Explorer: The Quest for Adventure

This enquiry into the explorer mindset is part meditation, part memoir, from one of ‘Britain’s greatest explorers’ ( The Telegraph ). What does it mean to be an explorer in the twenty-first century? Explorer is the story of what first led Benedict Allen to head for the farthest reaches of our planet – at a time when there were still valleys and ranges known only to the remote communities who inhabited them. It is also the story of why, thirty years later, he is still exploring. It’s the story of a journey back to a clouded mountain in New Guinea to find a man called Korsai who had once been a friend, and to fulfil a promise made as young men. It is also a story of what it is to be ‘lost’ and ‘found’. Honest, sensitive and packed with insight, in Explorer Allen considers the lessons he has learnt from his numerous expeditions – most importantly, from the communities he has encountered: there is a value in disconnecting from all that we are familiar with, particularly in today’s crowded world. And there is a value in connecting with worlds unfamiliar to us, some of whom have lived in harmony, not competition, with nature for generations. We explore not to plant a flag, or leave a mark, but to open up and allow the place and people to leave their mark on us. — ISBN13: 9781786896230