Mischief in Patagonia: An intolerable deal of sea, one halfpennyworth of mountain

by H.W. Tilman, Robin Knox-Johnston (Foreword), Sir Robin Knox-Johnston (Contributor)

So I began thinking again of those two white blanks on the map, of penguins and humming birds, of the pampas and of gauchos, in short, of Patagonia, a place where, one was told, the natives' heads steam when they eat marmalade.' So responded H. W. 'Bill' Tilman to his own realisation that the Himalaya were too high for a mountaineer now well into his fifties. He would trade extremes of altitude for the romance of the sea with, at his journey's end, mountains and glaciers at a smaller scale; and the less explored they were, the better he would like it. Within a couple of years he had progressed from sailing a 14-foot dinghy to his own 45-foot pilot cutter Mischief, readied her for deep-sea voyaging, and recruited a crew for this most ambitious of private expeditions. Well past her prime, Mischief carried Tilman, along with an ex-dairy farmer, two army officers and a retired civil servant, safely the length of the North and South Atlantic oceans, and through the notoriously difficult Magellan Strait, against strong prevailing winds, to their icy landfall in the far south of Chile. The shore party spent six weeks crossing the Patagonian ice cap, in both directions, returning to find that their vessel had suffered a broken propeller. Edging north under sail only, Mischief put into Valparaiso for repairs, and finally made it home to Lymington via the Panama Canal, for a total of 20,000 nautical miles sailed, in addition to a major exploration 'first'-all here related with the Skipper's characteristic modesty and bone-dry humour, and many photographs.

Genres: Travel, Nonfiction, Adventure

245 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1957

About the author

Major Harold William "Bill" Tilman, CBE, DSO, MC and Bar, was an English mountaineer and explorer, renowned for his Himalayan climbs and sailing voyages.

See Wikipedia for more:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Ti...

Reviews

[Daren · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is the first of Tilman's "Mischief" books, named for his boat. Built in 1906, originally a Bristol Channel pilot cutter, 45 ft in length. In 1927 she had ended her working life and was converted to a yacht. In 1954, some 9 owners later, Tilman had her refitted and set to head to South America.

Combining his loves of mountaineering and sailing, he set out to sail to cross the Patagonian ice cap from the Pacific to the Argentine lakes (and return). Various attempts on the ice cap had been made from 1914 to 1954 (these are briefly outlined in an appendix), but none reportedly completely successful, this was challenge enough for Tilman.

Selecting (or rather finding) a crew for a dual challenge such as this is not easy, and those who will participate in both tasks were few. There did need to be a crew remain with the boat while the ice cap was dealt with was necessary, so there did not need to be a full crossover.

Tilman's writing is good. He doesn't shy away from the technical terms and jargon in either his sailing or climbing. This doesn't bother me too much as I happily gloss over the specifics and take in the wider description of the event, task or problem.

He talks little of history or background, concentrating on the events as they happen. The interactions with the crew, people in port etc are well described, and scenery where is occurs in this story is also well painted. Strange for now, but not for the time, to read about their environmental impact - unwanted gear went straight over the side, including at one point a drum of petrol in a pristine bay!

In my edition photographs were not included, which seems a shame. The maps were not very good - one of the southern third of South America, the other of Peel Inlet and the Calvo Glacier were not much help - no route plotting, and ultimately too small.

I own a series of Tilman's climbing books, which are earlier than his sailing books, and will no doubt work my way through those.

This was enjoyable at 3.5 stars, rounded up.

[Crissy · Rating 4 out of 5]

An enjoyable read with a reminder that it took place in the 50s when there was little regard with respect to the environment. Tilman decided that the Himalayas were becoming too commercialised, so he decided that it was easier just to sail to a quieter mountain and climb it! A word of warning. The author assumes that you are also a mountaineer and sailor and his descriptions include plenty of technical jargon, but don't let it put you off as it certainly gives you a feel for the conditions!

[MARTIN JOHN CORFE · Rating 5 out of 5]

With a son and daughter in law about to embark on an adventure in Patagonia in a Kyak I was advised to give this a read. The book describes an adventure both in crossing oceans and climbing mountains. The way they dispose of unwanted gear leaves much to be desired, everything including a 48gall can of petrol gets heaved of the side of the boat. But this was the 1950's before we ruined the planet.

[David Edmonds · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the first of Tilman's eight sailing \ climbing accounts. If you like reading about real voyaging before the age of commercialism, sponsorship and celebrity travel you'll enjoy this book and Tilman's dry humour.