Last Explorer, The: Hubert Wilkins, Hero of the Great Age of Polar Exploration

“If greatness is measured in square miles, Hubert Wilkins was without question the most successful explorer in history, for no one has seen with his own eyes more undiscovered land and sea. Largely self-taught, this farm boy from the Australian outback became a celebrated newsreel cameraman, reporter, pilot, spy, war hero, scientist, and adventurer. Repeatedly cheating death, he captured in his lens war, famine, and derring-do, met world leaders like Lenin, Mussolini, and King George V of England, and circled the globe on a zeppelin. Early on, Wilkins recognized the importance of new technologies such as the airplane, submarine, and motion picture camera in exploring uncharted worlds. He helped map the Canadian Arctic and plumbed the ocean depths from the ice cap. He became the first person to fly across the Arctic from America to Europe, a feat the New York Times called “the greatest flight in history,” which earned him a knighthood, a ticker-tape parade in New York City, and many other honors. He was also the first to fly in the Antarctic and to discover land by airplane, and the first to take a submarine under the Arctic ice. He disproved the ancient myth of a hidden continent in the north. A visionary who, almost a century ago, grasped the link between the poles and changing global weather, Wilkins was a pioneer in weather forecasting and the study of global warming.” “But the most amazing aspect of this life of unrelenting adventure is how decent and humble Wilkins was as a man. Unswayed by glory, he eschewed publicity and shied from public acclaim. Simon Nasht’s discovery of Wilkins’ treasure trove of journals, records, and photographs has enabled him to bring to the world’s attention this remarkable explorer’s many extraordinary achievements.”