Iosepa makes passage from La'ie to Kawaihae

By Eloise Aguiar
Advertiser Staff Writer

La'ie's double-hull canoe Iosepa arrived in Kawaihae on the Big Island at 1:30 a.m. yesterday, having missed several storm systems that seemed to split, leaving the crew clear passage as they headed past Lana'i and Moloka'i.

William "Uncle Bill" Wallace III, captain of the canoe, said the 22-hour trip was smooth.

However, for about the first half-hour it seemed like the Iosepa did not want to leave Ko'olauloa despite being towed by the Alaka'i, escort boat for Makali'i, another double-hull canoe.

"The engine was going, but we weren't moving anywhere," Wallace said. "So I sat up in front and talked to the canoe."

Wallace said he told the canoe that they weren't going far and they needed to make this trip to fulfill a commitment to his cousin Clay Bertelmann to help refurbish the Makali'i, which is in drydock in Kawaihae. Bertelmann, who helped train the Iosepa crews, died in January.

"All of a sudden we started going," Wallace said. The canoe ended up being towed the entire way because of time constraints.

They were prepared for rain when they saw several storms back-to-back while sailing past Lana'i, Wallace said. Having watched a barge and tugboat disappear into the squalls, they expected a rough ride.

"As we got closer to the storms one split and went to Moloka'i and the other split and went to Lana'i and Kaho'olawe, and we had a free pathway right down the middle," he said. "I thanked Clay for opening the way."

In Kawaihae, the crews will sail the canoe this weekend before returning tomorrow evening, Wallace said. A skeleton crew will remain to work on the Makali'i and a new crew will come over in June to sail the canoe to Hana, Maui, then Kaunakakai and Kalaupapa, Moloka'i, he said.

From Kalaupapa it's a straight shot to O'ahu, where they will stop at He'eia Kea and Kualoa before heading back to La'ie.

Reach Eloise Aguiar at eaguiar@honoluluadvertiser.com or 234-5266.