Waʻa at Dawn

Waʻa at Dawn

Waʻa — canoe

The outrigger canoe carried Polynesians across thousands of miles of open Pacific, and paddling remains one of the most alive traditions in the islands. Crews still meet before sunrise because the water is calmest then.

Six paddlers, one stroke. When a crew locks together the canoe lifts and the whole thing goes quiet except for the paddles.