Mischief in Greenland: Only a man in the devil of a hurry would wish to fly to his mountains

by H.W. Tilman, Colin Putt (Foreword), Annie Hill (Afterword)

'Only a man in the devil of a hurry would wish to fly to his mountains, forgoing the lingering pleasure and mounting excitement of a slow, arduous approach under his own exertions.' H.W. 'Bill' Tilman 's mountain travel philosophy, rooted in Africa and the Himalaya and further developed in his early sailing adventures in the southern hemisphere, was honed to perfection with his discovery of Greenland as the perfect sailing destination. His Arctic voyages in the pilot cutter Mischief proved no less challenging than his earlier southern voyages. The shorter elapsed time made it rather easier to find a crew but the absence of warm tropical passages meant that similar levels of hardship were simply compressed into a shorter timescale. First published fifty years before political correctness became an accepted rule, Mischief in Greenland is a treasure trove of Tilman's observational wit. In this account of his first two West Greenland voyages, he pulls no punches with regard to the occasional failings, leaving the reader to seek out and discover the numerous achievements of these voyages. The highlight of the second voyage was the identification, surveying and successful first ascent of Mount Raleigh , first observed on the eastern coast of Baffin Island by the Elizabethan explorer John Davis in 1585. For the many sailors and climbers who have since followed his lead and ventured north into those waters, Tilman provides much practical advice, whether from his own observations or those of Davis and the inimitable Captain Lecky . Tilman's typical gift of understatement belies his position as one of the greatest explorers and adventurers of the twentieth century.

272 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1964

About the author

Major Harold William "Bill" Tilman, CBE, DSO, MC and Bar, was an English mountaineer and explorer, renowned for his Himalayan climbs and sailing voyages.

See Wikipedia for more:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Ti...

Reviews

[Morgan McGuire · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tilman is afraid of no sea or mountain, and admittedly terrified of women and strangers. The tales that follow are true and wonderfully told...except for the occasional misogynist asides. Each of the republished editions comes with a preface trying to address that in different ways. It mars the books for me, but no person is a perfect hero, so I am left with: the guy is a jerk about women because he's terrified of them, and I can dislike that while still enjoying the sailing and mountain climbing.

[Crissy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I always enjoy Tilman's straightforward description of his journeys. So much nautical and climbing detail which reminds me of my own good memories. Tilman's sailing and mountaineering adventures took place in the 50s, 60s and 70s and so much has changed since then that we can easily forgive the old attitudes of that time but continue to enjoy his daring exploits which then did not have the support of the technologies we rely on today.