We Build Reed Boats That Cross The Oceans

We are the Esteban family from Lake Titicaca (Bolivia). Our wisest member is Paulino Esteban, the legendary reed boatbuilder that enabled Thor Heyerdahl and Kitín Muñóz to cross the oceans with his boats and accomplish their historical expeditions.

Paulino taught us the ancient techniques for building and navigating reed boats, traditionally used by the Suriqui Island people on Lake Titicaca, and we have been working since 1970 on the revaluation of these ancestral knowledge, saving our traditions of harmonious coexistence with the waters of the sacred lake, in order to heal with its wisdom the environmental crisis that humans have triggered at global scale through pollution and over-exploitation of natural resources produced by our modern lifestyle.

Paulino Esteban

In order to pass this valuable knowledge to the people of the world, we organize tours to visit various places of testimonial value on Lake Titicaca, and we also conduct training workshops in traditional reed boat building on the shores of the lake.

In 2016, 88-year-old Paulino Esteban was ready to build his last big reed boat, to embark himself on his last voyage: a circumnavigation of Lake Titicaca that he would perform with his grandson Suri Esteban in the “Wiracocha Expedition”. But he died peacefully at his home by the Lake Titicaca on April 12th.

Boats & Expeditions

RA II EXPEDITION (1970)

"SUN GOD" is the meaning of the vessel built in Safi, Morocco by the islanders Jose, Demetrio, Juan Limachi and Paulino Esteban. After being recruited as the best reed boat builders at the Suriqui Island on Lake Titicaca, where totora reed boatbuilding is an ancient tradition, the islanders boarded a plane for the first time in their lives and went to Morocco on March 2, 1970. The 4 islanders encountered great difficulties with regard to the local material, papyrus, and the great dimension of this construction. The natives of the Suriqui Island built the raft with the material of papyrus (reed or reed family) in Safi Morocco, with the following dimensions: 12 meters long, 4 meters wide, 2 meters tall with a weight of 12 tons.

The vessel sailed on May 17, 1970, commanded by norwegian Dr. Thor Heyerdahl as captain. Norman Baker (radio operator, USA), James Genovese (Mexican), Carlo Mauri as a photographer and cook ( Italy), Yuri Senkevich (medical, Russian), George Sourival (diver, Egypt), Keiohara (Japanese cameraman) and finally was approached by Othman Djibrine Ait. After 57 days at sea, they arrived in Barbados Islands reaching the american shores (Caribbean), covering 6,100 km.

After the cruise, the 4 islanders built a reconstruction of the raft in Norway to be displayed at the Kon-tiki Museum in Oslo.

TIGRIS EXPEDITION (1978)

This boat was built by the same builders of the previous expedition at the confluence of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers (Iraq, 1977-78), led this time by Paulino Esteban and using the reed material extracted from the marshes of Mesopotamia. The dimensions were 18 meters long and 4.8 mts wide, with a weight of 14 tons.

The ship departed from the same place, reaching the Red Sea and arriving Djibouti, Indian Sea, completing a journey of 6800 km. Then the boat was burned in protest of war held at the time between Iraq and Iran, whom thought that the raft had weapons inside its helmet.

URU EXPEDITION (1988)

Twelve years after the last expedition, the aymaras from Suriqui Island built this boat of 18 meters long, 4.5 mts wide, 2.6 mts tall with a weight of 10 tons, led once again by Paulino Esteban. Also participated his children Fermin and Porfidio Esteban, sons-in-law Celso Arratia Corani and Braulio Corani, and family members Francisco and Marcelino Esteban.

Unlike the previous boats mencioned here, the URU raft was the first to be constructed with totora, the Bolivian reed material extracted from Lake Titicaca, and the puma head installed in the bow of the raft, was rescued from ancient rock paintings and iconography.

The URU raft sailed from the port of Callao (Lima, Peru), heading to the Polynesian Tahiti. Once completed the expedition, builders reconstructed the raft to be exhibited in the main cities of Italy, Spain and other European countries.

CHIMOK EXPEDITION (1991)

Once again, expert hands of Paulino Esteban's sons-in-law Celso Arratia Corani and Braulio Corani built the Chimok raft in the port of Pimentel, Peru, with the following features: 15 meters long, 4 mts wide and 2.4 mts tall. Destination was set to Galapagos, but the journey was thwarted by border disputes between Peru and Ecuador.

MATA RANGI EXPEDITION (1996)

Built in Easter Island, Chile, this boat was 28 meters long, 6 mts wide and 3 mts tall. Set sail from Easter Island, Chile in 1996. Note that for the first time an expedition of this type was manned only by two Bolivian boatbuilders from Suriqui Island: Celso Arratia Corani and Braulio Corani.

MATA RANGI II EXPEDITION (1999)

It was 30 meters long, 7 mts wide and 4 mts high. Built in Arica, Chile, it run 8000 km and reached Marquise island (Polynesian) commanded by spanish Kitin Muñoz. The islander Benjamin Arratia participated as crewman in this expedition.

MATA RANGI III EXPEDITION (2000)

It was built in Barcelona, Spain, with 22 meters long, 4.8 mts wide and 2.5 mts high. Traveled to Morocco. Again, Benjamin Arratia manned this new great nautical adventure providing ancestral navigation knowledge.

Projects

THE WIRACOCHA EXPEDITION

Lake Titicaca is the sacred heart of life in the Andes for the aymara people, who have maintained a healthy relationship of harmony and balance with the ecosystem of the lake through an ancient tradition. Nevertheless, the most harmful urban trends have been contaminating this tradition with irresponsible and careless consumption of nature, and in turn local people now pollute the lake water with the toxic plastic waste they produce everyday.

For this reason, Suri Esteban, grandson and leading heir of Paulino's ancient nautical wisdom, has decided to turn this trip around the lake, in a momentous expedition that will spread a call for solidarity and commitment to the sacred lake, the Qotamama, Mother Water to whom we owe all life on Earth and yet we are systematically poisoning, destroying her.

Wiracocha is the name of this new reed boat, 11 meters long, that will sail Lake Titicaca for about a week in the next months, once the Esteban Family finish raising funds to make this new dream come true.

Suri Esteban

Visit Us

"KON-TIKI BOLIVIA" MUSEUM AND CRAFT CENTER

In this place we exhibit various replicas of the rafts built by Paulino Esteban in countries around the world to check the links and connections made between continents through these vessels prior to Spanish colonization of 1492. The replicas exhibited are: RA II, built in 1970, Morocco, for the Norwegian scientist Thor Heyerdahl, who crossed the Atlantic. Also the TIGRIS, URU, MATA RANGI I, II, III.

Tours

We offer comfortable transportation to navigate Lake Titicaca.

TOUR TO THE SURIQUI FLOATING ISLANDS

Located 19 km from Huatajata, in the ideal place to appreciate the Cordillera Real, these islands were once inhabited by a tribe Urus, better known as the men of the lake, dedicated to hunting, fishing and the construction of reed rafts. Now local artisans make a demonstration of the techniques of making reed boats and craft.

TOUR TO THE Q'EWAYA FLOATING ISLANDS

After the flooding of their lands by the waters of Lake Titicaca, ancient residents were not allowed to settle in dry land, so they built floating islands, which are constructions made of stacked totora reeds. This ancient ethnic group is called "URUS", the men of the lake. Current residents of the islands are dedicated to hunting, fishing and the growing and harvesting of totora reeds. Q'EWAYA Floating Islands are 20 km away from the port of Huatajata.

TOUR TO K'ALA UTA

On site there's a series of chullpares, ancient rooms built with stones, corresponding to the people of Tiahuanaco. Here there are also totora reed plantations, used by the neighboring people to make crafts.

Wildlife is another reason to visit this place, as here are concentrated most of the lake birds such as the Chokxa, Tiki tiki, Sulukíya, Unkalla or geese, gulls and chiri chiri, among others.

TOUR TO PARITI ISLAND

The island is 21 km away from Huatajata. It has an area of about 4 km2, with a population of 50 families. It has a museum exhibiting the pots and ceramics from the Tiahuanaco culture, remains found by archaeologists that in the year 2003 - 2004 revealed the outcome of the Pre-Hispanic cultures in this region of the lake. Apparently, the ceramics indicate the site was a place of religious offering. The museum exhibits 199 pieces, including bowls, clay and gold objects.

Workshops

In our facility for boat building at the Kon-Tiki Bolivia Museum, the members of the Esteban Family organize seminars, courses and workshops to teach everyone the ancient building techniques for rafts and crafts made of totora reed from Lake Titicaca.

We consider that the transmission of this cultural heritage is essential for its survival. The public revaluation of our ancestral customs may open an alternative to the materialistic ways the citizens of the world use to relate to water and land in their life, to stop seeing them as mere objects, natural resources handy to exploit at will and without limits, to begin discovering them as living beings, as the most sacred spirits of life on our planet. To discover Qotamama and Pachamama as a way to recover natural balance for our children.

Handicraft

We offer all kinds of crafts and miniature reed boats to buy and spread worldwide the ancient nautical culture of Qotamama, Lake Titicaca.