As a doctor, Bombard was concerned about the hundreds of deaths at sea every year related to sailors drinking ocean water. He developed the theory that humans can not just survive but live for years on seawater. This sounds very strange, but his big idea was to begin drinking seawater, while you are still hydrated – and in small quantities. It turns out that saltwater is only dangerous if you are dehydrated and suddenly drink large amounts of it. – The way shipwrecked sailors typically would do when they run out of fresh water. From the book:

For some time I had made a study of the resistance of the human organism to privations and had convinced myself that it was possible for an individual to survive beyond the limits normally assigned by physiological science. I had paid particular attention to the case histories of political deportees, prisoners, and undernourished populations. But, with my background as a doctor, for whom the teachings of science remain a dead letter unless they can find practical application, my theoretical studies only seemed to lead to the question: ‘What use can made of this knowledge?’

Bombard ate spoonfuls of plankton that he collected in a fine net and he also drank juice made from pressed fish he caught along the way. Sound disgusting, but the man survived and he might have discovered an important piece of knowledge for survival on the ocean.

Download the free PDF e-book here (223 pages/38MB):

 The Bombard Story 1953

When investigative reporter Nellie Bly approached her editor in 1889, he was not excited about the idea at all. But, in the end, she did travel around the world.

On her adventure, she met Jules Verne – whose story had inspired her – and many, many others. The result is this book.

The endeavor became an international story almost overnight, and Nellie, whose real name was Elizabeth Cochrane Seaman, became a celebrity herself.

Her travel around the world in a record-setting 72 days is the most remembered of her feats today, but she was a pioneer in several other fields, too. For instance, Bly practically invented investigative journalism, when she lived undercover in a mental institution and uncovered horrible conditions to the public.

Around the World in Seventy-Two Days is not only a testament to the will of an extraordinary person, who became a role model for girls around the world. It is also very well written and entertaining indeed.

Download Around the World in Seventy Two Days as PDF for free here:

Nellie-bly-Around-the-World-in-Seventy-Two-Days-pdf

List of Viking voyages to America:

• Bjarni’s Voyage (985 or 986)
• Leif’s Return Voyage from Norway (1000)
• Leif’s Voyage of Exploration to Vinland (1001)
• Thorvald’s Voyage
• Thorstein’s Voyage
• Karlsefni’ s Expedition

Download the free PDF e-book here (408 pages/28MB):

 Voyages of Norsemen

“Sir,” replied the commander, “I am nothing to you but Captain Nemo; and you and your companions are nothing to me but the passengers of the Nautilus.”

Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne is one of the greatest adventure novels of all time, and – at the same time – a groundbreaking work of science-fiction.

The narrator, Professor Pierre Aronnax, and his companions join the fiercely independent Captain Nemo aboard his submarine, the Nautilus, on a wondrous and dramatic journey around the world.

Download Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea here (PDF 1,1 MB / 168 pages)

20000 Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne

This fine work was published after his successful return and it is richly illustrated with maps and high-quality photographs, considering the time. The expedition was sometimes quite dramatic, and only sheer luck separated survival from total catastrophe:

“In the pitch-dark night, which luckily was perfectly calm, a mighty flame, with thick suffocating smoke was leaping up from the engine-room skylight. A fire had broken out in the engine-room, right among the tanks holding 2,200 gallons of petroleum. We all knew what would happen if the tanks got heated: the “Gjöa” and everything on board would be blown to atoms like an exploded bomb. We all flew in frantic haste.”

The expedition was spectacular since it was the first time man navigated The North West Passage – the northern link between the Atlantic and the Pacific oceans. At the time, the passage was only partly open for short periods in the summer, making the voyage very difficult and the risk of getting stuck in ice was imminent.

Today, though, due to climate changes, the passage is increasingly open for commercial traffic and it has the potential to disrupt global sea transport.

The objective of the expedition was met, but the Norwegian Roald Amundsen was disappointed that he was not able to reach the magnetic north pole, which also was a goal of the journey.

Download The North West Passage PDF here in full length (349 pages/10MB):

The North West Passage

No other science book has created such a revolt in both the scientific and civil society, and even today the book is discussed, misunderstood and disputed.

The book is based on the scientific travels, observations and studies of Charles Darwin – initially on the good ship HMS Beagle – and it is recognized as the foundation of modern evolutionary biology. A reason for its popularity was that it is written for the general public and thus an early example of popular science writing. Download the book here as a free PDF-ebook (247 pages/0.5MB):

Origin of Species

The book aims at being the exhaustive biography of Cristopher Columbus and his travels. And it does well. All his known letters and all existing writings about him have been analyzed and put in contexts. Anecdotes from other sources are discussed and we get a vivid picture of a complex man and time. For sailors, the book will be interesting for its detailed descriptions and historical discussions about navigation and mapping of the Atlantic shores and Islands. From the book:

They that go down to the sea in ships,
that do business in great waters, these
see the works of the Lord and his wonders
in the deep. -Psalms, cvii. 23, 24

Download the huge work here (700 pages/91 MB):

 Christopher Columbus

Countless kids and adults have dreamt themselves away to the epic story where young Jim Hawkins joins a grand expedition to discover the untold riches buried by the late Captain Flint. But all is not exactly as it seems – and the one-legged cook, Long John Silver, has other plans than to make sure the crew is well fed…

Download Read Treasure Island for free at Greatest Adventurers as PDF or MOBI-format for Kindle by clicking below.

Yo-ho-ho – and a bottle of rum!

Treasure Island PDF

Treasure Island mobi

TO THE HESITATING PURCHASER
If sailor tales to sailor tunes,
Storm and adventure, heat and cold,
If schooners, islands, and maroons,
And buccaneers, and buried gold,
And all the old romance, retold
Exactly in the ancient way,
Can please, as me they pleased of old,
The wiser youngsters of today:
—So be it, and fall on! If not,
If studious youth no longer crave,
His ancient appetites forgot,
Kingston, or Ballantyne the brave,
Or Cooper of the wood and wave:
So be it, also! And may I
And all my pirates share the grave
Where these and their creations lie!

Emily Morgan visited a number of remote harbors in the Pacific, for instance Guam, the Hawaiian Islands,Tonga, Juan Fernandez, and Formosa.

The morning of the twenty-second commences with light breezes from the northeast; pleasant weather. Suddenly, about 9 A.M., the monotony is broken by
the welcome cry from masthead:
” T-h-e-r-e she b-l-o-w-s ! T-h-e-r-e she b-l-o-w-s !”
“Where away ?”
“Four points off the lee bow, sir.”
“How far off?”
“About two miles, sir.”
“What does it look like ?”
“Sperm whales, sir.”
Av, ay ; sing out every time you holler.”

Life and Adventure in the South Pacific was written under the pseudonym “A Roving Printer” and published by Harper & Brothers in 1861. The book is in the Public Domain and you can download the entire work here, for free (373 pages/16MB) :

Life and Adventure in the South Pacific

The book starts out with this poem by Tennyson:

“Mariner, mariner, furl your sails,
For here are the blissful downs and dales,
And merrily, merrily carol the gales,
And the 1pangle dances in bi11ht and bay,
And the rainbow forms and flies on the land,
Over the islands free.
Oh I hither, come hither and furl your sails,
And 1weet shall your welcome be.”

Paradise in the Pacific is well-written and easy to read with many interesting observations. If you are visiting Hawaii you will be well prepared to understand a part the islands’ history, but keep in mind that this was written at another time. Download the free PDF e-book here:

Paradise in the Pacific