The voyaging canoes Hokule’a and Hikianalia arrived in Whangarei, New Zealand, at about 3 p.m. Friday, Hawaii time, and were greeted with a welcome ceremony or powhiri. 

The canoes arrived from Waitangi, where the vessels and crew were hosted by the local Maori community,  celebrating Hokule’a’s first return to New Zealand or Aotearoa in 29 years.

According to the Polynesian Voyaging Society, the canoes will spend several days in Whangarei, conducting community and educational outreach to further the canoes’ mission of Malama Honua — Caring for Our Island Earth.

“We want to hear their (the community’s) stories of what they are doing in terms of sustainability of the environment and ocean resources,” master navigator Kalepa Baybayan said in a statement issued by the society. “We want to host this conversation so that we can share it with the rest of the world.”