Trip Report: Lake Titicaca

By clayabney on July 06, 2023
4 min read

Cultural adventure on the world’s highest navigable lake

KÜHL ambassador Clay Abney recounts his adventures on Lake Titicaca. Lake Titicaca sits at over 12’500 feet in the Andes and straddles the border between Peru and Bolivia. While there are other lakes higher in elevation, Titcaca holds the distinction as being the highest navigable lake in the world for commercial traffic.

Uros

Floating Islands of the Uros We reached Puno, Peru on the shores of the lake via a ten-hour bus ride from Cusco. Through a prearranged excursion with a local outfitter, we were picked up from our hotel for a 2-day outing on the lake. It included an overnight stay on one of the islands. Our guide took us to the marina and we boarded the boat. Our first stop was the floating islands of the Uros. It is believed that this is where Incan civilization began. The Uros are a pre-Incan people who live on a series of islands made from the totora reeds. The islands are anchored to the bottom of the lake and a new layer of reeds is added to the top every few months to compensate for natural decay. The islands were originally constructed as a form of protection from other tribes. While very commercialized, our visit offered us a window into a pre-Incan civilization. The people still live very much the way their ancestors have for centuries. While tourists are allowed to visit a small population of the Uros, there is another group on the lake that have chosen to remain cut off from civilization (the Peruvian government does not acknowledge this group). Our favorite part of our visit with the Uros was the opportunity to ride aboard a traditional, human-powered boat. Our excursion took us around to several other floating islands where we met other family groups.

Uros_Boats

Our lake tour ended when we reached the island of Amantani. When we arrived at the dock, our host family met us and took us back to their house for a quick lunch of quinoa soup and rice. (We prearranged to stay with a host family prior to leaving Cusco.) The accommodations were modest yet hospitable. After lunch, we walked with our family to a small arena where a celebration was taking place. The Inti Rami Festival included children of all ages proudly parading in traditional costumes. Our host family provided us with wool hats so that they could easily pick us out from the group. This was not a real issue with us as we were the tallest among the entire group. The four of us all come in at or over six feet tall. (At the end of our stay, I bought the handmade hats from our hosts). After the parade, we rejoined our tour group to walk to the highest point on the island. From there, we watched the sun set over Lake Titicaca. This was spectacular and worth the trip itself.

sunset_amantani

After dinner, now clad in traditional attire (ponchos and our wool hats), our towering group made our way to the local community center where we learned a few dances and then took the Amantani boy band scene to new heights! We woke up early the next morning so we had time for breakfast before departing for the boat ramp and onto our next destination, Taquile.

View_Taquile

View from Taquile[/caption] This was our third and final stop on our tour. Upon arriving at the boat ramp, we made a short hike to the top of the hill where we had the chance to rest and browse a few of the local stores in the main square. While this was still designed to attrace tourists, these more isolated villages were some our favorite places to find unique souvenirs. We each purchased the iconic Peruvian knit hats (we could actually watch them being made). The prices were less expensive and the wares seemed more authentic. We then proceeded to our lunch spot where we dined on a lunch of fried trout, rice and vegetables (much different fare than that found on Amantani). For these Americans, we were ready for a protein filled (meat based) meal. We were also treated to a presentation about certain cultural aspects of the island. The men wear tightly woven woolen hats that more closely resemble nightcaps. The color of the hat symbolizes the man’s current or past social status (married men wear red while single guys wear red and white). The women also weave belts for the men they are marrying and contained within the belts are a lock of the woman’s hair. The men round out their wardrobe with white shirts, calf-length black pants and a vest. Over the course of the two-day excursion, we had seen and experienced three different cultures, each only using human powered transportation. Coming from a society that is overloaded with technology daily, it was as if we were granted a peek into the past. It felt like time had stood still in this part of the world, allowing your mind to wander. It was so refreshing to unplug and explore this ancient and unique culture.

HostFamily_Amantani

Host Family on Amantani Note: We opted to not take our chances crossing the border into Bolivia on this trip. It is apparently easy to cross over from the Peru side but can be challenging getting back across the border from Bolivia.


Clay_Abney_Bio

Clay Abney is a PR guru and freelance writer living in the 'wild and wonderful' state of West Virginia where he spends his days trail running, mountain biking, hiking and working when the mood strikes. At 45 (the new 25), he still competes in multi-day adventure races and is always looking for his next great adventure!

clayabney
clayabney

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