Walking the World's Natural Wonders - Hardcover

Jon Sparks

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1845377621 ISBN 13: 9781845377625

Publisher: New Holland Publishers Ltd, 2008

Synopsis

Aimed at the burgeoning adventure travel market, this book focuses on hikes, treks and walks that explore some of the earth's most spectacular wild places, and particularly natural wonders such as volcanoes, glaciers, unique rock formations, rivers and great lakes. This book is not aimed at expedition-type trekkers. Although some of the places are remote, all have basic visitor infrastructure, with option for a variety of walking trips. Destinations are drawn from all over the world including North America and Asia, with a significant proportion of European destinations.

About this title

About the Author:

Jon Sparks, winner of the Outdoor Writers Guild Writer of the Year Award 2006, is the author of ten other books on walking, climbing and trekking around the world, as well as countless magazine articles. He is also an accomplished landscape photographer. He lives in Lancashire in Northern England. Foreword by acclaimed explorer and filmmaker Benedict Allen.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.:

"I see Earth! it is so beautiful!"
Yuri Gargin
 

The first glimpse of Earth from space changed things forever. Perhaps it was the end, or the beginning of the end, the era of exploration for humanity as a whole. But for each individual, the world is still waiting to be explored, and maybe it is more important than ever to do so.
 The view from space is awesome but ultimately detached. To understand what it means, we need to explore the Earth at ground level and there is no better way to do so than on foot. Walking is the most natural, the most primeval way of getting away. Walking pace allows the world to unfold and reveal itself. Walking allows the senses to engage. Walking takes us into a landscape while other modes of transport detach us from it. The philosopher, Nietzsche said, "only thoughts that come by walking have any value."
  On every continent, in every age, in vastly different ways, people have expressed their wonder at the spectacles of nature. The great volcanoes of New Zealand's Central Plateau were held so sacred by the local Maori people that passers-by had to shield their eyes. And on Australia's Larapinta Trail, especially with a good guide, you can get a shadowy inkling of the profound relationship between the Aboriginal people and the land.
 Natural marvels inspire myths and stories everywhere. The medieval hero Roland is said to have hewn a cleft through the mountains with his sword Durandal: this startling gash in a Pyrenean ridge is still called le Breche de Roland. And legends continue to grow: Conan Doyle's "Lost World" was inspired by Romania in Venezuela.
  Wonder does not just reside in the great show-pieces. There is also something to marvel at in the curve of a sand dune, the miniature world of a rock-pool, or a splash of green moss in the black volcanic deserts of Iceland. A journey on foot is about much more than arrival at a single destination.
  If great natural wonders excite and inspire us with awe, they should also strengthen our resolve to treat with respect not only great sites but also the natural world as a whole. The overarching principal is to leave minimal trace of your presence. In this too, walking is unbeatable, only equalled by a few other means of transport, like canoeing and cross-country skiing.

About this edition

• Publisher: New Holland Publishers Ltd
• Publication date: 2008
• ISBN 10: 1845377621
• ISBN 13: 9781845377625
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 192