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Books > Travel > Travel writing > Expeditions

The Next Horizon - From the Eiger to the South Face of Annapurna (Paperback): Chris Bonington The Next Horizon - From the Eiger to the South Face of Annapurna (Paperback)
Chris Bonington
R477 R452 Discovery Miles 4 520 Save R25 (5%) Ships in 18 - 22 working days

The Next Horizon, the second volume in Chris Bonington's autobiography after I Chose to Climb, picks up his story from 1962 and relates his subsequent adventures as a mountaineer, photographer, journalist and expedition leader alongside eminent climbers including Doug Scott and Don Whillans, throughout an extraordinary decade of adversity, thrill and discovery. The book opens with a journey to Chile to climb the Central Tower of Paine. Bonington then recounts his ascents across the globe; from the Old Man of Hoy in Scotland, the Eiger in Switzerland, to Sangay in Ecuador to name but a few. He concludes in the summer of 1972 with preparations for his ambitious autumn Everest expedition. This revealing narrative of Chris Bonington's experiences provides an insight into the charismatic generation of climbing personalities with whom he travelled, as well as his development into the celebrity we know today.

Annapurna - The First Conquest of an 8000-Metre Peak (Paperback): Maurice Herzog Annapurna - The First Conquest of an 8000-Metre Peak (Paperback)
Maurice Herzog; Introduction by Joe Simpson
R367 R332 Discovery Miles 3 320 Save R35 (10%) Ships in 9 - 17 working days

One of the finest mountaineering books. A phenomenal tale of strength and valour. WITH AN INTRODUCTION BY JOE SIMPSON In 1950, no mountain higher than 8,000 meters had ever been climbed. Maurice Herzog and other members of the French Alpine Club resolved to try. This is the enthralling story of the first conquest of Annapurna and the harrowing descent. With breathtaking courage and grit manifest on every page, Annapurna is one of the greatest adventure stories ever told. As well as an introduction by Joe Simpson, this new edition includes 16 pages of photographs, which provide a remarkable visual record of this legendary expedition. The distinguished French mountaineer Maurice Herzog was leader of the 1950 expedition to Annapurna. He was one of the two climbers to reach the summit.

A Van of One's Own - A Winter Sojourn (Paperback): Biddy Wells A Van of One's Own - A Winter Sojourn (Paperback)
Biddy Wells
R253 R228 Discovery Miles 2 280 Save R25 (10%) Ships in 9 - 17 working days

"Portugal is not all that far away, or exotic, or dangerous, but it felt like a huge stretch for me to leave my partner, family, job and home and just go off. An overland solo trip lasting months in an ancient little campervan was not the kind of thing I did. But it was something I was about to do."In her debut memoir A Van of One's Own, Biddy Wells tells the story of how, propelled by a thirst for peace and quiet, for a modest adventure and, perhaps, for freedom, she left for Portugal on her own, with only her old campervan, Myfawny, and her GPS, Tanya, for company. Having left just about everything behind, her solo trip forces her to face her fears, her past, and herself. The road provides the perfect canvas to connect the dots between a past breakdown and her present need for freedom, as she reflects on her own life, her relationship, her family and the world around her - to see whether her life still has room for her in it. As she meets wise and not-so- wise people, members of the campervan community and friendly locals, her outlook on life begins to shift, and a chance meeting in a bar leads to the person who will put her on the right track.But will she go back home, to Wales?And what is the meaning of 'home? 'A Van of One's Own is a journey through the breath-taking scenery of France, Spain, and finally Portugal, populated by colourful characters and the roar of the ocean, the taste of fresh fish and the grind of the asphalt; but more importantly, it is a journey through past memories and present conflicts to inner peace.

Quondam - Travels in a Once World (Paperback, 2nd New edition): John Devoy Quondam - Travels in a Once World (Paperback, 2nd New edition)
John Devoy
R505 R460 Discovery Miles 4 600 Save R45 (9%) Ships in 9 - 17 working days
The Greatest Explorers - The brave adventurers who risked their lives to understand how our planet works (Paperback): Robin... The Greatest Explorers - The brave adventurers who risked their lives to understand how our planet works (Paperback)
Robin Hanbury-Tenison
R292 R267 Discovery Miles 2 670 Save R25 (9%) Ships in 9 - 17 working days

Throughout history, a handful of unusually driven individuals have been inspired to explore the limits of the known world, inspiring us and changing our perceptions of our planet through their courageous adventures. What is it that makes these men and women risk their lives in desperate, often fatal efforts to discover distant and inaccessible places? Robin Hanbury-Tenison, himself one of the most distinguished explorers of the 20th century, looks at the greatest of their kind in history, bringing their experiences to life in vivid and compelling anecdotes and drawing on their own first-hand accounts. Among the explorers he features are some who are well known, like James Cook and David Livingstone, and some less so, such as Herodotus, the first European to record an expedition and Nain Singh, who walked huge distances to map the forbidden lands of Tibet, counting every pace. And he asks: what was it, and is it, that motivates these unusual people? And how have they enriched our world through their adventures?

The SS Terra Nova (1884-1943) - Whaler, Sealer and Polar Exploration Ship (Paperback): Michael C. Tarver The SS Terra Nova (1884-1943) - Whaler, Sealer and Polar Exploration Ship (Paperback)
Michael C. Tarver
R581 R522 Discovery Miles 5 220 Save R59 (10%) Ships in 9 - 17 working days

SS Terra Nova was most famous for being the vessel to carry the ill-fated 1910 polar expedition led by Robert Falcon Scott, but the story of this memorable ship, built in wood to enable flexibility in the ice, continued until 1943, when she sank off Greenland. This newly designed and updated edition presents the definitive illustrated account of one of the classic polar exploration ships of the 'heroic age'. Put together from accounts recorded by the men who sailed in her, it tells the sixty-year history of a ship built by a famous Scottish shipbuilding yard, in the nineteenth-century days of whaling and sealing before coal gas and electricity replaced animal oils.

From Siena to Nubia - Alessandro Ricci in Egypt and Sudan, 1817-22 (Hardcover): Daniele Salvodi From Siena to Nubia - Alessandro Ricci in Egypt and Sudan, 1817-22 (Hardcover)
Daniele Salvodi; Translated by Daniele Salvodi
R1,568 Discovery Miles 15 680 Ships in 10 - 15 working days

A medical practitioner and talented draftsman, Alessandro Ricci was born in Siena, Italy, at the end of the eighteenth century. He traveled extensively throughout Egypt and Sudan between 1817 and 1822. During his stay, he worked as an epigraphist for Giovanni B. Belzoni in the tomb of Seti I and later entered into the service of British consul general Henry Salt and English explorer William John Bankes, on whose behalf he visited and documented Siwa (1820), Sinai (1820), and Nubia (1818-19 and 1821-22). Ricci also became the physician to Ibrahim Pasha and achieved fame for daringly saving his life during the military campaign that led to Egypt's conquest of Sudan in 1821-22. Upon his return to Italy, Ricci wrote a long account of all his journeys and reworked a series of ninety plates into striking form, yet failed to publish either. In 2009, Daniele Salvoldi identified a complete typewritten copy of Ricci's Travels in the National Archives of Egypt in Cairo. Drawings intended to accompany the text as plates were tracked down in different locations in Italy and the United Kingdom. From Siena to Nubia is the English-translated critical edition, with notes and introductory chapters, of Ricci's travel account, which provides detailed information about the countries he visited, including descriptions of ancient ruins and social customs, botanical and geological remarks, and historical and ethnographical observations. It adds to the recent, growing corpus of exploration literature on nineteenth-century Egypt as well as bringing to light obscure sources important to the early history of Egyptology.

Shackleton - By Endurance We Conquer (Paperback): Michael Smith Shackleton - By Endurance We Conquer (Paperback)
Michael Smith 1
R391 R361 Discovery Miles 3 610 Save R30 (8%) Ships in 9 - 17 working days

In 1922 a journalist commented on British tenacity to General Bruce, leader of the British Everest Expedition. Bruce replied with a single word: 'Shackleton'. Ernest Shackleton is one of history's great explorers, an extraordinary Edwardian character who pioneered the path to the South Pole and became a leading figure in Antarctic discovery. His incredible adventures on four expeditions to the Antarctic have captivated generations. A restless adventurer from an Irish background, he joined the Empire's last great endeavour of exploration - to reach the South Pole with Scott on the Discovery expedition. A clash with Scott led to Shackleton being ordered home and a bitter feud. Shackleton's riposte was the Nimrod expedition, which uncovered the route to the Pole, achieved the first fixing of the South Magnetic Pole, and honed the acclaimed leadership skills which kept despair at bay and encouraged men to overcome unimaginable hardship on the Endurance expedition. But Shackleton was a flawed character whose chaotic private life contrasted with celebrity status as the leading explorer. Persistent money problems left his men unpaid and his family with debts.This first comprehensive biography in a generation brings a fresh perspective to the heroic age of Polar exploration dominated by Shackleton's complex, compelling and enduringly fascinating story.

Everest 1951 - The Mount Everest Reconnaissance Expedition 1951 (Paperback): Eric Shipton Everest 1951 - The Mount Everest Reconnaissance Expedition 1951 (Paperback)
Eric Shipton; Foreword by Stephen Venables
R377 R344 Discovery Miles 3 440 Save R33 (9%) Ships in 18 - 22 working days

In 1953, Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay reached the summit of Mount Everest. They climbed from the south, from Nepal, via the Khumbu Glacier - a route first pioneered in 1951 by a reconnaissance expedition led by Eric Shipton. Everest 1951 is the account of this expedition. It was the first to approach the mountain from the south side, it pioneered a route through the Khumbu icefall and it was the expedition on which Hillary set foot on Everest for the first time. Everest 1951 is a short but vitally important read for anybody with any interest in mountaineering or in Everest. The 1951 Everest Expedition marked the public highpoint of Shipton's mountaineering fame. Key information was discovered and the foundations laid for future success. Despite this, Shipton's critics felt he had a 'lack of trust' and thus failed to match the urgent mood of the period. Despite having been on more Everest expeditions than any man alive, he was 'eased' out of the crucial leadership role in 1953 and so missed the huge public acclaim given to Hillary, Tenzing Norgay and John Hunt after their historic success.

Captain Oates (Paperback): Sue Limb, Patrick Cordingley Captain Oates (Paperback)
Sue Limb, Patrick Cordingley
R497 R455 Discovery Miles 4 550 Save R42 (8%) Ships in 9 - 17 working days

'I am just going outside and may be some time.' With these words, on 17 March 1912, Captain Oates walked out to his death in an Antarctic blizzard and won a place for himself in history as 'a very gallant gentleman'. His reputation for courage and endurance as one of the members of Scott's doomed expedition to the South Pole is as powerful today as it was almost a century ago. Yet, as Sue Limb and Patrick Cordingley reveal in this new edition of their classic biography of the man, there is much more to Captain Oates's life than his final famous act of self-sacrifice. Their work is, as Sir Ranulph Fiennes noted, a 'fascinating character study of a quintessential British hero'.

Crossing the Sands - The Sahara Desert Track to Timbuktu by Citroen Half Track (Hardcover): Ariane Audoin-Debreuil Crossing the Sands - The Sahara Desert Track to Timbuktu by Citroen Half Track (Hardcover)
Ariane Audoin-Debreuil; Translated by Ingrid MacGill
R1,078 R988 Discovery Miles 9 880 Save R90 (8%) Ships in 10 - 15 working days

On December 17, 1922, Andre Citroen sent an expedition of Citroen half tracks or autochenilles to follow the camel tracks across the Sahara desert from Algeria to Timbuktu on the banks of the River Niger. This was the first motorized crossing of the Sahara and took twenty-one days. It permitted the establishment of a land connection between North Africa and the Sudan, at that time extremely isolated, and opened the way for the exploration of the heart of Africa. This first crossing was the culmination of the long, slow penetration of the Sahara by car and plane between 1910 and 1921. During this time, the courageous drivers and pilots of the French military squadrons based in Algeria and Tunisia explored the dunes of the Grand Erg and Tanezrouft, sometimes losing their lives, but they paved the way for this first, victorious Citroen expedition. To reconstruct the history of this Crossing of the Sands, Ariane Audouin-Dubreuil has delved into the diaries and archives of her father who was one of the pioneers of the exploration of the Sahara during those years. Along with Georges Marie Haardt, Andre Citroen's close collaborator and partner, he planned and led the expedition which succeeded in reaching Timbuktu, and then returned by a different route to Algeria. The book is rich in wonderful period photographs and vividly recounts the dangers and difficulties of exploration in those times. First published in French in 2005, the book has now been translated into English by Dalton Watson Fine Books.

Travel and Adventure in South-East Africa (Paperback): Frederick Courteney Selous Travel and Adventure in South-East Africa (Paperback)
Frederick Courteney Selous
R1,532 Discovery Miles 15 320 Ships in 10 - 15 working days

Frederick Courteney Selous (1851-1917) was a British explorer, officer, hunter, and conservationist, famous for his work in south-east Africa. In early 1882 he embarked on an eleven-year expedition to record species that, to his great sadness, were becoming endangered. First published in 1893, these revealing memoirs document the wildlife, landscapes and people that characterised his journey. Through vivid descriptions and extensive illustrations, he recalls exhilarating adventures with lions, leopards, hyenas and crocodiles, recounts challenging treks across lakes and mountains, and describes hostile - and at times barbaric - encounters with native peoples. Detailed accounts of hunting endeavours, colonial institutions, and commercial enterprises such as gold mining, also feature in this study, which provides a unique and diverse perspective on Africa in the late nineteenth century. Insightful and revealing, Selous' experiences remain of enduring interest to geographers, anthropologists, zoologists, and all those interested in African history and culture.

Arabia Felix (Paperback, Main): Colin Thubron, James McFarlane, Kathleen McFarlane, Thorkild Hansen Arabia Felix (Paperback, Main)
Colin Thubron, James McFarlane, Kathleen McFarlane, Thorkild Hansen 1
R517 R470 Discovery Miles 4 700 Save R47 (9%) Ships in 9 - 17 working days
Mingming II & the Impossible Voyage (Paperback): Roger D. Taylor Mingming II & the Impossible Voyage (Paperback)
Roger D. Taylor
R378 R346 Discovery Miles 3 460 Save R32 (8%) Ships in 9 - 17 working days

Far to the north of Russia, across the cold waters of the Barents Sea, lies the desolate archipelago known as Franz Josef Land. Hidden away still further to the north and west of those islands is one of the most inaccessible and least known seas on this planet - the Queen Victoria Sea. In his fifth book of voyages, Roger Taylor describes his successful attempt to sail singlehanded into those lonely and usually icebound waters in his largely self-built and engineless yacht Mingming II. On the way he weathers the most northerly point of the Svalbard islands before sailing due east along 81 DegreesNorth to the north-west coast of Franz Josef Land. Pack-ice would normally render such a route impossible. This voyage, which linked the endpoints of Taylor's two previous Arctic voyages to the north-west and north-east of Svalbard, marks the culmination of nearly fifty years of small-boat ocean sailing.

Peary's Arctic Quest - Untold Stories from Robert E. Peary's North Pole Expeditions (Paperback): Susan Kaplan,... Peary's Arctic Quest - Untold Stories from Robert E. Peary's North Pole Expeditions (Paperback)
Susan Kaplan, Genevieve Lemoine
R613 Discovery Miles 6 130 Ships in 10 - 15 working days

This richly illustrated book takes a different angle on Robert E. Peary's North Pole expedition. By shifting the focus away from the unanswerable question of whether he truly reached 90 North Latitude, the authors shed light on equally important stories and discoveries that arose as a result of the infamous expedition. Peary's Arctic Quest ventures beyond the well-cited story of Peary's expedition and uncovers the truth about race relations, womens' scientific contributions, and climate change that are still relevant today. Readers will gain a greater appreciation for Peary's methodical and creative mind, the Inughuit's significant contributions to Arctic exploration, and the impact of Western expedition activity on the Inughuit community. The volume will also feature artifacts, drawings, and historic photographs with informative captions to tell little-known stories about Peary's 1908-1909 North Pole expedition.

Captain James Cook and the Search for Antarctica (Paperback): James C Hamilton Captain James Cook and the Search for Antarctica (Paperback)
James C Hamilton
R551 R498 Discovery Miles 4 980 Save R53 (10%) Out of stock

Two hundred and fifty years ago Captain James Cook, during his extraordinary voyages of navigation and maritime exploration, searched for Antarctica - the Unknown Southern Continent. During parts of his three voyages in the southern Pacific and Southern Oceans, Cook 'narrowed the options' for the location of Antarctica. Over three summers, he completed a circumnavigation of portions of the Southern Continent, encountering impenetrable barriers of ice, and he suggested the continent existed, a frozen land not populated by a living soul. Yet his Antarctic voyages are perhaps the least studied of all his remarkable travels. That is why James Hamilton's gripping and scholarly study, which brings together the stories of Cook's Antarctic journeys into a single volume, is such an original and timely addition to the literature on Cook and eighteenth-century exploration. Using Cook's journals and the log books of officers who sailed with him, the book sets his Antarctic explorations within the context of his historic voyages. The main focus is on the Second Voyage (1772-1775), but brief episodes in the First Voyage (during 1769) and the Third Voyage (1776) are part of the story. Throughout the narrative Cook's exceptional seamanship and navigational skills, and that of his crew, are displayed during often-difficult passages in foul weather across uncharted and inhospitable seas. Captain James Cook and the Search for Antarctica offers the reader a fascinating insight into Cook the seaman and explorer, and it will be essential reading for anyone who has a particular interest the history of the Southern Continent.

The Hot Chicken Project - Words + Recipes | Obsession + Salvation (Hardcover): Aaron Turner The Hot Chicken Project - Words + Recipes | Obsession + Salvation (Hardcover)
Aaron Turner
R652 Discovery Miles 6 520 Ships in 10 - 15 working days

An exploration and celebration of an iconic Southern food and culture. The Hot Chicken Project is part recipe book (40 recipes covering the best mains, sandwiches, sides, salads and sauces), part narrative, part pictorial celebration of the history and power hot chicken holds over the city of Nashville - and beyond. It frames the stories of the people and families and communities who have cooked and eaten and appropriated it in Nashville over several generations. It offers a loud, opinionated take-no-prisoners perspective on food culture in the US (and beyond) today, as well as being an incomparable how-to manual for the VERY best hot chicken and accompaniments - wherever you are.

Murder in the Hindu Kush - George Hayward and the Great Game (Paperback, 2nd edition): Tim Hannigan Murder in the Hindu Kush - George Hayward and the Great Game (Paperback, 2nd edition)
Tim Hannigan
R380 R349 Discovery Miles 3 490 Save R31 (8%) Ships in 10 - 15 working days

On a bright July morning in 1870 the British explorer George Hayward was brutally murdered high in the Hindu Kush. Who was he, what had brought him to this wild spot, and why was he killed? Told in full for the first time, this is the gripping tale of Hayward's journey from a Yorkshire childhood to a place at the forefront of the 'Great Game' between the British Raj and the Russian Empire, and of how, driven by 'an insane desire', he crossed the Western Himalayas, tangled with despotic chieftains and ended up on the wrong side of both the Raj and the mighty Maharaja of Kashmir. It is also the tale of the conspiracies that surrounded his death, while the author's own travels in Hayward's footsteps bring the story up to date, and reveal how the echoes of the Great Game still reverberate across Central Asiain the twenty-first century.

Birdie Bowers - Captain Scott's Marvel (Paperback): Anne Strathie Birdie Bowers - Captain Scott's Marvel (Paperback)
Anne Strathie
R491 R447 Discovery Miles 4 470 Save R44 (9%) Ships in 9 - 17 working days

Henry 'Birdie' Bowers realised his life's ambition when he was selected for Captain Scott's Terra Nova expedition to the Antarctic, yet he also met his death on the journey. Born to a sea-faring father and adventurous mother on the Firth of Clyde, Bowers' boyhood obsession with travel and adventure took him round the world several times and his life appears, with hindsight, to have been a ceaseless preparation for his ultimate, Antarctic challenge. Although just 5ft 4in, he was a bundle of energy; knowledgeable, indefatigable and the ultimate team player. In Scott's words, he was 'a marvel'. This new biography, drawing on Bowers' letters, journals and previously neglected material, sheds new light on Bowers and tells the full story of the hardy naval officer who could always lift his companions' spirits.

Eastbound through Siberia - Observations from the Great Northern Expedition (Paperback): Jonathan C Slaght Eastbound through Siberia - Observations from the Great Northern Expedition (Paperback)
Jonathan C Slaght; Georg Wilhelm Steller; Translated by Margritt A Engel, Karen E Willmore
R953 Discovery Miles 9 530 Ships in 18 - 22 working days

In the winter of 1739, Georg Steller received word from Empress Anna of Russia that he was to embark on a secret expedition to the far reaches of Siberia as a member of the Great Northern Expedition. While searching for economic possibilities and strategic advantages, Steller was to send back descriptions of everything he saw. The Empress's instructions were detailed, from requests for a preserved whale brain to observing the child-rearing customs of local peoples, and Steller met the task with dedication, bravery, and a good measure of humor. In the name of science, Steller and his comrades confronted horse-swallowing bogs, leaped across ice floes, and survived countless close calls in their exploration of an unforgiving environment. Not stopping at lists of fishes, birds, and mammals, Steller also details the villages and the lives of those living there, from vice-governors to prostitutes. His writings rail against government corruption and the misuse of power while describing with empathy the lives of the poor and forgotten, with special attention toward Native peoples. What emerges is a remarkable window into life—both human and animal—in 18th century Siberia. Due to the secret nature of the expedition, Steller's findings were hidden in Russian archives for centuries, but the near-daily entries he recorded on journeys from the town of Irkutsk to Kamchatka are presented here in English for the first time.

Franklin - Tragic Hero of Polar Navigation (Paperback, Main): Andrew Lambert Franklin - Tragic Hero of Polar Navigation (Paperback, Main)
Andrew Lambert 1
R309 Discovery Miles 3 090 Ships in 10 - 15 working days

In 1845 Captain Sir John Franklin led a large, well equipped expedition to complete the conquest of the Canadian Arctic, to find the fabled North West Passage connecting the North Atlantic to the North Pacific. Yet Franklin, his ships and his men were fated never to return. The cause of their loss remains a mystery. In Franklin, Andrew Lambert presents a gripping account of the worst catastrophe in the history of British exploration, and the dark tales of cannibalism that surround the fate of those involved. Shocked by the disappearance of all 129 officers and men, and sickened by reports of cannibalism, the Victorians re-created Franklin as the brave Christian hero who laid down his life, and those of his men. Later generations have been more sceptical about Franklin and his supposed selfless devotion to duty. But does either view really explain why this outstanding scientific navigator found his ships trapped in pack ice seventy miles from magnetic north? In 2014 Canadian explorers discovered the remains of Franklin's ship. His story is now being brought to a whole new generation, and Andrew Lambert's book gives the best analysis of what really happened to the crew. In its incredible detail and its arresting narrative, Franklin re-examines the life and the evidence with Lambert's customary brilliance and authority. In this riveting story of the Arctic, he discovers a new Franklin: a character far more complex, and more truly heroic, than previous histories have allowed. '[A]nother brilliant piece of research combined with old-fashioned detective work . . . utterly compelling.' Dr Amanda Foreman

Sherpa Hospitality as a Cure for Frostbite - A personal perspective on the tigers of Himalayan mountaineering (Paperback): Mark... Sherpa Hospitality as a Cure for Frostbite - A personal perspective on the tigers of Himalayan mountaineering (Paperback)
Mark Horrell; Foreword by Alex Roddie
R299 Discovery Miles 2 990 Ships in 18 - 22 working days
With Scott in the Antarctic - Edward Wilson: Explorer, Naturalist, Artist (Paperback): Isobel Williams With Scott in the Antarctic - Edward Wilson: Explorer, Naturalist, Artist (Paperback)
Isobel Williams
R579 R520 Discovery Miles 5 200 Save R59 (10%) Ships in 9 - 17 working days

The first full biography of the Antarctic hero who accompanied Robert Falcon Scott on his celebrated expeditions This first full account of the last exploration artist traces his life from childhood to his tragic death. Edward Wilson (1872-1912) accompanied Scott on both the Discovery Expedition of 1901-1904 and the Terra Nova Expedition of 1910-1913. Wilson served as junior surgeon and zoologist on "Discovery" and, on this expedition, with Scott and Ernest Shackleton he set a new Furthest South on December 30, 1902. He was chief of scientific staff on the Terra Nova Expedition and reached the South Pole with Scott, Lawrence Oates, Henry Robertson Bowers, and Edgar Evans on January 18, 1912, arriving there four weeks after the Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen. Wilson and his four companions died on the return journey. Trained as a physician, Wilson was also a skilled artist. His drawings and paintings lavishly illustrated both expeditions. He was the last major exploration artist; technological developments in the field of photography were soon to make cameras practical as a way of recording journeys into the unknown.

Running The Orient (Paperback): Running The Orient (Paperback)
R335 R318 Discovery Miles 3 180 Save R17 (5%) Ships in 9 - 17 working days

Armed with a toilet trowel and a converted Mazda Bongo called Roxy, self-styled 'ordinary' ultrarunner, Gavin Boyter, embarks on his latest long-distance challenge: to run the 3400km from Paris to Istanbul along the route of the world's most illustrious railway journey, the Orient Express. And, despite work on Roxy having hampered his training programme, Gavin remains undeterred and plans to run through eight countries, to cross 180 rivers and to ascend 16,500 metres, through forests, mountains, plains and major cities - aided all the way by temperamental mapping technology and the ever encouraging support of his girlfriend, Aradhna. En route, Gavin will pass through urban edgelands and breathtaking scenery, battlefields and private estates, industrial plants and abandoned villages, and on through a drawn-back Iron Curtain where the East meets West. He will encounter packs of snarling, feral dogs, wild boar, menacing cows, and a herd of hundreds of deer. But he will also meet many fascinating characters, including a German, leg-slapping masseuse, music-loving Austrian farmers, middle-class Romanians, itinerant Romanies, stoic soldiers, and boisterous Turks. However, confined to the cramped conditions of Roxy, and each other's company, Gavin and Aradhna's journey is not only a test of the endurance and stamina required to put in the hard miles, but of their relationship, too. After all, if they can survive this challenge, they can survive anything. But will Gavin's legs make it all the way to Istanbul, where he has planned a special surprise for Aradhna?

Northbound and Down - Alaska to Mexico by Bicycle (Paperback): Otto Ecroyd Northbound and Down - Alaska to Mexico by Bicycle (Paperback)
Otto Ecroyd
R293 R268 Discovery Miles 2 680 Save R25 (9%) Ships in 9 - 17 working days

When Otto Ecroyd embarked on a voyage to sail a broken boat from Norway to France - and failed - he decided to do what any other hapless adventurer would do: cycle from Alaska to Mexico. But, as Otto says, he 'had never ridden further than across town.' So, with no experience, the wrong type of bike and with panniers overflowing with lentils, Otto pedals across vast American landscapes, cowers from juggernaut RVs, and all the while wonders when he will next meet a grizzly bear. En route, Otto's wit and self-deprecating charm ensure he wins many friends, from an array of regional characters, to a cosmopolitan mix of fellow long-distance cyclists, each with their own motivation for riding the hard miles. With some, he cycles leisurely in tandem; with others, in lungbusting sprints; and with others still, in bedraggled pelotons. But then, this is no grand depart from the daily grind to the upper echelons of sport, for Otto is not in it for the competition - just the adventure of a lifetime. Northbound and Down isn't Ranulph Fiennes crossing Antarctica, or 'The Man Who Cycled the World'. It's more entertaining than that. Three months in North America, 100km a day on a bike. The places, the people, the misadventures of the journey. Like a Bill Bryson book if Bill stayed out of the pub once in a while. The local wildlife in the northern frontier. The moose, the bears, the refugees from 'The Lower 48' states. The characters in cowboy country. People who defy any stereotype of heartland America, and those who definitely don't. Down the Pacific Coast, redwood forests, hippie surf towns, mansions and homeless camps. Californian plastic perfection and the weirdness of the American dream. The preparation for cycling 5,000 miles was questionable at best. The furthest Otto had ridden before landing in Anchorage was from London to Brighton. He rode through a golf course and along a motorway, did laps of Gatwick airport and rolled into Brighton two hours late, ready for bed. He learned how to fix a puncture from YouTube and discovered that not all Porsche drivers are dickheads. Otto's touring skills start from a low base. The steep learning curve and daily struggles with reality on the road bring humour to the book. The challenge and the shared experience with people along the way leads to a lasting sense of the rewards of adventure. Otto's motivations for embarking on this adventure were relatable ones. He was bored at work, too old to get wasted in every hostel in Latin America and too poor for a proper mid-life crisis. This is the story of a normal guy breaking out of the daily grind. Cheryl Strayed's 'Wild', but inspired by a struggle against a life on autopilot rather than a life collapsing. A whole middle class, middle career and middle fulfilled generation is in a similar position. They are searching for inspiration. Northbound and Down gives them a taste of this, without having to miss a mortgage payment. Northbound and Down is the everyman's take on breaking the everyday.

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