Tip of the Iceberg

Travel writing can take a lot of forms, some good, a lot bad. Most (not all) bad travel writing, in my opinion, goes something like: 1) We did this, then this, then this, and finally this, or 2) I was having a tough time in life/was burnt out/uninspired and needed a change so I went to X country to try and change it up, and wow has my life changed, all because I took ayahuasca or something. Good travel writing has a point to it, a plan, or a successful attempt at understanding a different culture. Anthony Bourdain’s Parts Unknown was best at that last one. Mark Adam’s Tip of the Iceberg falls into the ‘has a plan’ category of good writing.

Tip of the Iceberg actually follows two trips along the same route: the 1899 voyage of the steamship George W. Elder, commissioned by Edward Harriman, who was accompanied by 30 scientists (including John Muir), artists, and writers, and the lone man voyage of Mark Adams almost 120 years later.

Overall, this book is a look at Alaska through an interesting lens of then and now, both centered around trips. Even though it’s part of the United States, Alaska is definitely in a league of its own. This book really gives the reader an inside look at Alaska, Alaskans, and their history, while giving them the proper respect. It’s also casual enough to make the things you learn not seem super dry. Because a book about a turn-of-the-20th century team of naturalists exploring some nature could be very dry, but this one is not. I think Adams’s decision to also go on a trip helps the reader put the state and it’s history in the here and now, and makes it way more relatable. Plus, the trip is exciting. He runs into bears, evacuates using a prop plane, and a lot of other stuff that I won’t write about.

I recommend this book because you’ll be entertained and you’ll learn something, what more could you want?