Crossing Antarctica

An account of the first successful crossing of Antarctica by dogsled and ski follows the renowned explorer Steger as he leads a six-man Trans-Antarctica international team on a four-thousand-mile journey

YA-- Armchair adventure in the truest sense. In July of 1989, American explorer Will Steger and an international team of five others set out to cross Antarctica by skis and dogsled. It took 220 days to travel 3700 miles under the most adverse conditions imaginable. Crossing Antarctica is the story of that journey as told through Steger's diaries. His account is introspective, vividly descriptive, and punctuated with moments of pathos. He explains the logistics from the inception of the idea down to who sleeps in which tent and the details of daily life on the expedition. This book helps readers understand this vast continent and the necessity to preserve and protect its fragile environment.
- Susan B. McFaden, Fairfax County Public Library, VA
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Routine account of a groundbreaking expedition in the Great White Waste. Steger, who conquered the North Pole by dog sled a few years ago (North to the Pole, 1989), and Bowermaster (coauthor with Steger of Saving the Earth, 1990) try hard to make their tale of the 1989 Trans-Antarctica Expedition a gripper. The superlatives roll out: the first crossing of Antarctica by dog sled and ski, battling windchills of minus-65 degrees and 100-mile-per-hour winds, crossing the terrifying ``Zone of Inaccessibility,'' and so on. But despite these thrills, the story slogs along. The problem may lie in the expedition itself, which was masterfully organized and proceeded without major mishaps. A safe expedition makes a slow read. The six-man international crew (French, American, British, Russian, Chinese, Japanese) did its job with just the usual bickering frostbite. A man missing overnight, a dog stuck in a crevasse--such is the adventure for the armchair explorer, who winds up mulling over the explorers' menu (lots of Land O' Lakes cheese) and methods of garbage disposal (bag it up, fly it out). The US, which routinely cold-shoulders free-lance explorers arriving at its South Pole base, comes off as the heavy. It snows a lot. Everyone gets home safely. Indispensable for Antarctica buffs, but for real chilly thrills, try Shackleton or Scott. (Eight pages of color photographs and ten maps--not seen.) -- Copyright ©1991, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

The story of the first transverse of Antarctica by dogsled and ski, a 4000-mile, seven-month (July 1989-March 1990) journey by an expedition of six men from six different countries, is told in expanded journal form by co-leader Steger. His team survived whiteouts, crevasses, 100F windchill, erratic supplies, a pregnant sled dog, a monotonous diet, a hostile National Science Foundation, frostbite and runny noses, and were rewarded by magnificent scenery and a sense of personal and scientific accomplishment. This above-average polar account keeps the reader moving along with the hardy six. Steger and Bowermaster also coauthored Saving the Earth ( LJ 4/15/90). For public libraries.
- J.F. Husband, Framingham State Coll., Mass.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.