Ocean Notorious

A small but interesting book about experiences in the Sub-Antarctic Islands (New Zealand and Australian) and around Scott Base in Antarctica by a New Zealander who was a guide on tourist expedition boats in these areas, Matt Vance.

For me it was a great book, probably due to being topical for me - having visited some of the Sub-Antarctic islands and had Matt as one of the guides on my trip.

The book manages to blend tales from history with more recent tales and Matt's experiences, in a cohesive and ordered way. Many of the stories I had hear or read of before, but enough was new to keep me interested.

Presented in three sections titled Islands, Ocean and Ice, these (obviously) tell of the islands the Southern Ocean and Antarctica. The Islands are the Bounty Islands, Campbell Island, the Auckland Islands and Macquarie (this being the one administered by Australia, and permanently occupied by the Australian Base). The New Zealand Islands are uninhabited, and require permits to land, such is the value of these from a flora and fauna perspective. Some of the stories include the Coast-Watchers, who sat up a mountain on shifts to keep a check for German navy ships. There was one on Campbell Island and two in the Auckland Islands; the world's most lonely tree, on Campbell Island - the single tree most distant from any other tree in the world; and the king penguins of Macquarie Island.

The Ocean section touches on solo yachtsmen in the Southern Ocean, icebergs, and life on an icebreaker ship for crew (and a doctor).

The Ice section includes historical polar explorers and their tales; the magnetic pole; stories of Antarctic huts; and geological drilling.

The only real criticism is that it is such a slender book - 185 pages, but with a generous number of photos (black and white productions unfortunately), and it could have been much longer, as I am sure Matt would have plenty more to tell.

4 stars, would be 5 if longer!