Writing during the latter half of the nineteenth century after studying original sources and acquainting himself personally with the lands and the remaining family of the outstanding discoverer of the previous century, Sir Alexander Mackensie, R. M. Ballantyne recounts for successive generations an interesting, accurate, and lively narrative of Mackensie's two great expeditions. Follow the stalwart and colorful band of pioneer discoverers on their journeys "by water and wood" across the far north of the American continent as they penetrate its inclement regions, meet its men, beasts, and physical elements, and venture across the Rockies to the Pacific Ocean or on to the Polar Sea.
Though you can enjoy all this from your cozy armchair today, it may ignite within you a desire to leave your life of comfort and ease and to pioneer an expedition yourself!
Also included in this book is Ballantyne's Fast In the Ice (book description below).
Ship-crushing ice floes, hungry Polar Bears, month's long blackness, and 40 degrees below zero temperatures! These are just a few of the extreme dangers faced by Captain Harvey and his hearty crew aboard the Hope as they attempt to reach the North Pole.
In the mid 1800s, Polar explorations were being undertaken in hopes of finding the farthest northwest passage to the Pacific Ocean, and to further the common knowledge of what natural resources were available in the frozen tundras. Captain Harvey and his crew are commissioned to try and reach the North Pole, and set a record for the farther northward advance. Before attaining this goal, however, they find themselves frozen fast in the ice and must use all their wits and skill, along with the unexpected help of some Eskimos, to survive the harshest of conditions in the icy northern regions. Soon it no longer becomes about exploration, but about surviving long enough to find a way home. You'll want to read this book with a warm blanket and a cup of hot cocoa nearby!
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