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ways falling into the drink. when
the water temps are 35 degrees (the
Aleutians) or 29 degrees (along the
Antarctic peninsula) we figure we
have five minutes to get back in the
kayak should we somehow come
out of it. fortunately, that hasn’t
happened … yet.
Politically, the most difficult trips
we’ve done were in China and
Vietnam, where they still don’t
have a very positive view of press
freedoms (or religious or speech
freedoms either). The most physically
difficult? Month-long kayak
trip around brand new national
parks in Gabon, thanks to days that
never dropped below 100 degrees
and an inability to carry much food
or fresh water.
Which of your many accomplishments/projects
are you most
proud of?
Ten books.
Give us a recount of a “day in the
life of Jon Bowermaster?”
At home, sadly, I’m mostly chained
to the desk, trying to get everything
done fast so that I can repack and
leave again. ‘In the field,’ each day
is different. One constant is that I
try and spend an hour at the end of
each day writing, in a notebook,
with a pen, recording what we’ve
seen, done, witnessed that day.
What one piece of gear has
“changed your life”?
Mountain Hardwear’s Trango Arch
3.1 tent. We’ve been several times
in very big wind situations where
minus a good tent, you’d be left
shivering, exposed, at great risk. To
watch that tent blow down on you
then pop right back up is always
something of a miracle.
What advice do you have for
those adventurous journalists
that aspire to your level of success?
Talking about writing is not writing.
Outlining is not writing. Thinking
about writing is not writing. Writing
is writing.
Adventure World Magazine July 2009 10