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Master of the Sea?
The Tangaroa Expedition to Set Sail from Callao in April
By Tanilee Eichelberger, South American Explorers

Since the dawn of humanity, man's quest to dominate the elements has lead to feats of danger and near-death. Thor Heyerdahl is one of these intrepid explorers who defy the forces of nature. In 1947, he set out to sea on a balsa raft across the Pacific, traveling 8,000 kilometers between Peru and Polynesia. This extraordinary adventure could have dripped straight from Daniel Defoe's quill. It has made Heyerdahl famous all over the world and resulted in the publication of Kon-Tiki: Across the Pacific by Raft in 65 languages.

Now almost three years after his death, his grandson is setting out for even greater achievements. Olav Heyerdahl is part of a 6-man crew who will cross the Pacific Ocean on a balsa raft using pre-Colombian navigation technology. The aim of the expedition is to research marine pollution, pay tribute to Norwegian explorer Thor Heyerdahl and investigate pre-historic navigation. As their supernatural patron they chose Tangaroa, the Polynesia god of the Ocean.

This adventure will not only be closely watched by the Tangaroa god, but also by millions of TV spectators around the world. To make this possible, one of the team members is a seasoned videographer, Andres Guara, who documented Thor Heyerdahl's work for many years. While on board, he will be filming from the raft and underwater. Both National Geographic and Discovery have already expressed interest in the documentary.

Although on television it may look like a romantic pleasure cruise, these valiant men have serious challenges to overcome. First, they must travel to the jungles of Ecuador to find the balsa logs used by Heyerdahl as construction materials. Once available in abundance, few of these trees remain today. These logs must be brought out of the jungle on a small river, which has almost run dry, constituting yet another challenge for the 2005 team.

Although the materials are harvested in Ecuador, the construction will take place here in Lima over a period of two months. Once finished, the raft will measure 1 meter larger on both sides than the original (8.5 meters by 15 meters).

Nevertheless, this is still a rather small space to be shared by 6 people who only recently came together. Over the course of the 101-day journey they will inevitably become either friends or foes. Will the team be up to the challenge, or will this journey turn into another “Mutiny on the Bounty?

In light of all these obstacles, the Tangaroa crew has undergone thorough preparation, which includes a detailed plan of action. With a budget of $900,000 provided by Norwegian Ministry of the Environment, the team has laid down the initial groundwork and research to begin the expedition. On their first trip to Lima in November they held a press conference at South American Explorers, with an aim to increase media attention and obtain further funding.

The expedition will depart on the same day Thor Heyerdahl left the port of Callao in Lima - April 28th. It will test 15th century Inca navigational methods and steering techniques and find out the likelihood for the Incas to have traveled the oceans before Columbus had accidentally stumbled upon the American continent. To avoid the fate of the 1947 expedition (which ended up shipwrecked on the Polynesian island Raroia in the Tuamotus Archipelago), the current expedition uses a four-meter Dugard, an Inca method of lowering and raising the steer into the water.

As an additional safety device and also to increase the traveling speed, the raft will be equipped with sails emulating those used by the Vikings. The expedition crew will initially sail against the wind to get on the right hand side of the reef, strategically placing them in the Humboldt current and speeding up the expedition by 2 miles per hour.

The team has spent January on the Nordic ocean practicing their sailing techniques. The expedition team will be back in Lima to find out if Tangaroa is the master of the sea after all. For further information, see the Kon-Tiki Museum website: www.kon-tiki.no

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