Captain Cook's Third Voyage: Plymouth to Hawaii

Cook left the Nore on 25 June and sailed to Plymouth, where the voyage took its final shape. Marines came on board, the crew of the Discovery joined, and Cook received his formal orders. Plymouth Sound is a sheltered stretch of water, and its breakwater makes a harbour that protects anchored ships from the frequent south-western storms.

Location precision: The sources say Cook sailed to Plymouth but not where in the Sound the ships lay; the pin marks the Sound.

Cook reached the Cape of Good Hope on 17 October and anchored in Table Bay the following day. He attended a formal dinner with the governor, complete with gun salutes. The bay is a poor natural harbour, exposed to northwesterly storm waves. The two ships sailed on in company on 1 December.

Location precision: The anchorage within the bay is not named; the pin marks Table Bay itself.

The ships reached Queen Charlotte Sound, New Zealand, on 12 February 1777. Cook kept strict routines, including brewing spruce beer as a grog substitute. He did not retaliate for the Grass Cove incident: the New Zealanders expected utu, or revenge, but Cook refused to act. Omai, acting as interpreter, arranged to take a young New Zealander, Tiarooa, with him on the voyage.

Location precision: The sources name the Sound, not a single anchorage; the pin marks a point within it.

By dawn on 24 December 1777 the ships sighted land: a vast atoll, now Kiritimati. Cook set up an observatory on shore to observe a solar eclipse on 30 December. By their departure on 2 January they had taken on 300 turtles, each averaging ninety-five pounds. Cook left a sealed bottle on the island, claiming it for Britain.

Location precision: The atoll is large and the sources do not give the landing spot; the pin marks the atoll.

The land sighted was not North America but one of the islands in the Hawaiian group. Cook's ships arrived at the mouth of the Waimea River on the western side of Kauai. The islanders greeted him by prostrating themselves, and trading was brisk, with nails and tools in high demand. Cook named the group the Sandwich Islands.

Location precision: The pin follows the Waimea town article, so it marks the river mouth area rather than the exact anchorage.

On 17 January 1779 Cook brought both ships into Kealakekua Bay. His arrival coincided with the Makahiki, a Hawaiian harvest festival of worship for the god Lono, and Cook and his men were welcomed and treated as honored guests. Hikiau Heiau, a temple, stands at the south end of the bay. Today the bay is known for some of the best snorkeling and diving in Hawaii.

Visitor guidance: The bay is known for snorkeling and diving.

After a foremast broke, the ships returned to the bay on 11 February for repairs. Cook landed at Kaawaloa with Lieutenant Phillips, nine marines and two boats waiting near shore. A confrontation grew on the shore, and Cook fell into the water and was killed. His remains were later buried at sea on 21 February. A white stone monument built in 1874 marks the approximate location of his death.

Location precision: The monument marks only the approximate location of Cook's death.

Visitor guidance: The monument is accessible only by water or an hour-long hike along a moderately steep trail; kayaks need a licensed local tour.