Taking on board tradition of Maori master navigators
Noenoe BarclayKerr uses old skills of waka wayfinding
Being tossed in the ocean 100km from anywhere in the middle of a storm would invoke a sense of fear in most people. But Noenoe Barclay-Kerr is not alone, her tu¯puna are guiding her.
She is the daughter of master navigator Hoturoa Barclay-Kerr and a torch-bearer for the next generation keeping the skills of traditional waka hourua wayfinding alive.
Waka hourua are double-hulled voyaging canoes and navigation relies on use of stars, the moon and sun, wind, wave patterns and birds.
From the moment Noenoe ( Waikato, Nga¯ti Mahuta) arrived, she’s been immersed in the waka world.
She was born at a waka ama competition her father was racing in and spent her childhood absorbing the knowledge of those around her — the likes of Ta¯ (Sir) Hekenukumai (“Hector”) Busby, Ema Siope, and Stanley Conrad.
“Throughout my childhood, I remember travelling up to Aurere and helping fix up Te Aurere, the waka. All the uncles were there: Stanley Conrad, Koro Hek,” she said.
Te Aurere was the first traditional waka hourua built by Ta¯ Hekenukumai Busby, from two kauri from the Herekino State Forest.
“There were a whole bunch of master navigators and waka sailors up there doing mahi on Te Aurere.”
School holidays were spent being taught how to lash, fix a mast and look after a waka.
“I remember talking to Koro Hek and he was teaching us this stuff, just discretely. It wasn’t a full-on, ‘This is what you need to know’,” she said.
“It was like when you’re having a cup of tea with someone.”
Noenoe is a force of Te Toki Waka Hourua Trust, which has three waka hourua for youth development and education programmes.
Growing up, Uncle Stan, or Stanley Conrad, was the go-to for lashing a waka, while “Jacko”, or Jack Thatcher, taught her things about navigation.
“All together with all those little teachings you start to piece things together . . . that’s when you understand that these aren’t just casual conversations. They are going to become a part of whatever they’re going to test you on later on.”
Noenoe is tested every time she steps onto her waka hourua.
“I guess there is this romanticised idea with sailing waka,” she said.
“People think it’s this amazing spiritual journey and in some cases it really is. But when you’re on a waka you have to be a really solid person. You have to be strong, mentally, physically, emotionally.”
“Every time I go on, I’m spewing for two days, then I’m good.”
When out on the ocean, relying on the stars, moon, sun, wind and swells to know which direction you need to go, you become connected to the environment around you.
“When you’re in the middle of the ocean, whether you’re going through a storm or you’re sitting there on a calm night and the stars are shining, you’re reminded of how small you are. You’re just a little piece to the rest of this big puzzle. The waka, it humbles you.
“There is this whole environment: the sea, the whenua, the sky. All of that is still there. All the animals are still there, and you start to notice everything around you.
“It’s noticing the stars aren’t always in the same place throughout the year. If I see it there at 10pm in January, it’s going to be somewhere completely different at 10pm in June.
“For me, I have full trust in my tu¯puna, I have full trust in atua (god/ spirit). So, when I’m out on the ocean, I love it 100 per cent.”
Perhaps one of Noenoe’s greatest teachers was her father, Hoturoa.
“When my Dad was young, from the time he was a little boy and knew about our people, our culture, he was told our ancestors paddled here. There was no other korero, apart from that.
“Then he started to think that if you’re paddling from Hawaii to New Zealand or from Rarotaonga, it doesn’t make sense, it’s way too far. He didn’t want to leave it at that. As he got older, he was encouraged by a few kaumatua to pursue that ma¯tauranga ( knowledge).
I have full trust in my tu¯puna, I have full trust in atua (god/spirit). Noenoe Barclay-Kerr
“[Hoturoa] got sent to Hawaii to go and train under the navigators who trained under Papa Mau [Mau Piailug].
“Papa Mau was still alive then, so he was slowly passing his knowledge on to everyone in the Pacific and that’s when they all came back.”
Of Noenoe’s many sailings, one voyage burns in her heart.
“The one that was really special to me was sailing back into Ka¯whia, my first time sailing back into my own harbour was last year,” she said
“I’ve sailed around New Zealand, but I’ve never sailed into Ka¯whia harbour.
“We’d heard so many stories about our tu¯puna coming to Ka¯whia, giving the waka to the next iwi over to use for a while, then it comes back. There were all these amazing stories.”
Noenoe had learned about differ
ent points on the land in Ka¯whia that were used for navigational purposes but had only ever seen them from the land.
“When you’re out at sea, and that information is being used, that’s when it starts to make sense to you. Like, I get it now. I’m practising it.
“That’s what really makes it special. That’s what everyone is talking about.”
Noenoe is young, full of zest and wise, a tribute to the people who have imparted their wisdom to pass onto the generation after her.
“[I hope] people can associate themselves to a waka. They know what their waka is and where it comes from. It’s not this far-off idea that your waka was this old ancient thing in old stories. It’s still who you
are. That’s what I hope for.”