The ashes of Hawaiian waterman, surfer, lifeguard and paddler Clifford K. Ah Mow, one of the original 17 crew members on the Hokule'a's historic voyage to Tahiti, were placed into the sea off the Waikiki Natatorium yesterday morning.

With family members observing from the outrigger canoe Oxbow, Ah Mow's son, Clifford “;Pake”; Ah Mow Jr., scattered his father's ashes from a surfboard about a mile offshore under a warm, bright, late morning sun. A gentle breeze lifted the yellow and white plumeria blossoms that were scattered by family and other well-wishers who surrounded the Hokule'a, bobbing in the calm, azure ocean in canoes and on surfboards, powered watercraft and paddle boards.

Earlier, hundreds of Ah Mow's friends gathered outside the Waikiki Natatorium.

In his eulogy, Kimo Hugho described Ah Mow as “;an amphibious phenomenon”; when he entered the water.

Hugho said his father and two brothers, who also served as Waikiki lifeguards, recalled a “;perfect swan dive that was of Olympic quality”; that Ah Mow had made off the Natatorium's high tower.

“;Agile and powerful,”; Hugho said, “;he presented a picture of style and grace not only in his high-diving skills, but also with his fluid movement in competitive volleyball games at the Natatorium.”;

Ah Mow died at his home in East Oahu on Feb. 22 after a bout with cancer. He was 67.

Aboard the double-hulled sailing canoe were four surviving members of the voyage's original 17: Hugho, Billy Richards, Abraham “;Snake”; Ah Hee and John Kruse. Also joining in the on-board tribute was master navigator Nainoa Thompson, who was on the return voyage from Tahiti to Oahu 34 years ago.

Thompson recalled sitting on the beach at Kualoa on March 8, 1975, the day before the Hokule'a was launched, and thinking that the canoe had become “;a symbol of hope and healing and a symbol of change.”;

Before the historic voyage, the Hawaiian language was not taught in island public schools, and “;we were headed toward cultural extinction.”;

What has happened since then could have not occurred, Thompson said, if the 17 men had not successfully sailed to Tahiti.

“;If they had never made it to Tahiti,”; Thompson added, “;the Hokule'a would be just another failed symbol of things Hawaiian that were never finished.”;

Before the service, Richards, 62, said he recalls the last time the Hokule'a anchored off Waikiki was in 1975 during a training voyage.

“;There are many good memories,”; added Richards, a crew member on most of Hokule'a's historic voyages. “;They come flooding back. This is Clifford's home. We are going to miss him.”;

Kruse, 67, said there are efforts to build another double-hulled canoe—Namahoe—on Kauai to carry on the tradition of the Hokule'a.

“;It is an honor to come here,”; Kruse added. “;It is good to celebrate Clifford's life.”;

“;It's beautiful here,”; added Ka'iulani Murphy, who first sailed with Ah Mow five years ago to Maui. “;Clifford is resting here ... here in his ocean, his water.”;

Other Hokule'a crew members on the first Hawaii-Tahiti voyage who have died include Rodo Tuku Williams, Kawika Kapahulehua, Charles “;Tommy”; Holmes, Sam Kalalau, David B.K. “;Dave”; Lyman III, Douglas “;Dukie”; Kuahulu and David Henry Lewis.