A vicious storm killed his engine and the current dragged his boat out to sea. The storm picked up and blasted him west. When he washed ashore on January 29, 2014, he had arrived in the Marshall Islands, 9,000 miles away—equivalent to traveling from New York to Moscow round trip.For fourteen months, Alvarenga survived constant shark attacks. He learned to catch fish with his bare hands. He built a fish net from a pair of empty plastic bottles. Taking apart the outboard motor, he fashioned a huge fishhook. Using fish vertebrae as needles, he stitched together his own clothes.He considered suicide on multiple occasions—including offering himself up to a pack of sharks. But Alvarenga never failed to invent an alternative reality. He imagined a method of survival that kept his body and mind intact long enough for the Pacific Ocean to toss him up on a remote palm-studded island, where he was saved by a local couple living alone in their own Pacific Island paradise.Based on dozens of hours of interviews with Alvarenga and interviews with his colleagues, search and rescue officials, the medical team that saved his life and the remote islanders who nursed him back to health, this is an epic tale of survival, an all-true version of the fictional Life of Pi. With illustrations, maps, and photographs throughout, 438 Days is a study of the resilience, will, ingenuity, and determination required for one man to survive fourteen months, lost at sea.

    Gillet, at the age of 36 an accomplished sailor and paddler, navigated by sextant and always knew his position within a few miles. Still, Gillet underestimated the abuse his body would take from the relentless, pounding, swells of the Pacific, and early into his voyage he was covered with salt water sores and found that he could find no comfortable position for sitting or sleeping. Along the way he endured a broken rudder, among other calamities, but at last reached Maui on his 63rd day at sea, four days after his food had run out. Dave Shively brings Gillet's remarkable story to life in this gripping narrative, based on exclusive access to Gillet's logs as well as interviews with the legendary paddler himself.

    Dick Bass had made his fortune as an energy and resort entrepreneur. In middle age, both men left behind home, family, and successful careers to share an impossible dream. Seven Unconquered Summits The challenge: be the first to climb the highest mountain on each of seven continents, from McKinley to Kilimanjaro to Everest. The obstacles: many and merciless, from ice storms to illness to a measurement question that threatened to make their record-breaking expedition a sham. The prize: the sheer, exhilarating triumph of standing at the top of every continent on earth.

    Ten expeditions from around the world were preparing for their summit push, gathered together to try for mountaineering's ultimate prize. Twenty-four hours later, eight of those climbers were dead, victims of the most devastating storm ever to hit Everest. On the North face of the mountain, a British expedition found itself in the thick of the drama. Against all odds, film-maker Matt Dickinson and professional climber Alan Hinkes managed to battle through hurricane-force winds to reach the summit. In Death Zone, Matt Dickinson describes the extraordinary event that put the disaster on the front cover of Time and Newsweek. The desperate attempts of teams on the southern side of the mountain, fatal errors that led to the deaths of three Indian climbers on the North Ridge and the moving story of Rob Hall, the New Zealand guide who stayed with his stricken client, and paid with his life. Based on interviews with the surviving climbers and the first-hand experience of having lived through the killer storm, this gripping non-fiction book tackles issues at the very heart of mountaineering. Death Zone is an extraordinary story of human triumph, folly and disaster.

    Kenneth Kamler played a crucial role aiding survivors, Doctor on Everest is the account of how lives are saved-or lost-in perilous conditions. Through this intimate, gripping, and often humorous account, Dr. Kamler describes what life was like on Everest - how he treated his fellow climbers for everything from altitude sickness to pulmonary edema; how he negotiated his dual role as doctor and climber; and how he reconciled is separation from home and family with pursuing his lifelong dream. In 1996, the medical situation on Everest became desperate. Kamler was faced with dire cases that would have been difficult under the best of circumstances-including Makalu Gau, who was found barely alive in the snow, and Beck Weathers, who was pronounced dead but later stumbled into camp clinging to life.Throughout, Kamler draws vivid portraits of his companions, including Rob Hall, leader of the New Zealand summit team, who died just below the summit in '96. Doctor on Everest puts the reader in the place of a climbing doctor and reveals what it takes for the human body and mind to function at high altitudes. (5 1/2 x 8 1/2, 316 pages, color photos)Kenneth Kamler, M.D. is director of the Hand Treatment Center in New Hyde Park, New York; attending orthopedic surgeon at several major New York hospitals; and vice president of The Explorers Club. He has been a climber on many Everest expeditions, working with National Geographic to carry out research and mapping. He has been featured on Nightline, 48 Hours, and CNN, and profiled in The New York Times and USA Today.

    So when he meets and falls for Rachel, he's ready to go wherever she'll take him. In a whirlwind of new love, they embark on a bicycle trip from northern Wisconsin to western Oregon. As the pair progress through stunning landscapes, they contend with merciless winds, vivid characters, broken bikes and bodies, and the looming question of what comes next. Funny, reflective, and candid, Going Somewhere invites bike enthusiasts, twenty-somethings, and armchair travelers alike to join Brian as he learns, mile by mile, how to move forward.

    At 32 years old, he desperately needed to find direction and meaningful purpose in his life. With no physical training, he decided his answers were waiting for him somewhere along the historic 490-mile pilgrimage route called the Camino de Santiago in Spain. From the physical high of crossing the Pyrenees Mountains to the mind numbing rhythm of walking through the endless wheat fields of the Meseta, the route was filled with many challenges. Accompanied by his “guru” wife Amy, Schirm faces setbacks like bed bugs and tendinitis, all in the pursuit of elusive answers. The lessons came from the serendipitous experiences and conversations with fellow pilgrims from all over the world. Sunrises to Santiago chronicles a wondrous journey of personal growth, physical pain, and outdoor adventure while teaching us all to enjoy life’s incredible journey.

    He returned some 20 years later with a wife, four children and the internationally renowned tour company - Contiki Holidays.Written by the founder of Contiki, Only Two Seats Left is the incredible story of how a simple idea with a starting capital of just 25 pounds became a worldwide travel company with an internationally recognised iconic' brand name. To date over two million young people have had the Contiki Challenge.Only Two Seats Left is one of Australasia's great untold business success stories. A touching blend of autobiography, business insight and travel tale all rolled into one book readers won't want to put down.Discover the raw realities of John's journey of difficulties, failures and his most valuable secrets to successful entrepreneurship.In this altogether inspiring narrative, Only Two Seats Left encompasses entrepreneurship, leadership, risk taking, team work, branding, competition and surviving tough times John's personal journey creates a thoroughly entertaining read for anyone who's ever dreamt of taking a risk with that first bold step to venture into the unknown.

    Join her as she travels to three continents, and twelve countries. Step into her classroom and teach English in Mexico, Nicaragua, Colombia, and Vietnam, or vacation with her in Spain, Thailand, and Cambodia. Fall in love with her students learning English, the special street kids, some crazy bartenders, and fellow backpackers. Meet new friends and hear their stories, or laugh with a romantic man or two from around the world. Venture into the countryside to dance with local people, drink moonshine, explore caves, fish for marlin, catch buckets of squid, or squirm as she eats strange bugs and worms. Hold her hand as she explores new city streets and countries-- often lost, once robbed, or tremble when guns are pointed at her, as she crosses one more border. Donna Morang, teacher and traveler has done this and more with a smile and a gusto for life. She definitely knows how to experience life as a true adventurer. This book is NOT about a woman going in search of herself, or looking for a better life. She already knows that life is beautiful, and she lives it to the fullest

    Four years later, he earned the elite triathlete title, Kona Ironman. Thousands have done each individually. Bonner is the first person with cerebral palsy to do both.Diagnosed in his youth, Bonner swore he wouldn’t let this neurological disorder limit him, and for twenty-nine years he guarded the truth about his health. But the sudden death of a friend’s young son who also suffered from CP forced Bonner to reevaluate his life. No longer would he be content striving for normal. Instead he would live life to its fullest, pursuing one breathtaking experience at a time—while raising money for special needs children along the way—and never turn down a challenge for fear of his physical limitations.His is a remarkable journey that has taken him across the globe and introduced him to a fascinating cast of characters who have supported his inspiring quest. An athlete, adventurer, and philanthropist, Bonner is today no longer defined by his limits, but by the moments that pushed him past them. Infused with his irresistible charisma, courage, and heart, illustrated with 16 pages of color photos, One More Step shows us that we can all conquer our own challenges and embrace every moment life has to offer.

    Though modern technology could not ensure rescue, website transmissions and satellite phone calls enabled more than 3 million school children from 65 countries to bear witness to Ann and Liv's journey.In February 2001, former schoolteachers Ann Bancroft and Liv Arnesen became the first women to cross the Antarctic continent on foot. Against all odds, they walked, skied, or ice-sailed for nearly three months in temperatures as cold as -35°F, towing their 250-pound supply sledges across 1700 miles of terrain riddled with rotten ice and deadly, hidden crevasses. Haunted by the failures of those who had attempted the crossing before them, they raced to complete the journey before the harsh Antarctic winter set in and 24 hours of daylight became 24 hours of impenetrable darkness. Though modern technology could not ensure rescue should they need it, website transmissions and satellite phone calls enabled more than 3 million children from 65 countries to bear witness to the journey. In accomplishing the seemingly impossible, Ann and Liv inspired classrooms and re-ignited the aspirations of more than twenty-thousand adults who wrote to thank and encourage them. Chronicling the dramatic details of this historic expedition, No Horizon Is So Far explores what drove Ann and Liv across the ice and ultimately into hearts and history books around the world. It traces the birth of their dream, its re-emergence when they were adults, their tenacious work to assemble the necessary money and gear, and their brutally taxing trek from the Norwegian sector to the American base at McMurdo Bay. About journeys both literal and figurative, each marked with suspense, danger, and incredible endurance No Horizon Is So Far celebrates two modern-day heroines and that which is heroic in all of us.

    In 1977, at the age of seventeen, Conway left his family's comfortable suburban home to move to the Appalachian Mountains. For more than two decades he has lived there, making fire with sticks, wearing skins from animals he has trapped, and trying to convince Americans to give up their materialistic lifestyles and return with him back to nature. To Gilbert, Conway's mythical character challenges all our assumptions about what it is to be a modern man in America; he is a symbol of much we feel how our men should be, but rarely are.

    He climbed with an audacity and panache that epitomized the purest spirit of alpinism, and inspired an entire generation of climbers. Jon Krakauer calls him one of my heroes. He is not only a mountaineer of astonishing talent and vision, but one of the world's most engaging writers about mountaineering.Bonatti has also been dogged by controversy and often been at odds with the climbing community. The Mountains of My Life not only collects the best of Bonatti's writing telling of adventures in the Alps, the Himalayas, and little-known South American peaks it also tells Bonatti's version of what really happened on the Italian expedition that made the first ascent of K2 in 1954. Bonatti's selfless actions helped avert disaster, yet in the expedition's aftermath he found himself cast as a scapegoat. Part detective story, part hair-raising adventure, part meditation on his craft, The Mountains of My Life is as awe-inspiring and controversial as its author, and is beautifully illustrated with Bonatti's own photos.

    Two veterans of decades of adventuring in Grand Canyon chronicle the first complete and comprehensive history of Canyon misadventures. These episodes span the entire era of visitation from the time of the first river exploration by John Wesley Powell and his crew of 1869 to that of tourists falling off its rims in Y2K. These accounts of the 550 people who have met untimely deaths in the Canyon set a new high water mark for offering the most astounding array of adventures, misadventures, and life saving lessons published between any two covers. Over the Edge promises to be the most intense yet informative book on Grand Canyon ever written.

    TEN SEASONED RANGERS. ONE IMPOSSIBLE RESCUE. On the afternoon of July 26, 2003, six vacationing mountain climbers ascended the peak of the Grand Teton in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Rain and colliding air currents blew in, and soon a massive electrical charge began to build. As the group began to retreat from its location, a colossal lightning bolt struck and pounded through the body of every climber. One of the six died instantly, one lay critically injured next to her body, and four dangled perilously into the chasm below. In riveting, page-turning prose, veteran journalist Jennifer Woodlief tells the story of the climb, the arrival of the storm, and the unprecedented rescue by the Jenny Lake Rangers, one of the most experienced climbing search-and-rescue teams in the country. Against the dramatic landscape of the Teton Range, Woodlief brings to life the grueling task of the rangers, a band of colorful characters who tackle one of the riskiest, most physically demanding jobs in the world. By turns terrifying and exhilarating, A Bolt from the Blue is both a testament to human courage and an astonishing journey into one of history’s most dangerous mountain rescues.