Pacific Polynesia Current

East of Tokelau, the open Pacific separates its low atolls from Pukapuka in the northern Cook Islands. Tokelauan traditions remember sailors travelling east from Fakaofo to Pukapuka, Manihiki and Tongareva. Navigators used named stars for direction: Orion's Belt guided voyages between Nukunonu and Atafu, while the Pointers marked the route to Samoa.