Long before explorer Thor Heyerdahl came here to search for the world’s best reed boat builders for a project he called Ra II, before Jacques Cousteau discovered the world’s largest frogs living in this vast pool, this was the sacred lake of the Incas.
It was here, according to legend, that the eight children of the Sun Gods, led by Manco Kapac and Mama Occlo, appeared in a reed boat, carrying a gold baton. Do not steal, do not lie, do not be idle, they proclaimed as they founded the Inca Empire 800 years ago.
And though such lore may seem quaint to a modern visitor, as you tour the towns and villages that dot the lake’s shores and islands, you soon sense that the deep waters of the world’s highest navigable lake are an uncommon-some say even mystic-place.
At 12,500 feet above sea level and just 1 1/2 hours northwest of La Paz, Lake Titicaca covers more than 3,200 square miles, making it South America’s second largest lake, behind Venezuela’s Lake Maracaibo. At its deepest, it’s more than 900 feet.
Once, it is believed, Lake Titicaca covered much more of Bolivia’s high plateau, stretching another 10 miles or so to the 2,000-year-old ruins of Tiahuanco, site of a sophisticated Aymara civilization whose descendants still live in the area.
Titicaca is really two slightly salty lakes joined by a strait a half-mile wide. Some say its name-a Spanish version of an Aymara word-refers to its cat-like shape; others say it harks from a puma-shape stone on the sacred Island of the Sun.
Either way, to the visitor, the enormity of the lake makes its shape more a matter of hills and clouds and distant shores. At times, the clouds roll down to obscure the banks across the lake, and then the mesmerizing water appears boundless, like an ocean. Thick skies rarely last long, though; the lake acts as a powerful reflector, soon burning off bad weather. Once the sun reappears, the white ridges of the Andes’ Royal Range gleam in the distance. And when the sun drops below the edge of Bolivia’s Altiplano, the afterglow may linger 30 minutes or more in a remarkable show of color.
It is a wonderfully peaceful place. Despite its proximity to La Paz, you rarely see weekend homes along the shores. Speedboats are rare; only the occasional hydrofoil filled with tourists zips across the watery plain. Most of the boats are wooden fishing skiffs powered by small motors or-more likely-strong arms churning long oars. Flocks of small silver ducks glitter above the enticing blue of the lake. Near certain tourist hotels and around the village of Suriqui-known especially for its reed boats-you can still see small, wheat-colored kayaks with pointed tips at front and rear that were once the standard mode of transportation.
The lake is famed for its tasty trout, white and salmon-colored, sometimes served with soup made of quinoa, a local cereal. Unfortunately, kingfish introduced to another Bolivian lake, Poppo, found their way through one of the 25 rivers feeding Titicaca. The kingfish feed on trout eggs. Now, most of the trout are raised in protected farms within the lake.
Puno, on the Peruvian side, is the lake’s largest town. But visiting it is a risky business these days because of the Shining Path terrorists.
On the Bolivian side, the largest-and arguably, the most interesting-town is Copacabana, dominated by a sprawling cathedral mixing Moorish, Indian and Gothic styles that, after 400 years of construction, was finished only last year. But the spot was considered sacred long before the Spanish brought Catholicism to the region-the Aymara of long ago considered it a holy spot, and the Incas used it as a resting place before heading off to the human sacrifices on Sun Island. Today it is the home of the Virgin of Copacabana, known as the Dark Virgin of the Lake, who is credited with miraculous healings. On Sundays, the sanctuary is packed with Aymara Indians, some stooped with age and barefoot with poverty, the women dressed in the traditional wide skirts and bowler hats.
Outside, cars, trucks and mini-vans are lined up before a row of booths selling icons of the virgin, who is also the saint of travelers. The proud new car owners pour alcohol over the tires and drape their vehicles with plastic garlands and medallions stamped with the virgin’s image-you can even buy miniature replicas and key rings for a nominal sum-in a ritual blessing of the vehicles.
A half-hour or so by boat brings you to Isla del Sol, more than 5 miles long and the largest of Titicaca’s 40-plus islands. While other islands are dusty and brown, Sun Island is graced with trees and grass, thanks to its own water supply. The earth that fills the terraces here is particularly fertile, and it is said that the Incas actually carried this soil from Bolivia’s jungle regions. The Incas are also responsible for the terraces that cover many of the hills, and the seeds grown here were transported throughout the 13th Century empire, whose capital was at Cuzco, in Peru.
But like the lake, the island was sacred long before the Incas arrived. Early inhabitants believed the sun itself was born here. Today the population numbers about 300 families. The island boasts several small villages and Inca ruins, including the puma-shape rock thought to be the lake’s namesake. However, there are no vehicles here, and you must explore on foot. If you are visiting on a one-day lake tour, you will see little more than the quiet harbor and spring, and will have time only to climb the steep steps to the island’s plateau before dashing back.
Just across from the small harbor you can see Moon Island, home to the Inca virgins once used as sacrifices. When the Spanish came in the 1520s to raid Inca treasures, the legend says, the people prayed to the gods to protect their virgins, who did so by turning them into llamas.
Today, you will see a few llamas at the Sun Island harbor, along with a few alpacas, towed by Aymara people who hope you will pay them a few bolivianos to take their photo. Responsible guides discourage this-as with begging, it encourages the people not to work. But buying their handicrafts or some other item in exchange for a photo is different. (Be warned: They know you want the photo and will charge far more than the going rate for a small woven tie or fossil.)
The Spanish conquistadors weren’t the only ones lured here by tales of treasure. Gold and other valuables-possibly a gold chain so heavy that 50 men were needed to carry it-were supposedly flung into the lake to safeguard them from the Spaniards. Fluctuations in the lake’s water level have revealed walls and other structures, leading to rumors that entire cities are hidden beneath. Over the past 25 years, various teams-some with permission, others without-have explored the region, finding pottery and carvings harking from the Incas and even before, from the Tiahuanaco civilization.
Among them was explorer Jacques Cousteau, who made the unexpected discovery of the world’s largest frogs, a foot or more long, beneath the lake’s waters. You can taste them at restaurants near the narrow passage between the two ends of the lake.
At the smaller end of the lake is Suriqui Island, home of the Limachi brothers. It was here, in the late 1960s, that explorer Thor Heyerdahl retreated after his first failed attempt to sail from Egypt to the New World in the same manner he believes ancient man may have done. The problem with that first trip, Heyerdahl believed, was his boat. In his search for a sturdier vessel, he came to Suriqui and held a competition to find the best local boatmakers. The winners were the Limachis.
Two of the brothers, Juan and Jose, have a souvenir shop here, and day trippers stop in to talk with them-in Spanish-and see how the totora reed used in boatmaking is made from the yellow flower that grows here. The string that ties the straw together is one single winding length, braided together by nimble hands. As they weave, the brothers will gladly tell you about their work with Heyerdahl on Ra II and Tigris, and how they are planning yet another expedition with him now.
The land hugging the lake grows greener as you head toward the southern end. Wide, grassy flats line its edge, near the place where the current vice president, Victor Hugo Cardenas, was born-the first Indian to hold such high office in Bolivia. At Huatajata are three small but interesting museums, part of a hotel there.
The villages at this end of the lake afford an opportunity to slip into everyday Aymara life. The people live in small mud or brick houses, tending their sheep and fields, spreading their clothes to dry on stacks of straw. At night they stretch their fishing nets; in the early morning they go out to haul in the catch. On festival days, you may hear a simple band of drums and homemade flutes; if you wander up the hill, you will find Aymara men lined up on benches, drinking beer, the women in their traditional garb sitting to the side or dancing with one another.
If the gentle simplicity of this enduring lifestyle isn’t magic enough, consider the Kallawaya. These medicine men, all based near Lake Titicaca, profess to heal the body and spirit through natural cures, fortune telling and a connection with the cosmos as they have done for centuries. First the Kallawaya pours alcohol on the earth, thanking the Earth Mother. Next they call upon the power of the sacred mountains. If you are ill, they diagnose your problems with the help of a guinea pig (sacrificed for the occasion.)
Amulets bring good luck, fertility or even revenge. Thousands of herbs aid in healing. An onion plaster promotes general health; boiled, it is good for kidneys. Chamomile tea is used for eyes and stomach, corn is cooked to aid with headaches, baked garlic heals lungs and stomach.
But the most important of the herbs is the coca leaf, often boiled in a completely legal tea, called mate, to aid with altitude sickness and general malaise. With the leaves, the Kallawaya can also foretell the future. The questioner puts a coin upon the floor; the Kallawaya arranges the small oval leaves in a way that describes the person’s life. The question is asked; other leaves are tossed, and the Kallawaya delivers the answer.
One note of caution: Be careful what you ask. Even highly educated Bolivians believe the Kallawaya knows of what he speaks. At Lake Titicaca, such things seem possible.
From La Paz to Copacabana
Getting there: Day trips, overnight packages and simple transportation is available from La Paz travel agencies. (Day trips to Copacabana cost about $25 for two.) Roads are decent, and you can rent a car.
Getting around: The best way is by boat. Tour agencies in Copacabana can help, or in many small villages you can negotiate a price. Organized trips from La Paz often include boat trips.
Where to stay: Most hotels and hostels are in Copacabana. However, several tour companies also operate hotels on the smaller end of the lake. Among them are Crillon (see accompanying story) and Balsa Tours, Avenida 16 de Julio No. 1650, La Paz; phone 011-591-2-356-566; fax 011-591-2-391-310.———-
It is extremely difficult for disabled travelers to get around in less-developed countries such as Bolivia, and especially around Lake Titicaca. Hydrofoils and the hotels around the lake may be negotiable for those on crutches, but probably not for those in wheelchairs.
