Travels With A kayak [Illustrated] [Paperback]

Whit Deschner (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1997

Travels with a Kayak tells the story of Whit Deschner''s country-by-country kayaking tour. Deschner''s tra vels took him to New Zealand, Nepal, Pakistan, Turkey, the E verglades and the Grand Canyon. '

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Although it's not advisable to judge a book by its cover, the photographs gracing the cover of Travels with a Kayak make it hard not to be intrigued, even without reading a word. A cowboy, a Buddhist monk, an English bobby, and an Indian holy man stare out from separate photos, each holding a well-used kayak paddle. Even if you've never remotely considered whitewater kayaking, Whit Deschner sure makes it clear that you are missing an awful lot of fun if you don't give it a try. Travels with a Kayak follows the death-defying author around the world as he drags his kayak from country to country in search of life. Readers won't be disappointed as they join Deschner for a humorous ride through New Zealand, Turkey, Indonesia, Pakistan, the U.S., India, Japan, and all over the rest of the world.

Review

Changez votre sac dos pour un kayak! vous dirait l'auteur de cetouvrage plein dhumour. De la Turquie la Nouvelle-Zelande, en passant parlIndonsie, le Japon, etc., ce livre nous raconte les aventures d'un homme quia fait de son kayak une deuxime peau. Les nombreuses photos qui illustrentcet ouvrage sont autant de tmoignages loquents sur lart de vivre diffrmment, an gr de ses passions, et surtout sans limite.(Espaces (Quebec) fall 98) -- (Espaces, Quebec - fall 98)

If you think or want to believe that there truly may be something funny about nearly everything, then you must view the world of kayaking through the eyes of Whit Deschner in his new book, Travels With a Kayak. His hilarious stories are actually stories where fiction and fact live recklessly in sin together. Its Whits way, we like it. Even the copyright page is funny. -- Jan Nesset, Canoe & Kayak Dec 98

In writing the book, Deschner clearly had one purpose in mind: To make his readers laugh. He succeeds admirably! Travels With a Kayak is one of the funniest adventure travel books I have ever read. -- Bob Gedekoh,American Whitewater Journal May/June 1998

Travels With a Kayak is in a class of its own humour. Every last word needs to be read. Indeed, every first word, too, for it opens with a copyright which bans memorizing of the book and goes on with a list of exclusions of which a house insurance policy would be proud. The whole book is so full of twisted lateral thinking and word play that it is unwise to read more than a chapter at a time. Look forward to three weeks of zany entertainment. -- Stuart Fisher - Canoeist, Great Britain, Jan 1998

Whit Deschner, possibly canoeings most entertaining writer, has written a book about his `Travels with a Kayak. Its packed full of hiiarious and sometimes horrific paddling stories, many of which seem way too far fetched to be true, even though we have it on good authority that such unbelievable things did really happen. If you think youve got great stories to tell. dont open your mouth until youve read this book. You might well find your little escapades pale into insignificance compared to this mans. There are some great old school photos in the book and plenty of useful information it you fancy doing a bit of travelling yourself. Travels with a Kayak had us laughing out loud all the way through. Its superb. -- Heather Gunn, Playboating (Great Britain - spring 98

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 252 pages
• Publisher: Eddie Tern Pr; illustrated edition edition (October 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0960538860
• ISBN-13: 978-0960538867
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 7 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,502,456 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Humorous and a Great Read!, August 14, 2000

By 

John Foss/Pattie Todd (Telluride, Colorado and Chile, South America) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Travels With A kayak (Paperback)

Have you ever ventured forth out of the cocoon of your local river scene? I don't mean a weekend jaunt from DC to West Virginia. I'm talking about the big trip: jumping on board a gas-guzzling silver bird; cramming your torso into the economy section in a way that would make a chiropractor cringe; drinking or drugging yourself into oblivion after dining on plastic airline food; and finally uncoiling after an indeterminable amount of hours at some Third World airport in the cloying heat of the night, accosted by manic taxi drivers, while throngs of brown-eyed, dark-skinned people stare in wonder at this thing--your kayak--you're dragging on the tarmac. If you've been there, read Travels With A Kayak by Whit Deschner. For those of you that haven't, his zany travelogue will motivate you to go.

Buy this book. Whit's non-profit organization--himself--needs the money. Maybe he'll even sign your copy like he did mine, "May all your dreams be wet."

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars And yes it was worth the wait, October 21, 1999

By 

L. Guilar - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Travels With A kayak (Paperback)

Years ago Whit Deschner wrote the best book there is was or ever will be about kayaking. It's been years since my copy of "Does the wet suit You" fell apart and in that time there's been nothing to replace it. So this is one of those books you wait for and wonder...can it be worth it? The short answer is yes. The long answer is well, you either think he's hysterically funny or you'll find him boring and pointless. His solution to the problem "how do you write about a trip that everyone else has written about" (in this case the Grand Canyon), is ...different? And his description of the Alas in Sumatra is as flat as the bit he paddled (he should have done the upper gorges) but the book is excellent. Not for those of the politically correct brigade, those who are easily offended, or those without a sense of humour. This is international kayaking described in a humorous way that goes beyond the "we went, we paddled huge holes, we got drunk/scared we cheated death and came home" school of writing. It drifts from rivers to people to places in a way that means it might even be readable by that strange species of human being, the non kayaker.

5.0 out of 5 stars Riotously entertaining!, December 11, 2010

By 

D. Leibman - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Travels With A kayak (Paperback)

Perhaps I am biased because I am also a paddler and because I hail from the same area as Deschner, but even when adjusting for these factors I think anyone with a sense of humor could at least get a lot of good laughs out of this volume. Descher's humor really gripped me and my abs are much stronger now after all the fits of laughter that overcame me while reading this book. Deschner consistently drops bombs that you won't see coming. A lot of kayaking and whitewater writing is over-the-top self-aggrandizement, and in this sense "Travels with a Kayak" is a breath of fresh air. The cultural observations are hilarious and the cast of characters complements the stories well. All told I highly recommend buying this book. It's a hidden gem and would compliment any coffee table quite nicely.