This true story of bold adventure recounts the extraordinary journeys of Fridtjof Nansen, a scientist and explorer determined to discover what secrets lie hidden in the frozen far North. He crossed the icy wastes of Greenland and later journeyed into the polar ice to study Arctic Ocean currents. On that expedition, he attempted to trek to the North Pole. What happened in the forbidding land of ice, polar bears, and killing cold makes for a gripping tale of survival. Illustrated with maps and Nansen's own photographs and drawings, this book contains a wealth of information about the polar region.

An adventure classic by the famed explorer who lived among the Greenland Inuit. (SEE QUOTE.)

Aboard the Alabama, Mikkelsen and his small crew initially set out to the scarcely explored regions of Greenland to recover the journals from the ill-fated Danmarks Expedition. On that mission, the crew had succeeded in mapping many uncharted parts of Greenland, but never made it back. During Mikkelsen's three-year journey he succeeded in recovering the journals, along with charting several parts of the east coast of arctic Greenland, however, not without surviving many hardships. Accounts of the physical difficulties are dwarfed by Mikkelsen's fascinating descriptions of the plunge into dementia as the days stretched to years.

Abandoned, first published in 1961, is the riveting story of the ill-fated Greely Arctic Expedition. Launched in 1881 as part of the International Polar Year, the U.S. stationed a party of twenty-five men on what is today called Ellesmere Island off the northwest coast of Greenland. The volunteer crew was made up of 3 Army officers, 19 enlisted men, a civilian surgeon, and 2 Eskimo hunters. The commander of the group was thirty-seven-year-old Signal Corps Lieutenant Adolphus Washington Greely. During their first year on the ice, members of the expedition went farther toward the North Pole than anyone had gone before and collected a body of invaluable scientific data. The first supply ship sent to the men in the summer of 1882 was forced to turn back, and the men passed their second winter in isolation at their frigid base-camp. Personality clashes developed and grew steadily more intense. The second relief ship, sent in 1883, was crushed in the ice. Greely led his men south according to a prearranged plan, and they spent their third ice-bound winter encamped at Camp Sabine. Supplies ran out, the hunting failed, and the men began to die of starvation. In Washington an amazing controversy grew out of the failure of the rescue expeditions. Congress was reluctant to launch another attempt, but at last, largely because of the heroic efforts of Greely's wife, Henrietta, the Navy was authorized to go in search of survivors. In the summer of 1884 the 6 survivors of the Greely expedition were safely returned home. The excitement which their rescue generated soon turned into a national scandal when rumors of cannibalism were supported by forensic evidence. Abandoned remains the most complete and authentic account of the Greely Expedition ever published. Included are 15 pages of maps and photographs.

This scarce antiquarian book is a facsimile reprint of the original. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment for protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature in affordable, high quality, modern editions that are true to the original work.

"An extraordinary true adventure tale. . . . Outstanding nonfiction writing that makes history come alive." — Kirkus Reviews (starred review) In 1897, whaling in the Arctic waters off Alaska’s coast was as dangerous as it was lucrative. And in that particular year, winter blasted in early, bringing storms and ice packs that caught eight American whale ships and three hundred sailors off guard. Their ships locked in ice, with no means of escape, the whalers had limited provisions on board, and little hope of surviving until warmer temperatures arrived many months later. Here is the incredible story of three men sent by President McKinley to rescue them.