Product Description
Step outside the pressures of modern life, and join Michael and Kathleen's quest for beauty, solitude and adventure as they travel alone across the Barren Grounds of Canada. Their journey begins camped amid the decaying ice of a new Arctic spring, and ends 37 days later as they harvest blueberries before a final descent to Baker Lake at the head of Chesterfield Inlet on Hudson Bay.Simply, yet eloquently written, Three Seasons In The Wind transports the reader's imagination to the very banks of the magical Thelon River. By so doing, your heart will awaken to an ancient, nomadic lifestyle of physical challenge and timeless joy that is available to all who dare to pursue their dreams in Canada's pristine Northern landscape. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Honest, Intriguing True Adventure
My only real complaint about this book is that I wish it were longer and had more photos.The style is a combination of the authors' personal diaries they kept while on their month-long voyage down the wild Thelon River in far northern Canada where the open tundra dominates.Their writing was very honest, and I felt intrigued to be reading a firsthand account instead of a recollection that you feel was written and embellished after their trip.At the end of the book, one of the authors describes a portage in great detail and provides a play-by-play of the physical rigors and also the emotional state during this long and arduous portage.This is a wonderful and memorable piece of writing, and I wish that they had given that level of detail to the entire trip.Nonetheless, highly recommended for those who love true adventure stories and who have any interest in a long wilderness canoe trip.

Both the how and why for time spent in the wilderness.
This book succeeds through its unpretentious and honest description of a journey well taken.The concurrent use of diary entries from both of the Pitts gives the narrative a nice balanced feel.The details of how toprepare and do what is required by a trip such as this are very clearlyexplained without bogging down the story.The canoe seems to representchiefly a means, rather than an end, because the authors are best atdefining why they did this in the first place.Their story providesinspiration particularly to those of us who have not been there before.

Not just a canoeing book - a personal perspective on life
I anticipated that this book might be just another canoe guidebook about a northern Canadian river since its size and layout indicated that it wasn't a coffee table photo collection - except for the striking cover photograph. The contents were, therefore, an unexpected and pleasant surprise.Yes -the book does describe a canoe journey - but it seems to me that this isprimarily a narrative of personal development.The effective use of theirdiaries to evoke the experience of the landscape, and the insights of thishusband and wife partnership about their experiences and feelings make thebook far more than a story about canoeing.The story uses their experienceto give the reader some direct insight into the personal development of twoapparently ordinary people who undertake what to many of us would be anunthinkable challenge.In our modern, urbanized society, there is littleopportunity to experience the spirit of the early North American explorers- the Pitts manage to deliver that sense of discovery (both personal andgeographic) in the telling of their journey through their respectivediaries.This is not a "canoe book" - it is tale of two peopleconfronting the challenges of life - who just happened to be canoeing atthe time.One was left wishing the river had been longer so that we couldshare their experience for a few more pages. ... Read more

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A Dictionary of Contemporary Christian Words and Concepts explains frequently used words and concepts that are often misunderstood or not fully explained from the pulpit. Use this book as a resource manual or as daily reading material to spark new thought. ... Read more

Product Description
Purchase includes free access to book updates online and a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Chapters: Augustus Pitt Rivers, Michael Jackson, James Harry Lacey, Stuart Naylor, Seb Hines, Jonathan Webb, Jessica Barden, Fred Cooper, Tom Woolard, Robert Sturdy, John Burman, Charles Midgley, George Smith, Karen Drury. Excerpt:Augustus Henry Lane Fox Pitt Rivers Lieutenant-General Augustus Henry Lane Fox Pitt Rivers (14 April 1827 4 May 1900) was an English army officer, ethnologist , and archaeologist . He was noted for his innovations in archaeological methods, and in the museum display of archaeological and ethnological collections. Born Augustus Henry Lane Fox at Bramham cum Oglethorpe , Wetherby , Yorkshire on 14 April 1827, he was the son of William Lane Fox and Lady Caroline Douglas, a sister of George Douglas, 17th Earl of Morton . Educated at the Royal Military College Sandhurst and commissioned into the Grenadier Guards , Lane Fox had a long and successful military career, primarily as a staff officer; he served in the Crimea as a lieutenant. He retired in 1882 as a Lieutenant-General. Two years before retirement, Lane Fox inherited the estates of a cousin: Henry Pitt, Baron Rivers and consequently the remainder of the fabulous Richard Rigby fortune. He thereafter adopted the surname Pitt Rivers in honour of his benefactor. Three notable descendants of Augustus are his grandson, the anthropologist and eugenicist , George Henry Lane Fox Pitt-Rivers, his great-grandson, the anthropologist and ethnographer , Julian Alfred Lane Pitt-Rivers , and his great-great-grandson, William Speed Lane Fox-Pitt , the equestrian . Pitt Rivers' interests in archaeology and ethnology began in the 1850s, during postings overseas, and he became a noted scientist while he was still a serving military officer. He was elected, in the space of five years, to the Ethnological Society of London (1861... ... Read more

Product Description

Join Kathleen and Michael Pitt as they leave the comfort and temperate climate of suburban Vancouver to spend an isolated winter north of the Arctic Circle. With neither power nor running water, over 40 kilometres from the nearest community of 75 people, this middle-aged couple learns to embrace temperatures that regularly fall below minus 40 degrees. From their home base in a small, one-room cabin, they seek the challenge of winter camping and the adventure of expeditions across the ice.

In January 1999, the Pitts flew by Twin Otter to Colville Lake to pursue Michael's life-long dream of living beyond the reach of roads and concrete. By the time the ice went out of the lakes and rivers in mid-June, their lives had been changed forever.

Michael and Kathleen Pitt had been paddling the rivers of Northern Canada for ten years. Yet their experience seemed incomplete. Summer is for visitors. Michael needed to spend a winter in the North, where rivers, lakes and muskeg remain frozen for 7 to 8 months of the year. Only by following the winter trail did Michael believe that he could truly know the character and soul of Canada's vast, seemingly limitless Northern landscape.

"A mesmerizing account of the North's beauty and the winter Michael and his wife Kathleen lived in a tiny cabin above the Arctic Circle. Well-written and insightful, this book will delight anyone who has explored the northern latitudes or dreams of doing so."-- Julie Angus, author of Rowboat in a Hurricane: My Amazing Journey Across a Changing Atlantic Ocean

"Personal, humorous and witty, Pitt has crafted an Ode to Winter, sharing with us practical tips of wintercraft, philosophical musings and personal observations on life, the North and the majesty of Winter." -- Alan Fehr, 21-year resident of Arctic Canada and Superintendent of Prince Albert and Elk Island National Parks

About the author, Michael D. Pitt
Born and raised in California, Michael D. Pitt emigrated to Canada in 1975 to accept a position at the University of British Columbia as a professor of grassland ecology in the Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, where he eventually served as associate dean for eight years. In 1981 he married Kathleen, who worked at the university as an administrator in Information Technology Services.

The lure of a rural lifestyle, however, with golden sun reflecting on winter snow, inevitably proved irresistible. Kathleen said goodbye to commute traffic, deadlines, memos and office walls in 2000. Michael escaped 18 months later. They now live on 565 acres in the Aspen Parkland near Preeceville, Saskatchewan, where sled dogs Brownie, Grey, Sailor and Slick help them operate Meadow's Edge Bed & Breakfast.

Kathleen and Michael Pitt are authors of Three Seasons in the Wind: 950 km by Canoe Down Northern Canada's Thelon River, published in 1999.

Customer Reviews (2)

Compelling story kept me on the edge of my seat!
I was on the edge of my seat!Even though I met Michael and Kathleen and know that they're well after this amazing life experience...this well-written and compelling story had me on the edge throughout!Why?The idea of living off the grid as they say, of being in a mostly frigid environment (which Michael often calls 'warm') for many months had me worried the other shoe would drop.With beautiful images of vast, lightly populated areas, I was held captive awaiting each new day's dawn.Through Michael's words, I was able to hear the silence.I am especially curious now to read much more on native peoples of the north, who have been so misrepresented.Only near the end of his journey, does Michael become keenly aware of the unique perspective difference between whites and native peoples.Thanks for sharing your story - it's a great read!

Great feedback from active outdoorspeople
These enthusiastic comments have come in recently...

"Michael Pitt combines the bravado of a 19th century explorer with the sensitivity of a modern day man in this masterfully woven tale of an ordinary, middle-aged couple who leave their comfortable city life to spend the winter in a remote, one-room cabin in the Canadian Arctic." -- Tracey D. Hooper, Wildlife Ecologist, Victoria

"Pitt's writing struck me as a wonderful blend of Henry David Thoreau and Farley Mowat -- a treasure of logical philosophy and dry humor, perfect for the armchair adventurer." -- Bruce T. Batchelor, Outdoors author and publisher, Victoria.

"Michael Pitt's new book is an inspiring story of a couple fulfilling a dream of arctic adventure through all seasons -- perceptive, funny, personal and captivating." -- Dan Burnett, Wilderness Canoeist & Lawyer, Vancouver

"This is one of those very rare books that will not only take you on a thoroughly entertaining, thought provoking, real life adventure Beyond the End of Michael and Kathleen's Road, but will also provide you with insights into your own Road. This is a very well told story and more than that, an inspiration." -- Bob Gibbins, Avid Outdoorsman and Chartered Accountant, West Vancouver.

"This story would also interest those who are not outdoor-recreation enthusiasts, as a tale of how to make your dream come to life - by planning and hard work - and how that dream may lead to other, more profound changes in a person's life." -- Alan Thomson, Past President, Recreational Canoeing Association of BC and Retired Physician, Victoria
... Read more

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Medical management of heart failure has undergone great changes in the last few years. There is very little comprehensive information about co-ordinated care of patients with heart failure. There has been a growth in heart failure cardiology and in the community treatment of heart failure, which have not been taught in medical schools or teaching hospitals. Traditionally surgical procedures have revolved predominantly around the transplant procedure, but more non-transplant methods are gaining in popularity.