It is a true homecoming. A celebration, not just of canoes, but of THE canoe.

Hokule‘a, the wa‘a kaulua (double-hull canoe) that launched a Hawaiian cultural voyage of pride and tradition in 1975, r­­­­eturns to her aina hanau, her birthplace, Saturday as the signature of the Kualoa/Hakipu‘u Canoe Festival.

The third-annual event focuses on the history of Kualoa/Hakipu‘u as a revered and sacred canoe center through hands-on activities, educational displays and talk-story times with those who have kept alive the legacy of Polynesian voyaging for generations — and continue to do so.

"It’s a chance for people to experience canoes, in whatever shape and capacity," festival founder Jerry Vasconcellos said. "I was working at Kualoa when Hokule‘a was launched. That was the turning point for sailing canoes.

"Growing up, it seemed like the idea of the canoe was paddling races. It is so much more. The canoe as a vessel is such an integral part of Hawaiian history and exploration. The thrusts of (the festival) are to perpetuate the tradition as well as establish Kualoa for what it was, a canoe center."

Much like a sailing canoe picks up speed when it catches the windline, the festival has continued to take off. From modest beginnings in 2010 to last year’s event that drew several hundred, Saturday’s festival is expected to attract at least 400.

The biggest draw is Hokule‘a, which will be accompanied by sister voyaging canoe Kama Uheheu and educational voyaging canoe Kanehunamoku. Hawaiian Sailing Canoe Association members will shuttle festival goers out to the moored canoes as well as offer sailing canoe rides in the bay.

"It’s really special for us, with Hokule’a being there," HSCA president Terry Galpin said. "Any time she comes into Hakipu‘u, where she was born and first launched, it is special.

"This really is where the sailing canoe renaissance started."

HSCA cultural advisor Nakoa Prejean’s newest sailing canoe — Kaaumoana — will be blessed and launched at the event. The canoe honors the late Kaau McKenney, the youngest crew member of the Hokule‘a’s inaugural voyage from Tahiti to Hawaii in 1976.

The activities also include traditional canoe knot-tying, paddle-making with Bobby Puakea, canoe repair and celestial navigation workshops.

"It’s very hands-on; it’s not come and watch someone else do it," Vasconcellos said.

Charter schools Hakipu‘u Learning Center, based out of Windward Community College, and Halau Ku Mana are also involved.

"We’re very fortunate to have the (Polynesian Voyage Society) involved," said Iris Fukunaga, Kualoa Regional Park manger. "Kamanu Composites will also be here, showing the evolution of canoes from traditional to modern.

"We’ll have wooden surfboards from Ian Masterson, and such a wealth of knowledge to be shared from the voyaging community. This was what Jerry Vasconcellos always wanted it to become. Kualoa is such an appropriate place to have this."

The festival is one of the stops of Hokule‘a’s statewide sail, the mission of which is Malama Kai e Malama Wa‘a (caring for the land and sea, and the canoe). The refurbished Hokule‘a continues its voyage through the island chain through August and is scheduled to embark on its historic around-the-world sail next year.