Australia's Strangest Mysteries #2


John Pinkney - 2012
    Someone [the murderer?] had covered him with a small strip of carpet.Nearby, in a ditch,lay Mrs Chandler - her face and torso bafflingly blanketed in beer cartons.The discovery made international headlines. It swiftly emerged that Dr Bogle, a brilliant specialist in solid state physics, had recently accepted a research post in Washington – and had been preparing to fly there, with his wife and children. Mrs Chandler, who’d worked as a nurse before her marriage, had been at the same New Year’s party with Gilbert Bogle the evening before. They had left separately.Scientists found that the pair had died of acute heart failure – but they could suggest no cause. There were no signs of violence: no smothering or strangulation; no hypodermic marks; no evidence, in the body tissues, of poisons, or radioactive substances of any kind.From the morning the bodies were found, the Bogle-Chandler conundrum would perplex the law’s keenest forensic minds...

Renegade Car Camping: A Guide to Free Campsites and the Ultimate Road Trip Experience


Bryan Snyder - 2016
    Learn how to locate primitive hot springs, navigate the Couchsurfing website, and stay clean, well-fed, and digitally-connected.With over two decades of experience in extended cross-country travel, Bryan and his intrepid Jeep Charlie have amassed a wealth of information and organizational techniques that will keep you healthy and relaxed on the road while avoiding unnecessary expenses.It’s a beautiful country… why wait any longer to see it? Pick up Renegade Car Camping and start planning your next adventure!FAQQ: Will there be a listing of free campsites state-by-state in future editions?A: No, and for good reason. Listing these overlooked areas would cause them to be quickly destroyed through overuse. But once you read the tips in the Renegade Car Camping guide, you’ll easily find some secret, special campsites on your own. And besides, part of the fun of being a renegade camper lies in the thrill of campsite hunting!

How To Shoot An Amateur Naturalist


Gerald Durrell - 1984
    After a year's work on that program, covering 49,000 miles, the film crew had learned a lot of natural history, and Durrell had a new appreciation of filmmaking. This story of the journeys is vintage Durrell: breezy and entertaining as he recounts misadventures and the problems of filming wild animals, serious in his plea for conservation. The Durrells' travels took them from the English countryside to New York City, from the Shetland Islands to South Africa, to the rain forest of Panama and Arizona's Sonoran desert, to the Canadian Rockies and the island of Corfu. (Summary from Goodreads)

Yak Girl: Growing Up in the Remote Dolpo Region of Nepal


Dorje Dolma - 2018
    Life above 13,000 feet in northern Dolpo--often called the last paradise because of its breathtaking snow-capped peaks, untouched beauty, and hand-irrigated green pastures--was one of constant risk and harsh survival. In the 1980s, Dolpo had no running water, electricity, motor vehicles, phones, school, or doctors, other than the local lamas, trained in the use of herbs and prayer. Dorje Dolma's life centered around the care of her numerous younger brothers and sisters and the family's sheep, goats, and yaks. At age five she began herding and was soon taking the animals high in the mountains, where she fought off predatory wolves and snow leopards. Covering her first ten years, the story takes Dorje from her primitive mountain village to the bewildering city of Kathmandu, and finally to a new home in America, where she receives life-saving surgery. With humor, soul, and insightful detail, the author gives us vividly told vignettes of daily life and the practice of centuries-old Tibetan traditions. She details the heartbreaking trials, natural splendors, and familial joys of growing up in this mysterious, faraway part of the world with its vanishing culture. The sharp increase in recent years of western trekkers to the area, and the introduction of modern communication and transportation, is causing rapid change in Dolpo. This wonderful and surprising tale of survival, loss, and self-reflection offers us entry to this difficult, yet magical, place. Above all, this is the inspiring story of an indomitable spirit conquering all obstacles, a tale of a girl with a disability on her way to becoming a dynamic woman in a new world.

A Wall of White: The True Story of Heroism and Survival in the Face of a Deadly Avalanche


Jennifer Woodlief - 2009
    A Wall of White: The True Story of Heroism and Survival in the Face of a Deadly Avalanche

100 Hikes in Northwest Oregon & Southwest Washington


William L. Sullivan - 2006
    A color wildflower identification guide is included in the 20 pages of color photos. The back of the book includes brief descriptions of 109 more hikes.

When Eagles Roar: The Amazing Journey of an African Wildlife Adventurer


James Alexander Currie - 2014
    James captures the essence of what it means to be African today, facing everything from the Big Five to the vestiges of apartheid to the AIDS epidemic. He provides authoritative information on African wildlife and illustrates hair-raising encounters with lions, buffalo, leopards, elephants, rhinoceros and snakes through exciting and humorous stories. The book follows James’s journey from city boy to conservationist and shows what it takes to become an African game ranger. From his first graphic encounter with the brutality of nature on Table Mountain in South Africa to his disappearance as a boy on safari in Malawi to the rigorous training he underwent to become a game ranger at Phinda Private Game Reserve, this book will delight and educate anyone fascinated with nature, wildlife, travel and adventure. James provides wonderful insights into African conservation and a fascinating glimpse into the importance of cross-cultural relationships in Africa’s wildlife tourism environment. He details his own inner journey overcoming physical challenges and finding the balance between following passions and what’s important in life.

In a Sunburned Country


Bill Bryson - 2000
    His previous excursion along the Appalachian Trail resulted in the sublime national bestseller A Walk in the Woods. In A Sunburned Country is his report on what he found in an entirely different place: Australia, the country that doubles as a continent, and a place with the friendliest inhabitants, the hottest, driest weather, and the most peculiar and lethal wildlife to be found on the planet. The result is a deliciously funny, fact-filled, and adventurous performance by a writer who combines humor, wonder, and unflagging curiousity.Despite the fact that Australia harbors more things that can kill you in extremely nasty ways than anywhere else, including sharks, crocodiles, snakes, even riptides and deserts, Bill Bryson adores the place, and he takes his readers on a rollicking ride far beyond that beaten tourist path. Wherever he goes he finds Australians who are cheerful, extroverted, and unfailingly obliging, and these beaming products of land with clean, safe cities, cold beer, and constant sunshine fill the pages of this wonderful book. Australia is an immense and fortunate land, and it has found in Bill Bryson its perfect guide.

Hangdog Days: Conflict, Change, and the Race for 5.14


Jeff Smoot - 2019
    This contentious, often entertaining period gave rise to sport climbing, climbing gyms, and competitive climbing--indelibly transforming the sport.Jeff Smoot was one of those brash young climbers, and here he traces the development of traditional climbing “rules,” enforced first through peer pressure, then later through intimidation and sabotage. In the late ’70s, several climbers began introducing new tactics including “hangdogging,” hanging on gear to practice moves, that the old guard considered cheating. As more climbers broke ranks with traditional style, the new gymnastic approach pushed the limits of climbing from 5.12 to 5.13. When French climber Jean-Baptiste Tribout ascended To Bolt or Not to Be, 5.14a, at Smith Rock in 1986, he cracked a barrier many people had considered impenetrable.In his lively, fast-paced history enriched with insightful firsthand experience, Smoot focuses on the climbing achievements of three of the era’s superstars: John Bachar, Todd Skinner, and Alan Watts, while not neglecting the likes of Ray Jardine, Lynn Hill, Mark Hudon, Tony Yaniro, and Peter Croft. He deftly brings to life the characters and events of this raucous, revolutionary time in rock climbing, exploring, as he says, “what happened and why it mattered, not only to me but to the people involved and those who have followed.”

A Good Death


Christopher R. Cox - 2013
    Linda Watts is a beautiful, talented Lao immigrant with a promising career—or she was, until she turns up dead in a cheap Bangkok guest house. Her death seems like a straightforward overdose to the Thai authorities, but her insurance company isn’t buying it. They hire Sebastian to travel halfway around the world to investigate, and so he finds himself completely out of place chasing faint leads through the broken streets of Bangkok.An award-winning journalist with decades of experience traveling in and reporting on Southeast Asia, Christopher Cox takes readers on a vibrant journey through a corrupt and labyrinthine police bureaucracy, a network of steamy Bangkok nightclubs, and grimy hostels to a place where you can you feel the humid air and smell the frying street food. Along the way, he sprinkles in elements of romance as Sebastian finds himself falling for the beautiful and captivatingly mysterious Linda, and camaraderie with his father’s wise-cracking old Army buddy, a source who proves invaluable in navigating the back streets. For Sebastian, it’s the assignment of a lifetime, a journey that will change him forever in this richly imagined, compelling debut perfect for fans of John Burdett and Colin Cotterill.

High Road To Tibet


John Dwyer - 2009
    Follow his adventures as he passes through the sunken gorges of the Yangtze river, drinks snake blood in Chengdu, gets smuggled into Tibet illegally, watches mysterious ceremonies in Buddhist temples, reaches Everest Base Camp, climbs amongst the awe-inspiring Himalayas, and watches the dead being burned by the banks of the Ganges.

Around Africa on My Bicycle


Riaan Manser - 2007
    He thought it would take him a year - it took him over two. At the end of 2005, he cycled back into Cape Town, 14kg lighter and having covered 36 500 km through thirty-four countries. Intending to use his journey to generate local and international awareness of the often appalling standard of living in Africa, Riaan was also propelled by a strong desire for African adventure, a desire that was inevitably fulfilled. While Riaan's journey allowed him to experience some of the greatest generosity and kindness that he had ever encountered, often from the poorest of the poor, his adventures were also often of a more harrowing kind. In Around Africa on my Bicycle, Riaan allows the reader to relive the toil, excitement and occasional terror of his journey - negotiating the Sahara and Libyan deserts, learning French, Portuguese and Arabic, eating monkey, rat and bat, standing in front of the pyramids, being awarded the freedom of the Red Sea in Egypt, feeding hyenas mouth to mouth, and standing on the highest, as well as at the lowest, points in Africa. Riaan arrived safely in Cape Town on 25 November 2005.

Impossible Beyond This Point: True Adventure Creating A Self-Sufficient Life In The Wilderness


Joel Horn - 2013
    Join the Horn family on the adventure of a lifetime. Learn how a couple from the city moved to the wilderness with three small boys and carved out a life in the middle of nowhere that has endured for nearly 50 years. With nearly 400 pages and over 100 photos, Impossible Beyond This Point is a compelling must-read for anyone interested in (or contemplating) getting away from it all.Excerpt1-A New BeginningA cool breeze drifted through tall Douglas fir and ponderosa pine and fluttered the leaves in clumps of black oak as they sat on rocks amongst their scattered possessions on the red clay dust of Backbone Ridge in the far Northern California wilds of Trinity County. The blue Ford station wagon would go no further, for from this point on, two miles of treacherous trail picked its way down to a lonesome canyon where a shell of a shack stood waiting. This would be their home. Virgil and Marcy, along with their three young sons, came to this juncture through an untamed notion to find a way of life that would give them independence, dignity and contentment.Virgil sat across from Marcy and his blue eyes twinkled. “I hope we made the right move, Ma. There’s no returning now.” “Yes,” she whispered. “We made the right move.”It was the beginning of June and the year was 1967.......ExcerptThe sun had gone down and heavy clouds were piling up in the west. If it snowed now and turned cold, Virgil doubted they could get out in time to finish the school year. A purple haze settled in the gulches, making it difficult to distinguish objects like trees or rocks that they were beginning to find hard to avoid.By the time they passed Wind Dance Lookout, it was dark. Below Wind Dance Lookout lay deep unbroken drifts and the dropping temperature formed a crust that supported them all. Partway down Marcy suddenly broke the crust and fell through to her hips in the snow. Exhausted, she struggled to get the leverage to free her legs. “I can't pull my legs out! I’m going to freeze to death!” she sobbed. Seeing his mother crying put Gaines in a panic and he frantically dug the hard corn snow away from her legs with his bare fingers until she managed to climb free.....ExcerptDarkness fell and they heard the rain pound the roof over the roar of the river. The boys had a hard time concentrating on their schoolwork and it was just as well because about eight that evening the incandescent light started dimming. “Power’s going out,” Kelly announced.Everyone stopped what they were doing and stared at the light. “Yep,” Gaines confirmed. “Can’t be from lack of water!” he laughed. “The creek must be really roaring up there and I bet it tore out the intake.”As the light faded to yellow and then orange, Virgil got up and took a book of matches from his front pocket and lit a candle bug. “I’ll go turn the valve off so it doesn’t drag crap down the line,” he said as he headed out the door.The family fell asleep to the sound of rain on the roof. The first few times the river had come up in the early years, Virgil and Marcy had nervously gotten up every few hours to check the water level but they never got up to check anymore.Marcy awoke around midnight and listened to the rain. The river was quieter and she sleepily turned over, drifting back to sleep. Suddenly she remembered something Red had told them. “As long as the river is roaring, it isn't so dangerous, but beware if it gets quiet," he’d warned.She looked at the phosphorescent face of her Big Ben clock. Noting it was a quarter to one in the morning, she concentrated on the sound of the river again. The hushed river was no longer relaxing, but foreboding. Unable to go to sleep, she got up and put on a coat, lit her candle bug and stepped out on the porch. Tom, his fur glistening with drops of water, yowled loudly and she let him in the house.Crystal water ran from the eves and splattered in a puddle in the pathway leading from the porch. She walked to the summer kitchen area and down to the gravel bar where the sawmill was located. At the edge of this bar, she came to a sudden stop. Right in front of her, muddy waves of debris-laden water slammed against the gravel only two inches from the top. The river was three feet higher than she’d ever seen it, which was a huge difference considering that the three additional feet of depth was spread across 300 feet of width and moving at a greatly increased speed. Apprehension overcame her.Though a candle bug is great for casting a soft diffused light for walking, it’s impossible to see beyond eight feet when using one, and in the streaming rain the visibility was even less. Marcy could only listen to what was going on beyond the cone of yellow light. Rumbles, hissing, sucking, splashing and surging, all in varying levels, met her ears. Quickly she headed back to the cabin. Virgil was asleep and she gently shook his shoulder. “The river’s real high, Virg,” Marcy whispered so as not to awaken the boys....

SUV RVing: How to Travel, Camp, Sleep, Explore, and Thrive in the Ultimate Tiny House


Tristan Higbee - 2016
    It’s the freedom and flexibility of an RV with the maneuverability, efficiency, low profile, and low price tag of an SUV. Whether you’re going on a short trip and just need to spend one night in your vehicle or are living out of your SUV full-time, you’ll find useful and valuable information in this book. Even seasoned travelers, campers, vandwellers, and traditional RVers will find tips, tricks, and ideas to make life on the road easier and more enjoyable. The book contains nearly ninety illustrations and photos spread out over twelve chapters. You’ll learn how to comfortably sleep in your vehicle, how to have privacy, how to store all of your stuff, what to take with you, where to camp, what to eat, how to go to the bathroom, how to stay clean, how to power electronic devices and get online, how to keep your SUV clean, what to see and do on the road, how to be safe and keep your belongings secure, and so much more. Author Tristan Higbee is an avid SUV RVer, traveler, and adventurer and is the perfect guide to help you on your own SUV RVing journeys. Grab your copy of SUV RVing today and head out on the road!

Ten Years a Nomad: A Traveler's Journey Home


Matthew Kepnes - 2019
    "Matt is possibly the most well-traveled person I know...His knowledge and passion for understanding the world is unrivaled, and never fails to amaze me." —Mark Manson, New York Times bestselling author of The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ckTen Years a Nomad is New York Times bestselling author Matt Kepnes’ poignant exploration of wanderlust and what it truly means to be a nomad. Part travel memoir and part philosophical look at why we travel, it is filled with aspirational stories of Kepnes' many adventures. New York Times bestselling author of How to Travel the World on $50 a Day, Matthew Kepnes knows what it feels like to get the travel bug. After meeting some travelers on a trip to Thailand in 2005, he realized that living life meant more than simply meeting society's traditional milestones, such as buying a car, paying a mortgage, and moving up the career ladder. Inspired by them, he set off for a year-long trip around the world before he started his career. He finally came home after ten years. Over 500,000 miles, 1,000 hostels, and 90 different countries later, Matt has compiled his favorite stories, experiences, and insights into this travel manifesto. Filled with the color and perspective that only hindsight and self-reflection can offer, these stories get to the real questions at the heart of wanderlust. Travel questions that transcend the basic "how-to," and plumb the depths of what drives us to travel — and what extended travel around the world can teach us about life, ourselves, and our place in the world.Ten Years a Nomad is for travel junkies, the travel-curious, and anyone interested in what you can learn about the world when you don’t have a cable bill for a decade or spend a month not wearing shoes living on the beach in Thailand.