The Last Great Adventure Of Peter Blake

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Sir Peter Blake's final voyage, cut short when the renowned yachtsman was murdered by bandits in Brazil, is chronicled in a new book, The Last Great Adventure of Sir Peter Blake. Drawn from Blake's logbooks, the text was edited by his longtime friend and business partner Alan Sefton, and traces the 2001 voyage aboard Blake's 119-foot aluminum schooner Seamaster. The odyssey began in New Zealand and descended to the icy waters of Antarctica before sailing north to the Amazon rainforests, where Blake and his crew were monitoring the effects of global warming and pollution on one of the world's most environmentally sensitive regions. Seamaster ultimately sailed 1,000 miles of the Amazon before Blake was fatally shot while at anchor near the mouth of the river in December 2001. The 240-page large-format hardcover book includes color photos in addition to several paintings by Blake's widow, Lady Pippa Blake, who was on board during part of the Amazon exploration. The log entries are peppered with descriptions of the scenery and abundant wildlife the crew encountered throughout the journey. We have read books about Antarctica, have studied photographs of supposedly some of the best scenery, and find that it is much better than we ever thought possible by a factor of ten, wrote Blake in his Jan.13, 2001 entry, when Seamaster was six miles from the eastern end of King George Island in the South Shetlands. It is rugged, raw, uncompromising, hostile, extreme and cold. But our impression, after only our first day here, is that it is fantastic and almost beyond description. Blake was one of the best-known sailors of modern times. In a 30-year sailing career, the New Zealander had been a victor in numerous international yacht races, including the America's Cup and the Whitbread Round the World Race. But Blake also was an avid environmentalist. He worked briefly for the Cousteau Society and later founded his own environmental organization, blakexpeditions. He also served as a special envoy of the United Nations Environment Program and took great interest in sustainable economic development. Blake and his crew had completed the two-month Amazon expedition and were at anchor off Macapa Dec. 5 when armed intruders boarded Seamaster, killing Blake and injuring two crewmembers. Six men were later convicted by a Brazilian court and sentenced to up to 36 years in prison. Soundings: An Interdisciplinary Journal If it's a large-size hardcover gift edition you seek celebrating adventure expeditions in general or the achievements of Sir Peter Blake in particular, make it Alan Sefton's editing of Blake's logbooks, The Last Great Adventure of Sir Peter Blake. The text is drawn directly from Blake's logbooks as he journeys from the Antarctic to the Amazon, with fine color photos and paintings adding the visual delay which sets The Last Great Adventure apart from biographical memoirs alone. Plenty of factual information about the regions Blake explores, from animals for flora, make this an informational guide above and beyond its adventure biography theme. Midwest Book Review This emotional book tracks Sir Peter Blake, the outstanding yachtsman, adventurer and international sporting celebrity, on his final voyage. During his years as an ocean racer, Blake noticed dramatic changes in the marine environment, and he set out to generate greater awareness of society's effects on the natural world. With Team New Zealand colleagues Alan Sefton and Scott Chapman, he set out on SEAMASTER, a specially equipped 118-foot aluminum ketch, with a team of filmmakers and scientists to make television documentaries and build website activities to educate and inspire people to protect the environment. On the second leg of his mission, he explored Brazil's Amazon and Negro Rivers, looking into the impact of global warming, deforestation, mining and the exploitation of rare and endangered species. As he was leaving the Amazon, Blake was shot and killed by river pirates while defending his crew and vessel. This book contains Blake's log-books, edited by his colleague and close friend Alan Sefton, along with images take by the ship's photographers. Blake's passion and adventurousness permeates these accounts of his voyages. Offshore Magazine