Capturing the Moment

Sailing to the "Forbidden Island" of Ni'ihau on the SSV Makani Olu Coming into the Forbidden Isle, Ni'ihau   The adventure gets real as we leave the protection of Haleiwa and set sail across the Kauai Channel towards Ka'ula Rock. I was pretty excited for a couple of reasons. This would be the first time I would be in charge of my own watch and the whole tall ship while on deck, the winds and waves were supposed to be strong and big but at our backs, and I had never even heard of our destination.    Ka'ula rock is located 23 miles (37 km) west-southwest of Kawaihoa Point on Ni ʻ ihau, and about 150 nautical miles (280 km) west of Honolulu. The island is actually the very top of a volcanic tuff cone that rests on top of a larger, submerged shield volcano. At its highest point, the island reaches a height of 548 feet (167 m). The ocean has carved large sea cliffs on the sides of the island. There is a large cave on the northwest side of the island ...

  Adventure week has come and a grand adventure has been undertaken. I have been signed on as second mate aboard the 96ft 3 masted tall ship Makani Olu for the first week of April. I am just coming off an amazing week of scuba diving, underwater photography, and exploration with Heidi on Maui and already excited to head back out for adventure.   I wasn't quite sure about sleeping arrangements, watch schedules, or even the sail plan but at 8am Monday morning I was ready with my sleeping bag, camera, and foul weather gear. The crew consisted of Captain Emma, 1st Mate Kalei, 2nd Mate Dai Mar, and 13 student crew. We separated in three watches on a modified Swedish watch system. 2 six hour watches during the day, and 3 four hour watches at night. With no steward on board whatever watch was on duty leading up to a meal would be in charge of cooking and setting out that meal.   The sail plan was bold, and we soon found out that to do everything on the plan would be a ...