8 Men and a Duck : An Improbable Voyage by Reed Boat to Easter Island

On a fateful South American bus trip, journalist Nick Thorpe overheard some fellow passengers discussing an improbable plan to sail 2,500 miles from northern Chile to Easter Island on the Viracocha -- a boat made of reeds. The crew's aim in reviving this pre-Incan boat-building technology was twofold: to reopen the controversial migration theories of Thor Heyerdahl, who sailed his boat the Kon-Tiki from Peru to Polynesia in 1947, and to have one heck of an adventure in the process. Thorpe talked his way on board Captain Phil Buck's Viracocha only to find himself plagued by uncertainty. Why did the crew include a tree surgeon, a jewelry salesman, and two ducks? What happened to the navigator? Did anybody actually know how to sail? And, most important, where was the life raft?

8 Men and a Duck charts this hilarious and un-nerving Pacific voyage as it rolls between waves of high drama and high farce: from the five-day launch off a Chilean beach to the bungled phone call that triggered a naval rescue alert to the sad fate of Pedro the duck to the constant race against the inexorable sinking of the soggy hull.

Despite the best efforts of storms and sharks and fast-moving freighters, an alarming lack of sailing qualifications, and a rival explorer dogging the adventure at every turn, the crew members of the Viracocha lived to tell their extraordinary tale right through to its wickedly unexpected conclusion. Nick Thorpe's account is by turns funny, touching, and thrilling -- a story of friendship, fate, and the unlikely distances people will go for real adventure.

So the journalist's mind kicked in - let's investigate. Soon, without planning it, Thorpe found himself becoming more than just an observer, as a place on this incredible journey fell into his lap. Some discussion with his wife (you know, `I love you, I might never see you again, is that ok?') later, and the - let's say `unswarthy' Englishman (look at the photos in the book) was off to sea with a rogue's gallery of shipmates straight out of Captain Pugwash. The book takes us on the journey with them, in the race against time they created for themselves by building a boat out of reeds that will eventually sink. It's a journey that involves the Chilean Navy, good and bad weather, esoteric Frenchmen, weird food, and the very nature of friendship itself.

This is not just a book about the technicalities of ancient sea-travel (though there's enough of that to interest even the most hardy of land-locked readers), or the existential joys and angst of a dangerous and beautiful journey, but a tremendously rich sketch of what men are like when they get together. If you've ever wanted to take a risk, but feel seasick at the thought, then you may just love this book. Witty, self-deprecating, but alive with a thirst for the journey, Thorpe's writing is among the most engaging prose I've ever encountered. He has the wit of Bill Bryson and the eye for detail that Paul Theroux must pride himself on, but the voice is all his own. For duck-lovers, misty-eyed seafarers, religiously sceptic mystics, child-like wanderers and anyone who's ever gone travelling to `find themselves', `Eight Men and a Duck' is a joy from start to finish.


A Great Adventure By Inexperienced Characters   September 4, 2003
Scott Kurttila (San Francisco, CA United States)
While the start of the book is a dash slow being focused on the building of the actual craft and pulling a crew together, it soon picks up and races across the Pacific. The author has an incredible sense for wording which oft makes this non-fiction read like pure poetry. If only we all could be so eloquent, english would then remain a beautiful language.

The book is pleasantly lacking an overload of technical know-how and expertise as so many adventure books can be. Rather than bog the reader down with intricate details, the author keeps the story alive and fresh with emotions ranging from the struggle against the elements while being entirely out of his own element to the intricacies of life aboard a small vessel for two months with complete strangers who don't always mix well but eventually bond enough as a cohesive family and team to survive.

It becomes entertaining after the first two chapters but is inspiring throughout. This book offers evidence to what can be done when one has a dream no matter how silly the dream or how high the obstacles loom. A great account of a fantastic adventure that not many would dare to take or be able to pull off.


"Kon-Tiki" Was Much Better   June 11, 2003
3 out of 3 found this review helpful

The shadow of the more nobly conceived and executed "Kon-Tiki" hangs over this book, although "8 Men and a Duck" still offers a vicarious opportunity for thrilling and exotic adventure. Many things inevitably go wrong on such a voyage, but this group of fellows were so unprepared, both technically and emotionally, that it was almost a surprise when anything went right. Their ineptitude is somewhat frustrating to read about. Don't they make them like Thor Hyerdahl any more?


Sailing in Heyerdahl's wake.   May 31, 2003
A. J. Watson (Newcastle-on-Tyne, UK)
A chance remark, and Nick Thorpe bluffs his way onto an expedition to support Thor Heyerdahl's theory that Easter Island was originally colonised by Amerindians prior to the wave of Polynesians.
When he discovers that the crew has no navigator and minimal sailing experience, he is intrigued rather than disillusioned and he throws himself wholeheartedly into the project. The same cannot be said of other members, or the organiser, who couldn't organise a binge in a brewery.
Accusations of cheating from a rival deflate morale so much, they are in danger of missing the favourable winds. The vitriolic attack also undermines his support and funding and endangers the credibility of the whole exercise.

Thankfully, all obstacles are overcome, so there is only the voyage to complete. This is almost a shambles, due to the lackadaisical captain and the gung-ho exploits of some of the crew. Boredom, superstition and deep-seated prejudices provide fuel for some 'interesting' episodes.
The book is more about relationships and experiences than anthropological archaeology, unlike the books by Severin & Heyerdahl, but if you accept this limitation, the result is a rollicking good tale. The humour is low-key and understated, but there is very little technical information; however a couple of appendices partly address that quibble.
All in all, a good read.****