Keay, John - When Men and Mountains Meet : The Explorers of the Western Himalayas 1820-75

Century, London, 1983. First Paperback Edition, Paperback. Very Good/N/A. 9780712601962 Century Travellers Series; illustrated by b/w. maps & drawings; "As a challenge for explorers the mountain wilderness between India and Inner Asia was unique. The Western Himalayas were seen as a barrier guarding fabled cities unvisited since Marco Polo, barring the way for the commercial opening of Central Asia and Inland China. It took half a century to penetrate this barrier - evidence enough of the appalling difficulties involved. Then, as now, these were partly man-made, for the mountains were of overriding strategic and political importance: there was too much at stake for the sort of free-for-all that happened in Africa or Australia. The freelance traveller was discouraged or discredited; official travellers operated behind a dense screen of secrecy and unlikely excuses. Then there was the terrain - the most formidable on earth, powerful enough to undermine man's sense of self-importance. Yet these explorers are characters of extraordinary stature; Alexander Gardiner, the American adventurer who brought the spirit of OK Corral to the Afghan Hindu Kush; Joseph Wolff, the mad missionary who crossed the same range stark naked; Victor Jacquemont, the Byronic Parisian who suffered for his love of the ladies; or Thomas Thomson, the Scottish naturalist who first reached the crest of the Karakorams. Along with the legendary Moorcroft and dogged surveyors like Godwin-Austen they fully live up to their magnificent setting. Here is a .story that rivals the search for the sources of the Nile and the race for the South Pole."; including bibliography & index - 277 pages. Size: 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. Quantity Available: 1. Category: Mountaineering; Travel; Exploration. ISBN: 0712601961. ISBN/EAN: 9780712601962. Inventory No: TVL00028.

See/Hide Conditions of Sale

Following conditions of sale apply:
Terms of Sale

All books will be carefully packed and dispatched within 48 hours of receipt of cleared funds. Unless otherwise requested, postage will be through Royal Mail standard services and proof of postage will always be obtained.

We accept UK sterling cheques that are drawn on a UK bank; Payments through PayPal (please email order & await request for payment if using PayPal); American Express, MasterCard, Maestro & Visa card payments.

We cannot be responsible for taxes or duties imposed in the customer’s country.

If for any reason you are unhappy with your purchase please contact us by email before returning it within ten days. (Customers are requested to pay for & certify the postage of any returned books.)