Photo Gallery: Nantucket Outriggers Canoe Christening

The Nantucket Outriggers, an island canoeing group, christened two new Malolo canoes at Jetties Beach early Saturday morning.

Roughly a dozen group members gathered around the two canoes and began to deliberate on what to name the new boats. They went over several names and eventually voted on the two they liked best.

The orange boat has been dubbed “Lele Kawa,” which means “Waters of Joy” and the purple boat has been named “Kai Lani,” which means “Beautiful Sea.”

The six-seat, 168-pound canoes were purchased with donations from a pair of club members. The Nantucket Outriggers organization was set up to promote a healthy, ocean-focused lifestyle through the sport of outrigger canoeing.

After the boats were named, the group took them out for a test run that lasted for approximately one hour.

Chris Emery, one of the groups founders and leaders, said that the Nantucket Outriggers are an inclusive group with people from all walks of life. He said they are always looking for new members and anyone interested can email the group at nantucketoutrigger@gmail.com.

Below are some photos taken during Saturday morning's christening by Current photographer at large Kit Noble: