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Epic: Adventures across Aotearoa
“Feel the earth beneath [your] bare feet. The beach and bush beckon…” New Zealand is a country synonymous with epic adventure. Over the years, countless sea kayakers, climbers and alpine trampers have attempted journeys across its stunning landscape, and many more dream of following in their tracks. In Epic , the stories of a dozen memorable Kiwi explorers are brought together to form a tribute to the spirit of adventure. It is difficult to comprehend the scale of the journeys of the featured explorers, but author Ray Salisbury brings them to life with detailed maps, backstories, and narratives that fail to hide his own passion for adventure. From Graeme Dingle and Jill Tremain attempting the first traverse of the Southern Alps, to the nineteen-year-old ‘wildboy’ who lived off the land as he paddled, walked and swam 8000 km of coastline, this is a showcase of the intrepid. Seasoned explorer or armchair traveller, prepare to be awed and inspired by Epic . It doesn’t shy away from the realities of boundary-pushing adventure, with accounts of physical and mental battles, near-disasters, and sadly several mentions of those lost their lives in the wild. But with deep lows come impossible highs, in this exploration of what makes an epic adventurer. In a world full of distractions, Epic is a reminder to get out there and experience the wild, stunning places of our planet—they are waiting.
256 pages, Hardcover
Published May 27, 2024
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
April 28, 2025
3,7 / 5
April 17, 2024
There is nothing like reading tales of ambitious, real-life adventures to inspire your own excursions into the wilderness, and this book is full of just those kinds of stories. Even if you’ve never felt the urge to drop everything and spend six months scrambling through rugged mountains, “Epic: Adventures Across Aotearoa” might at least inspire you to lace up your hiking boots and spend a day – or maybe a few days – challenging yourself in the great outdoors.
Each of the 11 chapters in “Epic” focuses on a single ground-breaking expedition through the wildlands of New Zealand, ranging in length from 22 days to 600 days and running the gamut from circumnavigating the islands by kayak to crossing the islands from tip to tip on foot. Adventurers traverse snowy alpine passes, cross dangerous rivers by pack raft, tackle the landscape by bicycle, and hike through deep rainforests. Along the way, rogue waves upend boats, avalanches threaten sudden death, persistent rainfall dampens spirits, and loneliness offers the temptation of abandonment and a quick, comforting return to civilization. But in each account, there are also revelations about the preciousness of life after brushes with adversity, and there are unexpected connections with helpful and generous strangers along the way. In each case, the travellers manage to overcome all hardships and persist until they reach the end of the trail.
Of course, exploration and maps go hand-in-hand, and each adventure is accompanied by a detailed, full-color map (or maps) showing the route, the means of travel, the number of days taken, and the locations of important stops and incidents along the way. The stories are also illustrated with archival photos taken during the trips, and each chapter concludes with a “where are they now” sidebar about what the participants have been up to since completing their journeys – some have gone on to tackle further adventures, others have slotted into more mundane lifestyles, and a few have had their lives tragically cut short.
As a survey, “Epic” presents the narratives as abridged overviews rather than in-depth accounts, briefly recounting highlights (and lowlights) along the way. In a few instances, “Epic” even considers the “why” of embarking on such quests, usually from the point of view of the adventurers themselves in the form of quotes from journals or interviews. Anyone who wants to read more deeply about a particular adventure can look to the References section at the back of the book to find books, articles, and websites for further reading on each chapter.
The book could have used a more creative – or, shall we say, “adventurous” – title to make it stand out from other books in the genre. The word “epic” is so woefully overused by the outdoor community that it’s become a rather generic, largely meaningless cliché.
In the subtitle, many people outside of New Zealand might not get the reference to Aotearoa – the Maori-language name for the islands that make up the country. This unfamiliarity might serve to pique some people’s interest, or it might cause them to pass it over in favor of something more familiar.
Each of the 11 chapters in “Epic” focuses on a single ground-breaking expedition through the wildlands of New Zealand, ranging in length from 22 days to 600 days and running the gamut from circumnavigating the islands by kayak to crossing the islands from tip to tip on foot. Adventurers traverse snowy alpine passes, cross dangerous rivers by pack raft, tackle the landscape by bicycle, and hike through deep rainforests. Along the way, rogue waves upend boats, avalanches threaten sudden death, persistent rainfall dampens spirits, and loneliness offers the temptation of abandonment and a quick, comforting return to civilization. But in each account, there are also revelations about the preciousness of life after brushes with adversity, and there are unexpected connections with helpful and generous strangers along the way. In each case, the travellers manage to overcome all hardships and persist until they reach the end of the trail.
Of course, exploration and maps go hand-in-hand, and each adventure is accompanied by a detailed, full-color map (or maps) showing the route, the means of travel, the number of days taken, and the locations of important stops and incidents along the way. The stories are also illustrated with archival photos taken during the trips, and each chapter concludes with a “where are they now” sidebar about what the participants have been up to since completing their journeys – some have gone on to tackle further adventures, others have slotted into more mundane lifestyles, and a few have had their lives tragically cut short.
As a survey, “Epic” presents the narratives as abridged overviews rather than in-depth accounts, briefly recounting highlights (and lowlights) along the way. In a few instances, “Epic” even considers the “why” of embarking on such quests, usually from the point of view of the adventurers themselves in the form of quotes from journals or interviews. Anyone who wants to read more deeply about a particular adventure can look to the References section at the back of the book to find books, articles, and websites for further reading on each chapter.
The book could have used a more creative – or, shall we say, “adventurous” – title to make it stand out from other books in the genre. The word “epic” is so woefully overused by the outdoor community that it’s become a rather generic, largely meaningless cliché.
In the subtitle, many people outside of New Zealand might not get the reference to Aotearoa – the Maori-language name for the islands that make up the country. This unfamiliarity might serve to pique some people’s interest, or it might cause them to pass it over in favor of something more familiar.
January 7, 2024
A well researched collection of adventure tales from around Aotearoa that will surely be valuable to anyone planning their own epic trip. Loved the inclusion of maps and the diversity of different adventures. What I found lacking was the personal perspective of the travellers telling their own stories... I guess it's a bit unavoidable with an overview like this, but I would've like more quotes or interviews included. Maybe I'll just have to read some of their own books!
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews