After failing to get the Republican nomination, then losing worse than he thought he would as a third party candidate, Teddy Roosevelt sought to drown his self-doubt and depression by undertaking a rigorous adventure tour of South America. Originally planned as sort of a roughing it eco-tour, Roosevelt soon altered his plans and set off to explore an uncharted river in the heart of the Amazon, surrounded by some of the roughest and most dangerous territory in the world. The book tells the story of his doomed expedition and works as a fine manual for how not to mount a successful jungle adventure. From the get-go, Roosevelt exercises uncharacteristic poor judgment, allowing men who talked the talk but had never walked the walk to be in charge of crucial elements of the planning and provisioning. Hilarity ensues, provided you consider malaria, Indian attacks, death, starvation, and typhoid to be hilarious.

About half way through the book now, and it's pretty compelling stuff. Teddy has always been my favorite president, and even if the river expedition is a parade of horrors and poor planning, it makes one long for the days when a US president would do such a thing. The media freaks out at the physical fitness of GW because he rides a bike down a gravel road.

Labels: Adventure and Travel