Blind Descent, James M. Tabor
Blind Descent, James M. Tabor
10 Rating(s)
List: $20.00 | Sale: $14.00
Club: $10.00

Blind Descent
The Quest to Discover the Deepest Place on Earth

Author: James M. Tabor

Narrator: Don Leslie

Unabridged: 9 hr 59 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 06/15/2010

Includes: Bonus Material Bonus Material Included


Synopsis

The deepest cave on earth was a prize that had remained unclaimed for centuries, long after every other ultimate discovery had been made: both poles by 1912, Everest in 1958, the Challenger Deep in 1961. In 1969 we even walked on the moon. And yet as late as 2000, the earth’s deepest cave—the supercave—remained undiscovered. This is the story of the men and women who risked everything to find it, earning their place in history beside the likes of Peary, Amundsen, Hillary, and Armstrong.
 
In 2004, two great scientist-explorers are attempting to find the bottom of the world. Bold, heroic American Bill Stone is committed to the vast Cheve Cave, located in southern Mexico and deadly even by supercave standards. On the other side of the globe, legendary Ukrainian explorer Alexander Klimchouk—Stone’s polar opposite in temperament and style, but every bit his equal in scientific expertise, physical bravery, and sheer determination—has targeted Krubera, a freezing nightmare of a supercave in the Republic of Georgia, where underground dangers are compounded by the horrors of separatist war in this former Soviet republic.

Blind Descent explores both the brightest and darkest aspects of the timeless human urge to discover—to be first. It is also a thrilling epic about a pursuit that makes even extreme mountaineering and ocean exploration pale by comparison. These supercavers spent months in multiple camps almost two vertical miles deep and many more miles from their caves’ exits. They had to contend with thousand-foot drops, deadly flooded tunnels, raging whitewater rivers, monstrous waterfalls, mile-long belly crawls, and much more. Perhaps even worse were the psychological horrors produced by weeks plunged into absolute, perpetual darkness, beyond all hope of rescue, including a particularly insidious derangement called The Rapture.

James M. Tabor was granted unprecedented access to logs, journals, photographs, and video footage of these expeditions, as well as many hours of personal interviews with surviving participants. Blind Descent is an unforgettable addition to the classic literature of discovery and adventure. It is also a testament to human survival and endurance—and to two extraordinary men whose relentless pursuit of greatness led them to heights of triumph and depths of tragedy neither could have imagined.

Includes a 16-pg full-color insert

About The Author

JAMES M. TABOR’s last book was the international award winner Forever on the Mountain. He was the co-creator and executive producer of the 2007 History Channel special Journey to the Center of the World. Tabor’s writing has appeared in Time, Smithsonian, U.S. News & World Report, and many other national publications. Visit him online at www.jamesmtabor.com.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Will on June 11, 2014

Humanity is very concerned with great height. Flying, scaling Everest and walking on the moon are obvious examples. But can you name the deepest cave on earth? I didn’t think so. Neither can most people. But there are explorers who live for the challenge of finding the deepest part of our planet. Th......more

Goodreads review by April on November 14, 2010

My best friend and I listened to this on CD while working on various projects. The topic it covers is fascinating -- supercaving and trying to find the deepest point on the planet. The perils of supercaving make climbing Mount Everest look like a vigorous weekend backpacking trip. At least from Mt.......more

Goodreads review by Todd on April 17, 2018

Bill Stone woke and walked into his kitchen, known for being the most dangerous room of any house. Kitchens kill 480 people each year, on average. It takes only as few as 10 bacteria to make people sick, and your sponge or counter-wiping cloth has 134,630 bacteria. Your kitchen faucet handle has 13,......more

Goodreads review by Brandon on March 15, 2011

..But cave explorers like Vesley and Farr could not see the route and so could not anticipate the dangers, a partial list of which includes drowning, fatal falls, premature burial, asphyxiation, hypothermia, hurricane-force winds, electrocution, earthquake-induced collapses, poison gases and walls d......more

Goodreads review by Amy on May 22, 2010

I've grown to really love adventure and survival books and thought this would definitely be an interesting read in the genre. I wasn't disappointed. Blind Descent tells of cave exploration adventures in 2 of the world's deepest caves. I was initially concerned that the author wouldn't be able to mak......more


Quotes

"Heart-stopping and relentlessly gripping. Tabor takes us on an odyssey into unfathomable worlds beneath us, and into the hearts of rare explorers who will do anything to get there first."—Robert Kurson, author of ShadowDivers


"Holds the reader to his seat, containing dangers aplenty with deadly falls, killer microbes, sudden burial, asphyxiation, claustrophobia, anxiety, and hallucinations far underneath the ground in a lightless world. Using a pulse-pounding narrative, this is tense real-life adventure pitting two master cavers mirroring the cold war with very uncommonly high stakes."—Publishers Weekly (starred review)

"A fascinating and informative introduction to the sport of cave diving, as well as a dramatic portrayal of a significant man-vs.-nature conflict. . . . What counts is Tabor’s knack for maximizing dramatic potential, while also managing to be informative and attentive to the major personalities associated with the most important cave explorations of the last two decades."—Kirkus Reviews