Endurance....

[Dayvo]

If you’re looking for a true, old-fashioned adventure tale, this should be right up your street.

Goran Kropp, a Swedish adventurer, set out from Stockholm, Sweden on a Crescent Ultima bicycle and traveled 5 months and 8,000 miles carrying 240 lbs. of gear with him. He ascended Mt. Everest in May 1996, unassisted and without the use of supplemental oxygen, days after the tragedy that claimed 8 climbers. He then returned to Stockholm on his bicycle. The entire trip took one year. This is his account of his training, preparation, and accomplishment of the most self-sufficient combined approach and climb of Mt. Everest ever. Kropp has a tremendous zest for life and has been mountain climbing since he was a child. His philosophy is to approach the mountains on their own terms.

 

[Ming the Merciless]

Wow brilliant, I’ll watch the videos tomorrow.

 

[lazybloke]

I was gripped by Antarctic exploration books a few years ago.

The tragic logs/diaries from Scott's "Terra Nova" expedition. https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/11579
Shackleton's amazing account "South" https://standardebooks.org/ebooks/ernest-shackleton/south

Both are fascinating, but the Shackleton story is an incredible feat of human endeavour.

 

[raleighnut]

I was sad when I heard they'd shot McNish's Cat,

https://www.historyhit.com/mrs-chippy-shackletons-seafaring-cat/

McNish never forgave him.

 

[Blue Hills]

Why me!

not getting at you classic - it wasn't one of those "nasty nudges" - I had the idea that you'd made some comment about professional/private but was too lazy to scroll back and make a specific reply to your point - also doing so may have seemed a bit negative. As I said I may be mistaken - just a dim memory of something I thought I had read once.

 

[classic33]

not getting at you classic - it wasn't one of those "nasty nudges" - I had the idea that you'd made some comment about professional/private but was too lazy to scroll back and make a specific reply to your point - also doing so may have seemed a bit negative. As I said I may be mistaken - just a dim memory of something I thought I had read once.

I know one of the crew on that voyage was from my home town. Not certain if I posted that before.
You had me wondering what I'd posted on this thread, but found nothing. Now wondering what I may have posted before.
Never thought you were having a go, you got me wondering now.

 

[Tail End Charlie]

I started reading the book by Frank Worsley only a week ago, what a coincidence.

I was sad when I heard they'd shot McNish's Cat,

https://www.historyhit.com/mrs-chippy-shackletons-seafaring-cat/

McNish never forgave him.

And I believe Shackleton didn't forgive McNish for questioning his orders on one occasion (it's suggested that Shackleton threatened to shoot him) and hence didn't recommend that he (McNish) should gain recognition and awards like the other members. Whereas realistically, without both McNish and Worsley it wouldn't have ended as it did. Worsley because of his navigational skills and McNish for his carpentry skills.

 

[Ming the Merciless]

Another good book to read

 

[Blue Hills]

I know one of the crew on that voyage was from my home town. Not certain if I posted that before.
You had me wondering what I'd posted on this thread, but found nothing. Now wondering what I may have posted before.
Never thought you were having a go, you got me wondering now.

my wondering aside was related to this line of yours classic:

Strange thing is that though he did such a great job of planning and leading his expeditions his private life was a complete shambles.

I had the idea (may be mistaken as I said) that some of his other public ventures weren't necessarily as well planned/organised as they might have been.

 

[Tail End Charlie]

Some of these exploits are so extreme I find it difficult to understand what drives them.
I recall reading a book by Ranulph Fiennes and he talks about his expeditions (which are very varied) and on one of them he's crossing Antarctica and describes how he fell into the water. He and his partner (Stroud) knew they had only three or four minutes to get him out, which they managed, then Stroud had to put up the tent unaided, and light the cooker to basically defrost Fiennes. He describes this is some detail over a few pages. Then adds the throwaway remark, "over the next couple of weeks this happened to each of us four or five times". Baffling.

 

[tyred]

For anyone interested in the Antarctic explorations, I would highly recommend a trip to a theatre to see this superb one man play based on the life of Tom Crean https://www.tomcreanshow.com/
One of the best bits of theatre that I've ever seen and really informative, very moving yet funny in places.

 

[MichaelW2]

The James Caird, the small boat in which Shakleton made that incredible rescue voyage, could until quite recently be seen in one of the cloisters at Dulwich College in SE London. You could just wander in off the street/south circular (or at least casual folks like me could) and look at it. When leading SE London rides I used to sometimes take folk in to see it. The door wasn't usually locked.

It's now been moved and you have to make an appointment to see it.

Shackleton was an old boy of Dulwich. Motley roll call they've got - so were Raymond Chandler and Nigel Farage.

@classic33 I may be mistaken/may be false memory but I have an idea that Shackleton's professional life, his incredible rescue mission notwithstanding, might not have been so smooth/trouble free either.

James Caird was adapted by ship's carpenter Henry McNish to withstand the crossing of the Southern Ocean.
Also on the crossing was polar veteran Tom Crean. If you ever tour in Kerry, drop into the South Pole pub in Annascaul.

 

[twentysix by twentyfive]

Shackleton

 

[rockyroller]

I don't read many actual books. but when I do, it's non-fiction. I love stories of adventure, such as "Into Thin Air" "The Perfect Storm" and a book about Shackleton (don't remember the title) but the harrowing & almost unthinkable things they did to survive was just astonishing. see that video today of the wreck was so exciting. I guess they can't raise it & stick it in a museum, eh?

watched the movie "Into the Light" yesterday & I wish it was based on a book. it's the kind of book I would read. the movie is loosely based on real life & at the end of the movie they tell what happened to the characters over time after the war. in case others are interested:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Into_the_White
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1876277/

 

[Fab Foodie]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-60662541

They've found his ship

keep-up at the back!