Inspirational reading

[tas-man]

I came across this while looking for something else and thought it might be a useful addition to this thread. Link to original page - http://www.thewalkingpost.com/tag/werner-herzog/

"Truth cannot be found by just lying down and thinking, or sitting around and talking. There is a physical component to the process of getting to the core of things. I don’t know exactly what it is, but it is there. It may have to do with the fact that we are physical and spiritual beings at the same time. (Even if you’re a down-to-earth type, not really into the spiritual side of things, you probably would admit that evolution came a long way: It enabled our minds to think of ourselves as being more than just the sum of the atoms that make up our body.)

The archaic, physical act of walking, especially travelling long distances on foot, makes us understand ourselves, the place we walk through (Earth) and the human condition, in a way that goes beyond its surface appearance. And, in my experience, we can find answers to real-life questions by combining our thinking process with a walk or a journey on foot.

I don’t have a coherent theory for the physical component of finding the truth. But I know that walking is a great way to experiment with it."

[awildland]

This is a great thread Andrew, thanks for bringing it up. Some of the suggestions everyone has posted have been new and are now on our reading list...what a great source of info this forum is!

To add some of our own...try...

'Alone Across Australia' by John Muir, about his unassisted walk from the Spencer Gulf to the Gulf of Carpentaria.

'Out there and Back' by Kate Leeming about her massive 25,000km cycle trip around Australia with 7,000km off-road on remote tracks including down the Canning Stock Route (first bicycle crossing by a woman).

Greg Childs is an entertaining writer, American, and any of his stuff is good although Mixed Emotions is a good sample.

'Arctic Wild' was quite interesting, by Lois Crisler, about her and her husbands time in Alaska for 18 months in the Brooks range, built a hut and befriended the wolves. It's pretty old, written 1958, but has been reissued recently, but some of their attitudes to wilderness are very '1958'.

'The Last Explorer- Hubert Wilkins - Australias unknown hero' is a really interesting find. Written by Simon Nasht. I'd never heard of Hubert Wilkins but what an amazing list of achievements - first man to fly to antarctica, first to navigate a submarine under polar ice, and the only australian war photographer to be decorated in battle.

[durks]

Greg Childs is an entertaining writer, American, and any of his stuff is good although Mixed Emotions is a good sample.

In fact, although Greg Child now lives in the US, he is Australian. I mentioned his first book 'Thin Air' in the second posting in this thread.

[DarrenM]

'The Last Explorer- Hubert Wilkins - Australias unknown hero' is a really interesting find. Written by Simon Nasht. I'd never heard of Hubert Wilkins but what an amazing list of achievements - first man to fly to antarctica, first to navigate a submarine under polar ice, and the only australian war photographer to be decorated in battle.

Agreed! Surprising read for sure.

Can't go past "Solo" by Vicki McCauley. Tough read.... Andrew was truly inspirational, rest his soul.

[Happy Pirate]

Origin of Species was an interesting read and an easy one
If you need a little light relief try any of the "Chicken Soup for the Soul" series

Not sure I'd call it an easy read, unless you're jest skimmin'.
There's a lot that has been updated / modified by more recent biologists and a comparison between the classic text and current theory/observations shows loads of contradictions.

Of course my absolute fave, I forgot to even mention:
Aldo Leopold's 'A Sand County Almanac'
A.L. is up there with Jon Muir, Rachel Carson and Thoreau as one of the Fathers, err... parents... of the US (and thus global) ecology movement and is a far more lyrical writer than any of the others.
Read his chapter on sawing firewood; sheer lyrical grace.

Oh, did I mention Rachel Carson's 'Silent Spring'?
It may be old but most of the issues have still not been addressed.
Scary but compulsive reading..

Steve

[walk2wineries]

Travel reading though?
"The blessings of a Good Thick Skirt" by Mary Russel http://www.maryrussell.info/pages/print ... -skirt.htm
ANY of Gerald Durrells wonderful books about travelling to collect animals for zoos. "THe overloaded ark" "The Bafut Beagles" "The Aye-aye and I"
Bill Bryson, but particularly his "A walk in the woods" about, shall we say, less experienced walkers attempting the Appalachian Trail.
I am a fan of whodunnits - oh, okay I'm an addict - and was charmed last year to find Emma Lathen's "Pick up Sticks" which is a murder set on a resort building site just off the Appalachian trail.
Mark Wallingtons' "500mile walkies" - taking his dog on the UK South West Coastal Trail. Another walker wrote about hiking the length of the UK, can't call it to mind but he was a bit of a nutcase - camping out in kids' cubby houses as he went.
Umm... I think the Trailwalker Magazine is free online on the Friends of the Heysen site http://www.heysentrail.asn.au/trailwalker/ - not limited to SA.

[Happy Pirate]

Hi all

I have been 'grounded' over the past month and have turned to reading to obtain my dose of outdoors/adventure.

My daughters bought me a Bear Gryll's book for Fathers' Day - "Two All-Action Adventures. Facing Up & Facing the Frozen Ocean". In it he recounts his ascent of Everest as well as an epic journey crossing the North Atlantic ocean in an inflatable boat. It's a terrific read and it has whet my appetite for more books about adventuring.

Another that has got my attention is "Mountaineering: The freedom of the hills"

On a more philosophical bent, I have been enjoying working my way through "The Gentle Art of Tramping", by Stephen Graham.

My question is this: What have you read (of the outdoors/adventuring type) that has inspired you?

I keeps rememberin' stuff to add....
Annie Dillard!!! - (Particularly 'A Pilgrim at Tinker Creek') - A wild and frenetic ramble through poetic and scientific ideas and concepts of nature, the world and the nature of our humanity and our place and relationship with the world.
Once ye read Annie in the bush, life will spark at your fingertips and attention to detail will demand it's due as the merest action will generate questions and observations worth further questions worth questioning in a complexity of wonderment that is both Dillard's beguiling style and the natural result of reading her books.

Quotes:
“Our life is a faint tracing on the surface of mystery, like the idle curved tunnels of leaf miners on the face of a leaf. We must somehow take a wider view, look at the whole landscape, really see it, and describe what's going on here. Then we can at least wail the right question into the swaddling band of darkness, or, if it comes to that, choir the proper praise.”
― Annie Dillard, Pilgrim at Tinker Creek

“The mind wants to live forever, or to learn a very good reason why not. The mind wants the world to return its love, or its awareness... The mind's sidekick, however, will settle for two eggs over easy. The dear, stupid body is easily satisfied as a spaniel. And, incredibly, the simple spaniel can lure the brawling mind to its dish. It is everlastingly funny that the proud, metaphysically ambitious mind will hush if you give it an egg.”
― Annie Dillard

“We have not yet encountered any god who is as merciful as a man who flicks a beetle over on its feet.”
― Annie Dillard, Pilgrim at Tinker Creek

“I cannot cause light; the most I can do is try to put myself in the path of its beam.”
― Annie Dillard

“The world is fairly studded and strewn with pennies cast broadside by a generous hand. But- and this is the point- who gets excited by a mere penny? But if you cultivate a healthy poverty and simplicity, so that finding a penny will literally make your day, then, since the world is in fact planted in pennies, you have with your poverty bought a lifetime of days.”
― Annie Dillard, Pilgrim at Tinker Creek

One of the great and noble (and rambling) minds to grace the world.

Worth a read.
Worth taking a weekend off specifically if needed.
Should be a high school text. Should be a pre-requisite for world citizenship

Steve

[walk2wineries]

"Walking the Flinders Ranges", C.Warren Bonython, Rigby, 1971. (Reprinted 2000, Royal Geographical Society of South Australia.)

I've been expecting that someone would mention this before now. It seems though that the exotic is more alluring than the local.

The raw data: Crystal Brook to Mount Hopeless over several stages in 1967-68. Miles walked 632 (1 mile = 1.6 km). Days walked 498. The loads carried, ridiculous.

Reading the book (twice so far), I sometimes felt that I was in the party. I certainly felt, and continue to feel, inspired to visit the country he walked; some of it rarely walked by whitefellas until he went there.

OOh yes, forgot that one. Read it a couple of years ago before heading to the Flinders. And at the end of it he STILL had the Yukka trekking pole!

Going further North, I would recommend Griselda SPriggs "Dune is a four letter word"

FOr lighter reading maybe Bill Marsh's books about the RFDS

[walk2wineries]

Origin of Species was an interesting read and an easy one

Oh, did I mention Rachel Carson's 'Silent Spring'?
It may be old but most of the issues have still not been addressed.
Scary but compulsive reading..

Steve

And if you like that you'll love....
Seriously, you might try Eric Rolls "A Million Wild Acres" which won a number of awards when it came out, also "THey all ran wild" which is an excellent and very readable account of the introduction of exotic species in Oz. http://www.smh.com.au/news/obituaries/h ... e=fullpage

[iluvhiking]

these are 2 of my faves:

[walk2wineries]

Wonderful idea for a thread, thank you. I headed to www.betterworldbooks.com which is my favourite place to search for books - its a charity, the Aussie dollar is strong, and mostly free shipping. Found some, not all - and of course, was reminded of other titles to suggest
I liked this -http://www.amazon.com/The-first-fifty-Munro-bagging-without/dp/0552139378 - written by a diminuitive blonde who captured me in the first section when she described outdoor equipment stores. Munros as you know are hills over 300m in Scotland. THis title isn't in Betterworld but there were four PAGES listing books about walking/climbing the Munros!

[mikethepike]

Closer to home but not era is Earnest Gile's "Australia Twice Traversed" describing his travels 1872-6. While his small parties did use horses and later camels, he was forced to walk 98 miles to safety in a weakened state with barely 500g smoked horse meat as his only food and in great thirst on 2 days. Most of the walking he did was at night to avoid the heat. This came about when his companion Gibson's horse died and retreat to a base camp was necessary. Gibson set off on Giles's horse to get help from the base camp but became disoriented and disappeared for good. Giles covered the distance in 7 days. Sheer determination saw him survive.

"Walking the Flinders Ranges", C.Warren Bonython, Rigby, 1971. (Reprinted 2000, Royal Geographical Society of South Australia.)

I've been expecting that someone would mention this before now. It seems though that the exotic is more alluring than the local.

The raw data: Crystal Brook to Mount Hopeless over several stages in 1967-68. Miles walked 632 (1 mile = 1.6 km). Days walked 498. The loads carried, ridiculous.

Reading the book (twice so far), I sometimes felt that I was in the party. I certainly felt, and continue to feel, inspired to visit the country he walked; some of it rarely walked by whitefellas until he went there.

Yes I've also read this twice, it is a very good read. A book "Walking with Warren" by Terry Krieg was published last month and describes the author's several walks with Warren Bonython. I am covering it in a post in the SA,WA and NT section.

[mikethepike]

One of the most inspirational books I've read is RM Wiliams 'Beneath Whose Hand' founder of the outback gear company. It starts with his early years at Belalie North in SA and just inside Goyder's Line in the days before a car was seen in the district and his father did farrier work and trained heavy horses for teamsters and how 10 of his best horses, teamed together in 2 lines of 5, were struck by lightning and perished. The family moved to Prospect and RM went bush at age 13/14 years old, working first for a camaleer, living with aborigenes and then well sinking in the northern Flinders before setting up a primitive house with his new wife at Italowie Gap next to the Gammons. It was here that he co-developed his famous one piece leather boots and made a living making saddles and harness for Kidmans and nearby property owners and stockmen. His initial fortune came from a gold mine he worked at Tennant Creek (gold earning was tax free then. Maybe it still is.) With cattle mustering and droving, setting up a tea plantation in PNG and with numerous horse relayed injuries during his life, building his own house etc, RM really knew what long and hard work was. With that background, I think that the scaly union official who told him that he wouldn't know a thing about hard work, could count himself lucky he didn't end upended in a fight. What really makes the book different though and most valuable are RM's philosophies on life on a score of topics- the rich and poor, sources of wealth and happiness etc and the ultimate purpose of life. He really comes across left of centre and someone who sympathized with the battlers. His story is truly inspiring and I highly recommend reading this book.

[andrewbish]

Interesting list in Outside Online:
http://www.outsideonline.com/outdoor-ad ... lorer.html

[Snowzone]

I purchased Andrew Lock's book 'Summit 8000' recently after hearing him speak and it has been worth every cent. An absolutely fabulous read that I found hard to put down, especially when huddled snug inside my sleeping bag. The content is brilliant and his sense of humour is also entertaining.

[Eljimberino]

John Eyre's 1841 diary.


Ride On

[Gnarvin]

More subtley inspiring rather than the hordes of mountaineering epics is 'The Comfort of Water' - Maya Ward.
Sea to Source on the Yarra River, really cool exploring of an adventure, water, journeying with friends, also has really interesting indigenous tale tied in throughout.
Strongly reccomended

Gavo

[farefam]

"Above me only sky" is my favourite bushwalking read. Martin Hawes has a most entertaining writing style, as he recounts the trials and tribulations of some his trips into the tassie SW wilderness. And the accompanying photos are very nice too.

I particularly like (on page 58) ....... "The combination of fatigue, loneliness and apprehension can rapidly erode your morale, and any illusions you may have about your own psychological stamina will soon whither in the bauera".

[Nungulba]

Just recently I've become aware of the book Wild (by Cheryl Strayed - delightful name!), mainly because of the release of the film, starring Renee Witherspoon.

It's a story of a woman who is 'lost and found' on the Pacific Crest Trail (American west coast). The film features some stunning scenery. Strongly recommended.

[Nungulba]

John Eyre's 1841 diary.


Ride On

This might have been the book that Patrick White read during the Blitz in London. Said to be one of the sources of White's great Australian novel, Voss. Which I recommend to all non-literary types!!

[Kinsayder]

I'd definitely second (or third) Into Thin Air. I really enjoyed it and will ultimately make my way through the other perspectives of Everest 1996. I'm currently on one of Krakauer's other works, Eiger Dreams. It's a collection of his articles, some of which are quite fantastic.