An account of the first successful complete descent of the Nile River, made by renowned adventurer Pasquale Scaturro in 2004, traces his 3,250-mile kayak journey between Ethiopia and Alexandria, a geographical expedition that was marked by dangerous animals, bandits, militia, sandstorms, and other violent elements. 50,000 first printing.

Mystery of the Nile

History

Bangs, Richard

Scaturro, Pasquale

Africa

Putnam Adult

Two men who rode the four-thousand-mile Yangtze River from its headwaters to the China Sea in a raft describe the journey, the dangers and sights they encountered, and previous expeditions that ended in death. Reprint.

Riding the Dragon's Back (Laurel Expedition)

Biographies & Memoirs

Travelers & Explorers

Laurel

An account of the first successful complete descent of the Nile River, made by renowned adventurer Pasquale Scaturro in 2004, traces his 3,250-mile kayak and raft journey between Ethiopia and Alexandria, a geographical expedition that was marked by dangerous animals, bandits, militia, sandstorms, and other violent elements. Reprint.

Mystery of the Nile: The Epic Story of the First Descent of the World's Deadliest River

Travel

NAL Trade

Tells of the harrowing and awe-inspiring journey taken by a group of explorers along the rapids of an uncharted section of the Yangtze River and reveals a hitherto unknown part of China

Riding the Dragon's Back: The Race to Raft the Upper Yangtze

Kallen, Christian

Community & Culture

Atheneum

From cities to rain forests, the vast cultural and environmental diversity of the world's fifth largest nation is captured in one volume

Islands of Fire, Islands of Spice: Exploring the Wild Places of Indonesia

Christian Kallen

Science & Math

Random House, Inc.

Describes the islands of Dominica, Newfoundland, Bahrain, Madagascar, Sri Lanka, Lombok, Honshu, Tasmania, the Trobriands, and Easter Island

Island Gods: Exploring the World's Most Exotic Islands

Taylor Pub

Kaitiakitanga, an ancient Maori concept meaning guardianship of the land,” has undergone a revival in New Zealand and is fueling an increasingly popular eco-movement. Structured by Richard Bangs as a grand adventure, this book looks at how the Maori way is becoming the modern way. Bangs’ expedition includes heli-hiking, ice-climbing, kayaking, and more as he travels through New Zealand’s stunning landscapes. Along the way, the author encounters threatened wildlife, massive trees that predate Christ, monumental glaciers, and the kinds of advances fostered by kaitiakitanga, from radically designed eco-lodges to paradigm-shifting native ventures.

The Quest for Kaitiakitanga: The Ancient Maori Secret from New Zealand that Could Save the Earth (Adventures with Purpose)

Australia & South Pacific

Menasha Ridge Press

In addition to being a picturesque setting for organized tours into the wild, Switzerland has long been considered the birthplace of adventure travel and the wellspring of eco-tourism. Byron, Shelly, Keats, and Wordsworth all traveled to Switzerland, and upon reaching the Swiss Alps the word they chose to describe what they saw was, not surprisingly, sublime. Here, Richard Bangs embarks upon a new adventure to discover what sublime truly meant to those early travelers and to know how the experiences of past poets and artists transformed the concept of travel. Along the way Bangs examines questions surrounding natural resources, finding answers in Switzerland that may serve as examples for the rest of the world.

Quest for the Sublime: Finding Nature's Secret in Switzerland (Adventures with Purpose)

Europe

Dropping into the unknown on a rubber raft, hurled against rocks and cliff walls, only to round a blind bend, go vertical on a 10-foot standing wave, and flip over backwards into a deafening vat of near-freezing whitewater. Such is life for the brave souls who commit themselves to exploring the world’s untried rivers. First Descents collects the most enthralling tales from the world’s most respected river explorers. Vivid portrayals in the adventurers’ own words and original photographs tell of solitary efforts and major expeditions on rivers both famous and unknown, including the Yangtze River in China, the Colorado River in Arizona, Ethiopa’s Baro River, and the Braldu River in Pakistan. With stories from Royal Robbins, Tao Berman, Yvonne Chouinard, and others, this newly revised and expanded edition of the 1989 classic captures the excitement, fear, and elation of over four decades of river exploration.

First Descents: In Search of Wild Rivers

Sports & Outdoors

Yost, John

Robbins, Royal

Chounard, Yvon

Berman, Tao

Ludden, Brad

Jennings, Trip

Water Sports

Richard Bangs' Adventures with Purpose: Dispatches from the Front Lines of Earth

Running such wild rivers as the crocodile-infested Tekaze in Ethiopia, Richard Bangs used to lived for the adrenalin, for the rush of reveling in the misery of hardship and sidestepping death around every bend. Now a respected conservationist, he still travels to demanding exotic environments, but with a new, more sober objective: he wants to save these special places. Bangs' personal experiences of "witnessing many special places preserved and lost" led him to write Adventures with Purpose, and the book follows the author to Bosnia, Libya, Panama, the American West, Rwanda, Thailand, and more as he seeks out disappearing cultures, peoples, habitats, and ecosystems particularly rivers so that he can show readers that the loss of these special places will be a catastrophe. Written in the vivid, intimate style that made his earlier books both critical and commercial successes, Richard Bangs’ Adventures with Purpose is an unforgettable composite portrait of a world in peril and an inspiring guide to rescuing it.

Professionals & Academics

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Books by Bangs, Richard