The Hui Nalu Canoe Club will celebrate its 100th anniversary with an around-the-island journey next weekend that will cover more than 100 miles.

"It's a long paddle, and it can be pretty difficult, logistically," Hui Nalu president Bruce Blankenfeld said. "But we're breaking it down to sections so that it's manageable and the whole club can participate."

The journey will start at Maunalua Bay — the home base of Hui Nalu — on May 24, and travel around the entire coast of O'ahu. It will take three days to complete.

The course will be separated into 19 legs, ranging in length from 3 miles to 9 1/2 miles. The various age groups within the club will be responsible for paddling a leg.

For example, the men's senior crew will paddle the first leg, which is seven miles. The women's masters 50-older and 55-older crews will paddle the final leg.

"Some parts will be tough, and some parts will be more calm," Hui Nalu head coach Jerry Yoshida said. "So obviously we give our more experienced crews the tough sections and save the calmer areas for the kids and novices."

Only one canoe will be used, but two escort boats will follow along for safety purposes.

The around-the-island paddle will be the first of its kind since Hui Nalu won an around-O'ahu race in 1972. Blankenfeld and his wife, Lita, were paddlers on the Hui Nalu team that won that race 36 years ago.

"That was only for the upper division men and women," Bruce Blankenfeld said. "We wanted to include the whole club this time, and not necessarily make it a race."

Lita Blankenfeld said: "This is more about celebrating the 100 years of the club, and so we wanted to make this safe and fun for everybody."

Even the club members who do not get to paddle during the journey are being asked to participate.

Because the journey will take three days, the club has set up three community service projects.

On May 24, the club will help restore an ancient Hawaiian fishpond in He'eia. On May 25, the club will help clean Nanakuli Beach Park. On May 26, they plan to clean the beach and remove alien algae at Maunalua Bay.

Most of the members of the girls 12-younger crew are too inexperienced to paddle on the open ocean journey, so they will instead participate in the fishpond restoration.

"This is a learning experience, and it will also be a bonding experience for our group," said Cathy Kam-Ho, coach of the girls 12-younger crew. "This is a really big thing for our club and the community, and we want to do our part."

What's more, each of the 19 legs of the paddling journey will be dedicated to an influential Hui Nalu paddler from the past. Among the list of honorees are Duke Kahanamoku, Kala Kukea, Sammy "Steamboat" Mokuahi, John Kaupiko and Myron "Pinky" Thompson.

The youngest of the youth crews will paddle a 4-mile leg dedicated to Clorinda Lucas — a pioneer in Hawaiian social work, and a parent/grandparent to some of Hui Nalu's most influential members.

Kam-Ho said she has already assigned her girls "homework" — research on Clorinda Lucas.

"If they live in Hawai'i and they paddle for this club, they should know who she is," Kam-Ho said. "I think it's a great way to link the present of the club to the past."

Hui Nalu was founded in 1908 by Duke Kahanamoku, Knute Cottrell and Ken Winter. It has consistently been one of the state's biggest and most successful paddling clubs for decades.

"I think you can look to the fact that we involve families," said Rocky Higgins, who has been with the club since the 1970s. "Like other clubs, we want to win. But it's not a win at all costs thing here. The great thing about Hui Nalu is it truly is family oriented, and this project is a perfect example."

The club is not trying to raise funds with its paddling journey next week. Instead, Hui Nalu would like to raise the awareness and spirits of its current paddlers.

"This is more than just a long paddle," said Yoshida, the head coach. "It's a paddle with meaning for the club, the community and the sport as a whole."

Higgins added: "This is a way for the people who are paddling now to pay tribute to the people who paved the way for them to paddle for this club."