The Devil's Ashpit: and other Tales of Ascension Island

by Dan Kovalchik

The world’s interest in tiny Ascension Island, some 5,000 miles downrange from Cape Canaveral, Florida, began when the Lords of the Admiralty established a garrison on the island to thwart any attempts to rescue Napoleon from the island’s closest neighbor, St Helena. One giant leap occurred 151 years later, when NASA built the Devil’s Ashpit tracking station to support Project Apollo.

The Devil’s Ashpit is the story of a young newlywed couple who broke the station’s “singles only” policy to enjoy balmy weather, tremendous fishing, sensational diving, free food and lodging, generous pay, and no taxes on an island with a rich history and a remarkably diverse cast of characters. “Getting away from it all,” however, carries some grave caveats for the average person. After three years on the island, these trailblazers were desperate to leave.

Genres: Nonfiction

247 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 25, 2014

Reviews

[Calzean · Rating 1 out of 5]

Disappointing - there was a little about Ascension Island, it's history and geography. But the only tales were the author's story of his work, diving, wife, boredom and how much money they were making. Since it was written about his three years spent on Ascension in the late 1970s, the book was also showing its age.

[Dlmrose · Rating 3 out of 5]

3+