Читать книгу Polar Exploration. A practical handbook for North and South Pole expeditions онлайн

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As a little boy, I loved the feel of sand, grass or rain when I played outdoors with my friends. I loved my grubby knees after an afternoon of rambling in the woods, and was proud of my dirty clothes, proof of my time spent outdoors. The subsequent 11 years of boy scouting, culminating in a get-together of scouts from all around the world in Ireland, encouraged that connection and induced a strong respect for the natural world.

That same respect has continued throughout my life. At 18, as a long-haired bass player, I pulled myself away from busy city life to spend a year as an exchange student in the US. I was deposited in the quiet town of Moscow, Idaho, where church choirs did not appreciate my wild bass grooves… so I immersed myself in backcountry skiing, multi-day hikes in the mountains, and long-distance running through endless fields. Busy Belgium was exchanged for wide open spaces, and I discovered the natural beauty of the cold winters and hot summers of the American Northwest.