At the Mercy of the River: An Exploration of the Last African

At the Mercy of the River: An Exploration of the Last African Wilderness

Even in this age of extreme sports and made-for-TV survival games, there still exist places on earth where the most intrepid among us can plunge into truly unknown territory. The acclaimed adventure writer Peter Stark had waited all his life for just such an opportunity. But when he was invited to Africa to join a small expedition kayaking down Mozambiqueâ‚¬s Lugenda River, he balked. The 750-kilometer rivercourse was largely unchartedâ‚¬â€œdotted with rapids, waterfalls, and home to deadly crocodiles and hippos; two of his four travel companions were not skilled kayakers; and he had a family to think of, (not to mention that at forty-eight, he himself was feeling a bit old for the life untamed). Suppressing inner doubts and driven by that most human of urgesâ‚¬â€œto see what lies beyond the next bendâ‚¬â€œStark signed on for the adventure of a lifetime.

At the Mercy of the River is Starkâ‚¬s harrowing, insightful account of this venture into the unknown. â‚¬Å“Why,â‚¬Â he muses between capsizes in the Lugendaâ‚¬s croc-infested waters, â‚¬Å“are humans compelled to explore?â‚¬Â The expeditionâ‚¬s five distinctâ‚¬â€œand sometimes clashingâ‚¬â€œpersonalities provide individual answers to that question.

Equipped with only the most rudimentary comforts and lacking the customary explorerâ‚¬s gun, the party encounters breathtaking natural splendor, rich wildlife, and villages little affected by modern life. Ever aware that they are following in the metaphorical footsteps of great explorers of the pastâ‚¬â€œVasco da Gama, Mungo Park, Ibn Battuta, David Livingstone, and other men of adventure who bridged Africa and the Westâ‚¬â€œStark shares these explorersâ‚¬ stories with us, finding a common thread linking his experience with theirs. Using their accounts, his travails on the Lugenda River, and the insights of wilderness philosophers such as Henry David Thoreau, Stark attempts to understand the very nature of â‚¬Å“explorationâ‚¬Â while pondering the question, Where will we go when our wilderness vanishes?

At the Mercy of the River is at turns inspiring, heart-thumping, and even amusing. But most of all, it is a riveting adventure story for a time when adventure is in danger of losing its meaning.
Country USA
Manufacturer Ballantine Books
Binding Hardcover
ReleaseDate 2005-06-28
UnitCount 1
EANs 9780345441812

Country	USA
Manufacturer	Ballantine Books
Binding	Hardcover
ReleaseDate	2005-06-28
UnitCount	1
EANs	9780345441812

At the Mercy of the River: An Exploration of the Last African Wilderness

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