The Cruise of the Corwin


Read by Mark Harrington

"The Cruise of the Corwin is John Muir's account of a voyage he took in 1881 on the steamer Thomas Corwin, which set sail from San Francisco for arctic waters off the coast of Alaska in search of the Jeannette, a ship tragically lost two years before. The Jeannette was never found, but Muir's notes convey the excitement of exploring far and little-known horizons -- climbing frozen mountains, sketching glaciers, examining rare flora, discovering Wrangell Island off the coast of Siberia and claiming it for the United States, observing polar bears, seal, walrus, whale, and reindeer, describing Inuet culture, exploring the wind-swept islands of the Bering sea and investigating a "village of the dead," where whole clans perished of starvation in the unforgiving landscape. Pieced together by Muir's literary executor, William F. Bade, from newspaper correspondence, published scientific articles, and unpublished journals after Muir's death in 1914 -- a vivid account of the last stretches of the American frontier." (Summary by Michele Fry) (7 hr 10 min)

Chapters

Introduction 41:37 Read by Mark Harrington
I. Unalaska and the Aleuts 25:46 Read by Mark Harrington
II. Among the Islands of Bering Sea 20:13 Read by Mark Harrington
III. Siberian Adventures 23:05 Read by Mark Harrington
IV. In Peril from the Pack 13:20 Read by Mark Harrington
V. A Chukchi Orator 16:51 Read by Mark Harrington
VI. Eskimos and Walrus 16:12 Read by Mark Harrington
VII. At Plover Bay and St. Michael 22:25 Read by Mark Harrington
VIII. Return of the Search Party 23:40 Read by Mark Harrington
IX. Villages of the Dead 21:45 Read by Mark Harrington
X. Glimpses of Alaskan Tundra 23:14 Read by Mark Harrington
XI. Caribou and a Native Fair 19:54 Read by Mark Harrington
XII. Zigzags among the Polar Pack 20:16 Read by Mark Harrington
XIII. First Ascent of Herald Island 15:56 Read by Mark Harrington
XIV. Approaching a Mysterious Land 17:46 Read by Mark Harrington
XV. The Land of the White Bear 25:03 Read by Mark Harrington
XVI. Tragedies of the Whaling Fleet 22:03 Read by Mark Harrington
XVII. Meeting the Point Barrow Expedition 14:18 Read by Mark Harrington
XVIII. A Siberian Reindeer Herd 20:04 Read by Mark Harrington
XIX. Turned Back by Storms and Ice 12:44 Read by Mark Harrington
XX. Homeward Bound 14:00 Read by Mark Harrington