Ice Bears And Kotick - Softcover

Fans of sailing and nautical adventuring will relish Ice Bears and Kotick, a true story of a boat journey sailing and rowing through the ice pack. Their many survival challenges and sailing adventures will appeal to any small-boat sailor and to any library catering to true adventure readers, with its 'you are there' high-impact moments of encounters with icebergs and wildlife alike * California Bookwatch * This is the story of two men's epic journey in an open boat and the first circumnavigation of the Arctic island of Spitsbergen. This is a real adventure for anyone who ever wanted to run away to sea. * Latitudes & Attitudes * Author Peter Webb and his friend, known only as Shaggy, set a record by rowing and sailing around the island of Spitsbergen, Norway. The pair's almost unbelievable 696-mile Arctic circumnavigation makes for an exceptional story. Named after a white seal in Kipling's The Jungle Book, KOTICK is a 17-foot clinker-built Norwegian boat made of wide pine planks and outfitted with two sets of oars, a mast, and a sail. Judging from the men's misadventures, the boat was certainly as seaworthy as a seal. Despite their youth, they planned for contingencies. A packet boat deposited supplies at strategic points around the island. Stops in areas frequented by ice bears included a strong shelter. Weather couldn't be planned for, however. Wind, rain and snow and the movement of ice could make or break the expedition. If this well-written story won t cool you off on a hot summer s day, nothing will. * The Ensign *

This is the story of an extraordinary boat journey that two men made for the fun of it. They rowed and sailed through pack ice, past glaciers and icebergs. They survived whales, polar bears, starvation and capsize. In doing so, they completed the first circumnavigation of the Arctic Island of Spitsbergen in an open rowing boat. Along the way they learned about themselves and about life, experienced a frozen wilderness that will most likely disappear before the century is out. This is a story for small-boat sailors, for lovers of ice and snow, and for anybody who wanted to run away to sea.