Hell or High Water
Surviving Tibet's Tsango River
A grand adventure-an elite kayaking team’s heroic conquest of the worlds last great adventure prize: Tibet’s Tsangpo River.
The Tsangpo Gorge in southeastern Tibet has lured explorers and adventurers since its discovery. Sacred to the Buddhists, the inspiration for Shangri La, the Gorge is as steeped in legend and mystery as any spot on earth. As a river-running challenge, the remote Tsangpo is relentlessly unforgiving, more difficult than any stretch of river ever attempted. Its mysteries have withstood a century’s worth of determined efforts to explore it’s length. The finest expedition paddlers on earth have tried. Several have died. All have failed. Until now.
In the heart of the Himalayan winter, a team of seven kayakers launched a meticulously planned assault of the Gorge. The paddlers were river cowboys, superstars in the universe of extreme kayaking. Accompanying them was author Peter Heller, a world-class kayaker in his own right. Filled with history, white-knuckle drama, and mutiny in one of the world’s most storied-and remote-locations, Hell or High Water is the riveting story of this adventure.
Praise & Reviews
“Riveting… Hell or High Water ranks up there with any adventure writing ever written.”
“Hell or High Water might be as close as you get to the harrowing experience without getting your feet wet.”
— Rocky Mountain News
“Heller nimbly blends the history of the region into his gripping modern trek, as the crew lives up to the legacy of the great explorers before them. An offhand remark made to the paddlers early in the journey — that their story could be the kayaking equivalent of Into Thin Air—has come true in the best possible way.”
— Publishers Weekly
“poetical evocations of river-gorge vistas, but he also stokes plenty of the action that propels thrill-seeking readers”
— Booklist
Hell or High Water
Surviving Tibet's Tsango River
From the bestselling author of The Dog Stars, the true story of an elite kayaking team’s heroic conquest of the world’s last great adventure prize: Tibet’s Tsangpo River.
The Tsangpo Gorge in southeastern Tibet has lured explorers and adventurers since its discovery. Sacred to the Buddhists, the inspiration for Shangri La, the Gorge is as steeped in legend and mystery as any spot on earth. As a river-running challenge, the remote Tsangpo is relentlessly unforgiving, more difficult than any stretch of river ever attempted. Its mysteries have withstood a century’s worth of determined efforts to explore it’s length. The finest expedition paddlers on earth have tried. Several have died. All have failed. Until now.
In the heart of the Himalayan winter, a team of seven kayakers launched a meticulously planned assault of the Gorge. The paddlers were river cowboys, superstars in the universe of extreme kayaking. Accompanying them was author Peter Heller, a world-class kayaker in his own right. Filled with history, white-knuckle drama, and mutiny in one of the world’s most storied-and remote-locations, Hell or High Water is the riveting story of this adventure.
A grand adventure-an elite kayaking team’s heroic conquest of the worlds last great adventure prize: Tibet’s Tsangpo River.
