Building Tule Boats - November 2012

The Original San Francisco Bay Water Trail 
November 17,  2012

A few centuries ago, several tribes in California made canoe-like boats from bundles of tule (reeds) that had been cut, dried and woven together. These tule boats, and sometimes rafts, were used for hunting, fishing and transportation in and around San Francisco Bay.

I became interested in tule boats when I saw them on display in museums and visitors centers during my 1,000 mile walk around San Francisco Bay, following the San Francisco Bay Trail. I was fortunate to find a few people last month (November 2012) who knew how to build tule boats, and was able to witness two tule boats come to life on a drizzly Saturday in Marin County.

Charles Kennard, studied basket weaving with a Pomo Indian woman, and applies tools and weaving techniques he learned to the art of tule boat building. "Reed boats are a natural extension of basketry," and a "practical test of one's skills," he explained. He built his first tule boat in 1997 and has, more recently, taken boats out on Corte Madera Creek and where the watershed meets the Bay.

It turns out Kennard built some of the tule boats I saw on my walk around the bay. I caught up with him at a workshop for a group of students participating in an Aim High program in the Tennessee Valley area (west of area shown on Marin area map) about a mile inland from the Pacific Ocean.

I arrived mid-way in the boat construction process, taking place inside a large horse barn. The barn had plenty of covered space to build two tule boats. A previously built canoe-style tule boat was suspended against one wall.

The students were working quickly in teams, and bundles were coming together on the floor.  Rope was being braided and readied to help tie bundles together. Snippets of tule and rope covered the wood floor, along with bits of straw from hay bales. Horses gazed out from their stalls at the work in progress.

While cutting and drying of the tule had happened earlier, I was amazed that two boats could be built and taken out on the water in one day. The materials used were simple but very effective. A carved deer bone tool, that looked perfectly shaped for the job, was used to help fasten or weave bundles together. The bottom and sides of the boat came together quickly.

The front end of this particular boat design came to a high point and the back had a chopped off look. I was told that there were likely at least four different tule boat designs that were used in San Francisco Bay Area. (Other tule boats, and in fact whole tule islands, can be found in Mexico, Peru and other countries.)

I asked Kennard why tules were so well suited for boats. "The interior of the stems consist of narrow, 1/2 inch long air-filled cells, making them buoyant," he explained. That was a good description of the structural advantage of tule. However, it doesn't fully explain the emotional connection one feels in actually creating and floating in one of these craft, as I was about to experience. This feeling, Kennard later commented, was not unusual; and he credits the elemental and historic nature of the material for inspiring this connection. I couldn't help but wonder if we'd lost something of value (such as working with free, sustainable resources, with our own hands) over time.

Once completed, the boats were inspected, loose tule ends were trimmed with a knife. And the boats were carefully lifted and carried outside to a truck, where they were loaded, placed together, on their sides. Boats and students were transported to a large pond toward (but inland from) the beach. Life jackets were donned, safety instructions given, and kayak paddles were used to help maneuver boats into the water.

It was a joy to watch the students experience being afloat and learning how to direct the boats. After all the students were finished taking a turn, I was able to take a short paddle around the pond. It was wonderful. The boat felt sturdy, stable and maneuverable, and I really appreciated the opportunity. A big thank you to Charles Kennard; Richard Lautze and Elizabeth from Aim High; and all the students (former students and staff) who did such a great job creating the boats.

Image of San Francisco Bay Water Trail map is from San Francisco Bay Water Trail website.