- Paperback: 368 pages
- Publisher: Lyons Press; First edition (Sep 1 2002)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 1585747300
- ISBN-13: 978-1585747306
- Product Dimensions: 23.1 x 16 x 2.3 cm
- Shipping Weight: 603 g
- Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (26 customer reviews)
-
Amazon Bestsellers Rank:
#509,435 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #54 in Books > Sports > Winter Sports > Polar Regions
- #62 in Books > Outdoors & Nature > Outdoor Recreation > Polar Regions
|
||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
Product Details |
Product Description
From Amazon
When Jonathan Waterman set out to cross the Arctic Circle by way of kayak, cross-country skis, and a dogsled, he was less interested in conquering the 2,200 miles between the Pacific and Atlantic oceans than in learning to live as the Inuit had before him (Inuit, for The People, is the name Canadian Eskimos prefer). Good thing, for the Arctic, as revealed in this candid and engrossing travelogue, is no place for jock-style adventure. Over the course of three summers, Waterman paddled through storms, capsized in 39-degree water, blacked out, and was bitten by thousands of mosquitoes, smoked out by exploding underground seams of coal, and chased by a grizzly bear. The land was so vast and empty that swans and bears vanished before him, ice chunks appeared as kayaks, and driftwood morphed into people in a disorienting series of mirages. Perhaps most challenging of all for Waterman was spending weeks at a time in this setting without seeing another soul. Under these circumstances, he had no choice but to draw on remnant instincts to avoid disaster, forget about time and goals, and to connect deeply to "the Earth and Its Great Weather," as the Inuit say. "Any committed adventurer eventually learns that equipment and performance are just a means to that greater end of finding your place in the natural world," writes Waterman, who proves he is willing to go the extra thousand miles for a moment of insight.
Of course, he also experiences moments of unparalleled serenity--caribou trotting out to his boat, belugas spouting around him, grizzlies on the shore--and creates warm friendships with the Inuit themselves, who have changed radically since their own days of traveling by kayak and dogsled. Waterman works admirably to understand The People without judging them, though he is discouraged by what he finds left of the culture he emulates--communities caught in a "depraved limbo, somewhere between paradise and tuberculosis." As with the Arctic itself, the Inuit turn out to be more complex in reality--and ultimately more appealing--than in mythology. Waterman's stark and satisfying account excels in its ability to grapple with the human condition while illuminating a mystical world inaccessible to the rest of us. --Lesley Reed --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
From Publishers Weekly
In 1997, Waterman (In the Shadow of Denali) embarked on a series of solo journeys across the arctic, taking the southernmost water route through Canada's northern islands. During the first summer, he went west, from the Mackenzie River delta to Prudhoe Bay in Alaska. In ensuing springs and summers, he completed his 2,200 mile odyssey, proceeding east in stages from the Mackenzie delta to Lord Mayor Bay. Waterman made most of the trips by kayak, but walked across the Eskimo lakes and took one snowmobile side trip with Inuit guides. He vividly portrays the arctic landscape, people, weather and wildlife, but as he reiterates ad infinitum, his goal was to experience solitude in the wilderness, and much of the book consists of self-absorbed ruminations on braving arctic waters alone in a kayak and pulling a sled across frozen lakes and tundra with only a dog for company. Waterman admits that he didn't get all that close to wilderness since he was supported by a wealth of modern technologies, from a Gore-Tex dry suit to a specially constructed kayak, and could fly home any time. His encounters with the Inuit and his candid observations of their culture and poverty-stricken, often brutal lifestyle provide the most interesting passages. Interwoven discussions of arctic explorers, the history of the Northwest Passage and the Hudson Bay Company, relations between the Inuit and the Canadian government, and anthropologists who have studied the Inuit flesh out his narrative. Though there is no map to help the reader follow his complex itinerary, Waterman includes appendixes of the birds and animals he saw, a Canadian arctic cultures timeline, a section on Inuit language and an extensive bibliography. 85 b&w photos and illus.
Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Tag this product(What's this?)Think of a tag as a keyword or label you consider is strongly related to this product.
Tags will help all customers organize and find favorite items. |
Customer Reviews
|
Share your thoughts with other customers:
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Most helpful customer reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
buy this book,
By A Customer
This review is from: Arctic Crossing (Hardcover)
Jon Waterman is a writer who belongs between the hardcovers. His explorations and introspection make for compelling reading.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Articulate Adventurer,
By
This review is from: Arctic Crossing (Hardcover)
Who was it who said, "less is more"? That's one truth that stands out in Jonathan Waterman's "Artic Crossing" - a epical solo trip of the Northwest Passage done without fanfare, without oodles of sponsorship dough. I liked the author's cool, understated writing style, the wry observations about his sufferings and about the Inuits. No hyperbole, none of self-inflation that is so common in adventure writing, this book is truly believable. A wonderful read.
5.0 out of 5 stars
excellent book,
By A Customer
This review is from: Arctic Crossing (Hardcover)
in Arctic Crossing Jonathan Waterman, Kabloona extraordinaire gives us a a great gift. This guy can write, this guy can listen to the silence, this guy can paddle,hike, take in the wonder and freezing cold andbring it back home to those of us all warm in our living rooms. this guy is amazing.
Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
Want to see more reviews on this item?
|
Most recent customer reviews |
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
- Books > History > Americas > Canada > First Nations
- Books > History > Canada > First Nations
- Books > Outdoors & Nature > Outdoor Recreation > Polar Regions
- Books > Outdoors & Nature > Travel > Adventure
- Books > Sports > Winter Sports > Polar Regions
- Books > Travel > Canada
- Books > Travel > Polar Regions > Arctic
- Books > Travel > Reference & Tips > Essays & Travelogues
- Books > Travel > Specialty Travel > Adventure
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
