Crews Mourn The ‘Unreal’ Death Of One Of Hawaii’s Greatest Navigators…Kalepa Baybayan, a longtime Hokule‘a captain who helped rekindle traditional navigation in the Pacific, died suddenly in Seattle on Thursday.
No one spent more time aboard on the Malama Honua Worldwide Voyage than Chad Kalepa Baybayan.
The veteran Hokule‘a captain and master navigator crewed 18 of the global sail’s 31 total legs over three years, more than anyone else by far. He was an unassuming yet vital task master who helped keep the global voyage moving. He solved logistical problems that inevitably sprung up, organized educational activities in port on the fly, and kept the canoe and its escort vessels in good shape.
No one on that voyage relished the chance to explore new cultures quite as much as Baybayan. During quiet, calm moments out at sea he would marvel at the vastness of the Milky Way Galaxy, reflected in the nighttime heavens above.
