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Andean Tule Boat
This South American Native reed boat, or balsa, was made in the mid 1970s by a group of Aymara Indian residents of Lake Titicaca along the Peruvian and Bolivian border. Construction of the boat was commissioned by the Ogden LDS Institute, and it was brought to Ogden by Richard Jackson, a former employee of the LDS Church. The boat was then donated to Weber State University in about 2004, and it was stored in the Botany Department's Herbarium until being put on display here. Dr. Stephen Clark supervised its curation while it was stored in the WSU Herbarium, and Jane Johnson of the Ogden LDS Institute kindly provided information regarding its history.
Throughout many of the world's tropical and temperate regions, similar types of watercraft have been used for millennia by pre industrial and traditional people who live in marsh and lakeside settings where reeds grow in abundance. In many parts of western North America, hardstem bulrush (aka, common tule [Scirpus acutus]) was the plant of choice for making these small boats, as it is characterized by long, buoyant stalks that are round in cross section. In shallow waters, they were propelled by poles whereas in deeper waters they usually were propelled by double-bladed paddles. They are both reliable and durable, and can navigate rough waters such as those in San Francisco Bay where local Ohlone groups used them as late as the early 1800s to fish and cross from one shore to the other on trading expeditions and visits to relatives and allies.
At 3812 m. (12,507 ft.) above sea level, Lake Titicaca is the highest commercially navigable lake in the world. It is located in the Andean Altiplano, has a maximum depth of 280 m., is 80 km. wide, and 190 km. long. Some of the lake's 41 natural islands are densely populated by Aymaran and Quechuan peoples, and a substantial Native population lives along the shoreline. However, one of the most interesting aspects of Lake Titicaca's human ecology is the 40 to 45 artificial islands ("uros") made of dense beds of reeds. These floating villages have been a feature of the lake for centuries, if not for millennia, and are a testimony to the highly buoyant character of this aquatic plant. Although modern motorized boats are now used for most deep water activities and long distance trips on Lake Titicaca, reed boats are still quite common and used primarily for fishing in shallow waters and collecting marsh resources.