comes from the Satawalese word for breadfruit that has been knocked down by storm winds and is therefore available for anyone to take. The name is said to symbolize the knowledge of navigation that is made freely available.
The concept for Alingano Maisu came about in 2001 when two Hawaiian voyaging groups, the Polynesian Voyaging Society and Na Kalai Waa Moku o Hawaii, met with Piailug. The two hulls of the vessel were fabricated by the Friends of HÅkÅ«lea and Hawaiiloa on Oahu and shipped to the Island of Hawaii where Na Kalai Waa completed construction of the canoe. The Polynesian Voyaging Society provided much of the funding for the voyaging aspect of the project as well as an escort boat to help sail the canoe to Satawal.
The canoe is home-ported on the island of Yap under the command of Piailug's son, Sesario Sewralur.
Maiden voyage
Accompanied by HÅkÅ«lea, the Maisu left Kawaihae, Hawaii, on January 18, 2007. After stops in the Marshall Islands, Pohnpei, and Chuuk, the Maisu reached Satawal on March 15, 2007. On March 18, while on Satawal, five native Hawaiian navigators on the voyage were inducted into pwo, a sacred Micronesian brotherhood of master navigators.HÅkÅ«lea and Maisu both left Satawal on March 20 and made stops in Woleai, Ulithi and Yap before reaching Palau. The Maisu then returned to Yap, while the HÅkÅ«lea continued on to Japan.