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To the Ends of the Earth : The Transglobe Expedition, the First Pole-to Pole Circumnavigation of the Globe
Please see Wikipedia, Ranulph_Fiennes
547 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1983
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
August 6, 2022
A comprehensive, blow-by-blow account of an unimaginable journey. Fiennes' no-nonsense style is refreshing and empowering, but he is equally as poetic when he wants to be.
February 9, 2018
Slow going at first - all the preparation to the adventure is necessary but not always engaging reading. Otherwise a fascinating tale well told.
January 10, 2019
Some slow chapters, but a wonderful journey to join a classic explorer on.
March 23, 2022
This was quite a story and quite a journey! I'm not sure of the value of making this kind of expedition in the latter half of the 20th Century, but it certainly makes for good reading.
March 16, 2017
I read "The Terror" by Dan Simmons which was about searching for the Northwest passage and this book also has parts which relate to that. I'm sad that he shot the polar bear. Also very sad to find out about Ginny and Charlie later on the net.
December 28, 2017
Sir Ranulph “Ran” Fiennes is undoubtedly one of the greatest living explorers. He has led expeditions up the White Nile (1969), discovered what is believed to be ruins of the lost city of Iram (1992); and in an-unrelated-to-exploring-note, he also ran seven marathons in seven days on seven continents in 2003. The point being that reading any of his books would have a certain appeal to even the most modest of adventurous souls. To the Ends of the Earth is about what is arguably his most notable achievement: the first pole-to-pole circumnavigation of the earth (and the only one done entirely by surface transport), which he and a small team, including his wife, researched and organized, securing sponsors, resources and support from various governments and organizations, from 1972 until their departure in 1979. I’d also like to point out that in 1972, Ran was 28 years old! I can’t imagine even knowing at that age how to go about preparing for a trip that would take 3-4 years and go through the harshest weather conditions on the planet.
That fact that they used a significant amount of aid from air, boat, and radio crew does not take away from the extreme difficulty they faced along the way. Fiennes and his two (later one)-man crew had to contend with frostbite, mechanical failures, falling through ice into arctic waters, and tent fires; and that was just during their 3-month (February 15 - May 16, 1977) “arctic training” trial run to the north pole (which they failed)! On the actual expedition they dealt with these problems and more, including polar bears and a snowmobile sinking into the arctic waters.
Ran certainly has an insatiable wanderlust and ironclad resolve, at the beginning of the book he makes it sound like the reason he went on these daunting expeditions was because people wouldn’t pay him to go on normal ones. It makes him a little less interesting, but no less impressive (he did still do them, after all).
Despite the intensity of the situations he recalls, the writing is pretty dry and matter-of-fact. It doesn’t need to be ornate writing, but the journalistic style keeps it from feeling very riveting or emotional, even at what could be very gripping moments. It’s not poorly written, but just felt more academically interesting than fascinatingly interesting, if that makes sense. The other thing is that Ran doesn’t seem to undergo any personal growth. He admittedly paints himself at stubborn and impatient (and presents a sound argument for this), but his attitude and interactions with the others remain static. I don’t want to belittle the difficulty of the decisions he had to make, but when he was advised to wait a week before heading on to allow Charlie’s swollen and blistered feet heal and he decided to continue on after just two days… (But I guess it was the right decision; any later and the ice melt have been too soft and thin, requiring them to be evacuated)…
These objections are probably due to me reading more fiction than non-fiction though, so for people who read straight forward accounts of things more often the writing probably won’t affect them as much. It’s an awe-inspiring story, but was too mellow for me to get into it like I thought I would have. Instead, I found myself reading sort of passively until the next bit of surprising and/or impressive feats. Again, don't get me wrong - the fact that they actually succeeded (spoiler?) in spite of all of the setbacks and close calls makes for an incredible story, I just think it was a little too mild in tone, even for nonfiction. The expedition gets 5 stars, and the writing gets a 3.5; let's call it 4 stars.
And although there are 547 pages, the story ends at 432, at which point there is a series of appendices (a list of marriages, patrons and other supporters, “selected Antarctic expeditions” and “Arctic Exploration” timelines, “expedition notes,” scientific appendices, maps and graphs, and index), all of which I skipped over, except for the “expedition notes.”
There are a three sets of photographs from the expedition throughout the book, and I would have liked more, as they really helped bring the story to life.
That fact that they used a significant amount of aid from air, boat, and radio crew does not take away from the extreme difficulty they faced along the way. Fiennes and his two (later one)-man crew had to contend with frostbite, mechanical failures, falling through ice into arctic waters, and tent fires; and that was just during their 3-month (February 15 - May 16, 1977) “arctic training” trial run to the north pole (which they failed)! On the actual expedition they dealt with these problems and more, including polar bears and a snowmobile sinking into the arctic waters.
Ran certainly has an insatiable wanderlust and ironclad resolve, at the beginning of the book he makes it sound like the reason he went on these daunting expeditions was because people wouldn’t pay him to go on normal ones. It makes him a little less interesting, but no less impressive (he did still do them, after all).
Despite the intensity of the situations he recalls, the writing is pretty dry and matter-of-fact. It doesn’t need to be ornate writing, but the journalistic style keeps it from feeling very riveting or emotional, even at what could be very gripping moments. It’s not poorly written, but just felt more academically interesting than fascinatingly interesting, if that makes sense. The other thing is that Ran doesn’t seem to undergo any personal growth. He admittedly paints himself at stubborn and impatient (and presents a sound argument for this), but his attitude and interactions with the others remain static. I don’t want to belittle the difficulty of the decisions he had to make, but when he was advised to wait a week before heading on to allow Charlie’s swollen and blistered feet heal and he decided to continue on after just two days… (But I guess it was the right decision; any later and the ice melt have been too soft and thin, requiring them to be evacuated)…
These objections are probably due to me reading more fiction than non-fiction though, so for people who read straight forward accounts of things more often the writing probably won’t affect them as much. It’s an awe-inspiring story, but was too mellow for me to get into it like I thought I would have. Instead, I found myself reading sort of passively until the next bit of surprising and/or impressive feats. Again, don't get me wrong - the fact that they actually succeeded (spoiler?) in spite of all of the setbacks and close calls makes for an incredible story, I just think it was a little too mild in tone, even for nonfiction. The expedition gets 5 stars, and the writing gets a 3.5; let's call it 4 stars.
And although there are 547 pages, the story ends at 432, at which point there is a series of appendices (a list of marriages, patrons and other supporters, “selected Antarctic expeditions” and “Arctic Exploration” timelines, “expedition notes,” scientific appendices, maps and graphs, and index), all of which I skipped over, except for the “expedition notes.”
There are a three sets of photographs from the expedition throughout the book, and I would have liked more, as they really helped bring the story to life.
July 8, 2013
Трансглобальная экспедиция - грандиозное по масштабам и авантюрности предприятие, совершённое в начале 1980-х. Удивительно, что я не знала о нём раньше.
Идея была проста - совершить кругосветку вдоль меридиана. Подготовка к путешествию заняла добрый десяток лет: сбор команды, поиск спонсоров, испытания снаряжения, проработка маршрутов и снова поиск спонсоров. Невероятно, но эта авантюра увенчалась успехом. Книга основана на дневниках и воспоминаниях Рэна - главы экспедиции. Особо интересна она будет для любителей Северов, автор бОльшую часть книги посвятил пересечению Арктики и Антарктики, видимо, эти этапы путешествия оставили у него самые яркие впечатления. Невероятные подвиги духа и тела!
==========
слова Тура Хейердала: «Самое опасное в любой экспедиции — это когда людям приходится неделями видеть одни и те же лица, тогда наступает душевное опустошение, особое физиологическое состояние, которое можно назвать „экспедиционной лихорадкой“; она превращает даже самых добродушных людей в личности раздражительные, агрессивные, легко приходящие в ярость. Это происходит оттого, что постепенно люди перестают воспринимать друг друга и наконец не замечают ничего больше в других, кроме их недостатков, а все положительное просто не регистрируется серым веществом мозга».
==========
Чарли знал многое о моей жизни, но это вовсе не значило, что я проник в его душу. Впрочем, в этом не было ничего плохого; тот факт, что мы так и не стали близкими друзьями, означал, что нам не надо бояться потерять такую драгоценную связь, как дружба, из-за слишком тесного контактирования. Для достижения успеха в нашем деле было совсем необязательно быть друзьями, достаточно просто дополнять друг друга, как партнеры. Брак совсем иное дело.
Идея была проста - совершить кругосветку вдоль меридиана. Подготовка к путешествию заняла добрый десяток лет: сбор команды, поиск спонсоров, испытания снаряжения, проработка маршрутов и снова поиск спонсоров. Невероятно, но эта авантюра увенчалась успехом. Книга основана на дневниках и воспоминаниях Рэна - главы экспедиции. Особо интересна она будет для любителей Северов, автор бОльшую часть книги посвятил пересечению Арктики и Антарктики, видимо, эти этапы путешествия оставили у него самые яркие впечатления. Невероятные подвиги духа и тела!
==========
слова Тура Хейердала: «Самое опасное в любой экспедиции — это когда людям приходится неделями видеть одни и те же лица, тогда наступает душевное опустошение, особое физиологическое состояние, которое можно назвать „экспедиционной лихорадкой“; она превращает даже самых добродушных людей в личности раздражительные, агрессивные, легко приходящие в ярость. Это происходит оттого, что постепенно люди перестают воспринимать друг друга и наконец не замечают ничего больше в других, кроме их недостатков, а все положительное просто не регистрируется серым веществом мозга».
==========
Чарли знал многое о моей жизни, но это вовсе не значило, что я проник в его душу. Впрочем, в этом не было ничего плохого; тот факт, что мы так и не стали близкими друзьями, означал, что нам не надо бояться потерять такую драгоценную связь, как дружба, из-за слишком тесного контактирования. Для достижения успеха в нашем деле было совсем необязательно быть друзьями, достаточно просто дополнять друг друга, как партнеры. Брак совсем иное дело.
October 4, 2016
Really enjoying this book. Sir Ranulph is a living legend. I didn't plan to start reading "To The Ends Of The Earth" at the same time as Rio 2016 as I love watching the Olympics. However the book is so absorbing and action packed I'm honestly torn between turning off the TV and getting stuck into the adventure.
Ranulph writes in a really engaging way, as I read it feels like I'm right there on the expedition in the mix. He isn't over technical, while he uses some field jargon he either makes an effort to explain it's meaning or elaborates on it in context.
I mean there's got to be something extraordinary about him to even attempt circling the world from Pole to Pole and doing insane amounts of marathons back to back across all the continents.
A book of complete escapism, I'm both in awe and a touch envious as this is one of those dream things added to a bucket list.
There is a lot of talk about Olympian effort, determination and grit. But Mr Fiennes and his team ecplises them with a Herculean effort. It was no surprise to read that Ran, Oliver Geoff and Charles were connected to the SAS which explains their drive and determination. They don't call the SAS the elite of the elite for nothing.
"To The Ends Of The Earth" is one of the best books I've read for years. Highly recommended!
Ranulph writes in a really engaging way, as I read it feels like I'm right there on the expedition in the mix. He isn't over technical, while he uses some field jargon he either makes an effort to explain it's meaning or elaborates on it in context.
I mean there's got to be something extraordinary about him to even attempt circling the world from Pole to Pole and doing insane amounts of marathons back to back across all the continents.
A book of complete escapism, I'm both in awe and a touch envious as this is one of those dream things added to a bucket list.
There is a lot of talk about Olympian effort, determination and grit. But Mr Fiennes and his team ecplises them with a Herculean effort. It was no surprise to read that Ran, Oliver Geoff and Charles were connected to the SAS which explains their drive and determination. They don't call the SAS the elite of the elite for nothing.
"To The Ends Of The Earth" is one of the best books I've read for years. Highly recommended!
September 22, 2008
I always said that I preferred a good novel over non-fiction any day. But this book was a startling exception. i could hardly believe this actually happened-- that there are people in the world with such a longing for adventure. They took on the herculean task of a year long, circumpolar trip around the earth. The parts where the author describes the terrifying journey through the shifting ice-pack of the arctic was especially harrowing. I beieve it was a miracle taht they came back in one piece. This book was a fast paced (although somewhat lengthy)page-turner thatkept me on the edge of my seat unil the very last page!! Highly reccommended!!!
February 4, 2016
A solid read, in which Fiennes paints a vivid picture of the scenic and climatic conditions of the Arctic & Antarctic. Unfortunately, though for me the success referred to in the foreword destroys any suspense that could have existed.
January 8, 2014
I only read fiction. This read like fiction. Totally amazing. What a man.
August 9, 2013
I read this so long ago, over 5 years. Now that I see it on my library shelf, I want to read it again.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews