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Running The Amazon
by: Joe Kane

List Price: $19.95

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Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Binding: Hardcover
Dewey Decimal Number: 918.110463
EAN: 9780394553313
ISBN: 0394553314
Label: Knopf
Manufacturer: Knopf
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 277
Publication Date: June 17, 1989
Publisher: Knopf
Release Date: June 17, 1989
Studio: Knopf
Sales Rank: 801512

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Editorial Review:

Product Description:
In 1986 a party of 12 explorers attempted to travel the full length of the Amazon. Joe Kane's original role was as a writer and observer but he ended up as one of the only two members of the original group to complete the entire journey, the only expedition ever to travel the entire 4200 mile Amazon river from its source high in the Andes to its union with the Atlantic Ocean. The expedition took them, by foot, raft and kayak, through one of the world's deepest canyons, through deadly whitewater rapids and into one of the last sections of virgin rain forest in the Western hemisphere, home to outlaw guerillas, primitive Indian nomads and cocaine traffickers. The resulting chronicle is an adventure story of a journey fraught with dangers but ultimately achieving its goal.

Amazon.com Review:
In 1985 a team of hand-picked adventurers, including writer Joe Kane, embarked on a journey that would take them to the remote headwaters of the Amazon Basin. But that was just the beginning of the trip. Their goal: to navigate the world's longest river from source to mouth, a feat never before recorded.

After reaching (via a goat trail) a glacial trickle above 17,000 feet--debatably the farthest source of the Amazon--the team descends to a point where kayaks can be deployed. From there the trip entails kayaking through one of the nastiest white-water canyons on the planet, a stretch of water that has previously claimed the lives or quickly halted the plans of all who attempted to conquer it; navigating an unmapped gorge known affectionately as the Abyss; sneaking through the "Red Zone," an area closed to foreigners and occupied by the notorious Shining Path rebels; and, finally, paddling to the Atlantic by sea kayak through 3,000 miles of hot jungle.

Hired initially to chronicle the project from dry land, Kane quickly assumes a more integral role as a much-needed paddler, and as such he is able to provide vivid, first-hand descriptions of the treacherous water encountered. But in many ways the water is the least imposing obstacle to success. Along the way the team is beset by financial difficulties, a crisis of leadership, attacks from armed rebels, and the defection of team members. Kane's account of this six-month ordeal is much more than a travelogue of athletic endeavor--it's a fascinating portrait of the planning, politics, and personal struggles involved in mounting a modern-day expedition through a vast expanse of largely uncharted territory.

Customer Reviews

Average Rating: out of 5 stars

Rating:

- Modern day adventure
I enjoyed this book & felt I learned a lot about the heart of South America - mainly Peru, Columbia & Brazil. If you are into white-water sports then there is no doubt this is a 5 star book. I enjoyed it but to me it was a good 4 star book. I found the first half of the book dragged a little more, it was more about getting the expedition started, some bickering amongst team members & making slow progress in the incredibly dangerous terrain of Peru.

In the second half of the book the core team remains & the story does a better job of explaining the countryside (riverside) & the interesting people they meet along the way. Joe & his partner's earned their fame on this adventure - 6 months of abusing yourself physically & mentally. One thing Joe Kane ... Read More

Rating:

- AWESOME BOOK! I'D RATE IT MORE THAN A 5 IF I COULD!
I have thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. This is not the type of book I generally read but I found it after I searched for a book on the Amazon and an authentic book on what it's like to be there.

I'm almost done with the book, and it's one I don't want to put down, and certainly don't want to end. It's been very real, has made me feel what it was like to be on a real Amazon adventure.

Rating:

- The real story
Kane's book is the masterpiece with only truly authentic record of that glorious first trip.It is very compelling reading especially for those who have rafted or have a sense of adventure.Real pioneering adventure.Ben Kozel's rates a close second but they did not raft the Abyss.Who can blame them.

Rating:

- Good good good
One of the top adventure books I have read. Great descriptions of whitewater hell as well as political manueverings in the group. Best kayaking book yet.

Rating:

- A Classic in adventure writing
Even though this adventure happened over 20 years ago, it's still worth a read.

Like other reviewers have already stated, this was a very ill-matched expedition. The wrong people were leaders. There was poor and no planning and I suspect, mismanagement of the money each participant had paid. (Kane paid $7000). The potpouri of participants just goes to show that you can't conduct a river expedition for exploration, adventure, excitement, recording, documenting and science. It's just too much to focus on at once when the river provides for all the dangers one could imagine. The Lewis and Clark expedition realized the same thing 180 years earlier: it's impossible to both chart a new river and conduct science projects AND record the journey AND ward off "savages" all at the same ... Read More

Books : Running The Amazon