A Journey to the Northern Ocean: The Adventures of Samuel Hearne (Classics West) Paperback – October 23, 2007

An amazing journal. Hearne's trek makes Lewis and Clark's jog look like a walk in a park. I cannot imagine taking off from the Hudson Bay in the middle of December with only one pair of buckskins, a rifle, a blanket and an extra pair of shorts and walking along the Artic Sea for two years. This journal should be required reading in all schools.

This is a very good book if you are deep into Canadian History. It helps if you are familiar with Samuel Hearne before you start it. It isn't written like a novel, it is more technical in nature. I enjoyed it and thought it gave a very good account of Hearne's travels.

This guy is a real character and his narrative is a real joy to read. He expresses himself so passionately and emphatically. And he doesn't mince words.The description on the front cover of it saying it's "adventures" isn't that accurate. It's more like a account of living with a big group of Indians as they slowly, methodically drifted to the area Hearne was interested in. There's just not that much rough-and-tumble to this to qualify as adventures. You get a real feel for living with the Indians, though. They're presented warts-and-all. It's obvious Hearne both admired and despised them. Another big plus is these Indians were relatively uncontaminated or cramped by white settlements, so you get a view of them in a fairly natural state.There were a quite a few typos in the text, maybe 40 in all. Not huge, but still noticeable. It's a real pity, because the text is so beautifully presented. It's real shame they couldn't have spent a little more money and hired a proof-reader to give the text a good, close reading. There are a number of archaic spellings, as well, but they're no problem. There's one spot in the last third of the book where a whole sentence is badly garbled by what looks like a cut-and-past error. Bummer.The reason I took off one star from rating this is because the narrative only takes up two thirds of the book. The final third is devoted to exposition about the Indians and the wild life of the area and tends to be pretty dry. The last 40 pages is devoted to birds and is a real drag. There are 6 pages devoted to geese, which was a real chore to get through.Another peculiar aspect of this book are the author-written end notes for each chapter. Apparently Hearne couldn't be bothered to revise the main text and so he just slapped end notes on in the places where he had something additional to say. It's a little awkward, but not a serious detraction.It does have a nice index in the back.All in all, highly recommended if you're a fan of this kind of writing.

Very detailed descriptions of the north and the people of that region. Most people might be surprised by the truth of how those people were. the first half is the adventure and the second part is details on the people and the plants/animals of the area.

A much needed compilation of Hearne's mid-eighteenth century explorations of Arctic Canada, with many insights into the fur trade at that time.

This is a very interesting book. Samuel Hearn undertook a very difficult journey with some very unreliable guides. He was a greenhorn, and you watch him gain skills and knowledge. A very courageous man.

I recommend this book for it's about a truly remarkable young man that most British people would know little about as it wasan't taught when I went to school.Samuel Herrne is certainly worthy of praise as a brilliant incredibly brave explore with determination and vision and rightly stands out in Canadain history.

Amazing condition! Book is a classic, one that anyone would enjoy

I bought this book in preparation for a trip down the Seal River, wanting to learn the history of the region. Anyone who appreciates Canadian history will really enjoy it. It was a great read and very interesting to read a first hand account of Hearne and he explorations

An amazing story that i saw a little of through a Ray Mears tv programme. Print is a bit small but otherwise a good read for anyone who'd like to hear how Canada was first explored with the help of the indigenous population. Samuel Hearne worked for the Hudson Bay Company on the 1700s and little is said about him but his book shows how capable explorer he was.

The book is a very interesting story about the white, Europeans, first encounters with First Nations people in Canada. Very informative to hear the story first hand as recorded by Samuel Hearn in his journal. Not the same history we are being fed by present day so-called historians.

Superb first hand account of history. A good insight into the nature of human behaviour and communal living. Dispels the myth of Noble Savage and holds a mirror up to the everyday brutality of life in the time. With and without Capitalist,White or Christian contamination.

This is a series of historic diary entries in narrative form, so there isn’t a smooth easy reading pace or flow to the literary content; however that is not the book’s intended purpose.This account describes in quite graphic detail the interaction of the writer with the indigenous people of the region through which he travels - it is not flattering portrayal, but an honest first hand record of what he observes, experiences and tries to understand.The wording is genuine to the time of writing, therefore not hampered by “P.C” niceties. An honest, very important historical work, not for the faint of heart.