It was still dark when our cofounders mitty and paulnicklen stepped aboard Hōkūleʻa as the all-Hawaiian crew made their final preparations. The air was heavy with the smell of salt and damp wood. They were on assignment for natgeo to document the resurgence of Hawaiian culture. Built in 1975, Hōkūleʻa helped revive the nearly lost art of Polynesian wayfinding, an Indigenous Knowledge system using only the sun, stars, and the ocean itself to navigate the Pacific. For thousands of years, this is how Polynesians populated the largest ocean on Earth. Paul, in his usual fashion, had a wild idea for an image: Hōkūleʻa passing directly over him as he floated in the open ocean. From a chaseboat, he jumped in the water and positioned himself in the canoe’s path. Mitty watched from the deck, half in awe and half in panic, hoping the hulls wouldn’t clip his head. Mitty tells the full story in her latest essay with katiecouricmedia. Read it now at the link in sealegacy’s bio! Photos by mitty...