Tschiffely's Ride: Southern Cross to Pole Star

by Aime Tschiffely, R B Cunningham Graham (Preface by)

Overview

The true story of the most famous equestrian journey of the 20th Century -- "Tschiffely's Ride" is the thrilling account of thirty months spent in the saddle where danger and excitement were a daily occurrence.

In 1925 Aime Tschiffely, a Swiss teacher living in Argentina, set out on his epic ride with two Criollo horses, Mancha and Gato. The amateur explorer's goal was to travel 10,000 miles from Buenos Aires to Washington DC over some of the world's most inhospitable country. Their odyssey lasted two and a half years, forced horses and rider to survive through near-impossible conditions, and ended with a hero's welcome at the White House.

The publication of "Tschiffely's Ride" changed the course of equestrian travel history forever and inspired three generations to take to the saddle in search of adventure! The only word that does justice to this book is "classic."

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781590481950
Publisher:	Long Riders' Guild Press
Publication date:	10/01/2001
Pages:	564
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.50(h) x 1.25(d)

Table of Contents

	Preface	xi
	Foreword	xiii
	Introduction	xv
	The First Day	1
	Towards Rosario	5
	The Rolling Pampas	12
	The Desolation of Santiago Del Estero	19
	Tucuman: "The Argentine Eden"	23
	Entering the Mighty Andes	28
	Preparing for Rough Mountain Travel	37
	Through Mighty Quebradas and Over Wind-swept Mountains Towards the Bolivian Border	39
	Into the Land of the Quichuas	50
	Indian Superstitions	56
	A Long-Forgotten Spanish Gold Trail	58
	Potosi, the Old Mecca of Greedy Spanish Conquistadors	64
	Among the Aymara Indians	66
	An Old Indian Legend	68
	Towards Lake Popo	68
	Over the Vast and Barren Bolivian Altiplano	78
	La Paz: "The Hidden City"	86
	Titicaca: "The Sacred Lake"	88
	On Peruvian Soil	97
	Towards the Ancient Capital of the Mighty Incas	107
	Glorious Old Cuzco	110
	Into the Heart of the Andes	118
	Civilisation Again	133
	Landslides--A Detour--A Mountain Storm	138
	A Famous Indian Market--"The Roof of the World"--Down to the Pacific Ocean	144
	Lima: The Old City of Kings	148
	The Sandy Deserts of the Peruvian Coast	158
	The Highland of Ecuador	200
	Quito	225
	Crossing the Line	227
	Colombia	229
	A Long and Eventful Side Trip to Bogota	235
	The First Tragedy in El Vergel	240
	The Great Swamp Barrier	244
	Magdalena: The River of Mud and Crocodiles	248
	"A Dios" South America!	255
	The Silent Canal	259
	Good Times	261
	A Question and its Answer	264
	Mancha Suffers a Slight Accident	265
	Westward Ho!	268
	Into the Green Labyrinth	281
	An Unmarked Border in the Midst of Jungles	284
	Climbing Up to the "Middle of the World"	290
	Civilisation Once More	295
	San Jose of Costa Rica	296
	Side-stepping a Revolution	299
	San Salvador	301
	Guatemala, the Land of the Quetzal	312
	Guatemala City	317
	Old Guatemala	319
	Volcanic Regions of Singular Beauty	320
	Towards the Mexican Border--A Glorious View--Descent into Steaming Tropical Low-Land	327
	The Land of the Charros	329
	A Difficult Stretch	335
	Old Tehuantepec	355
	Oaxaca	366
	In the Sierras	369
	Mexico City	379
	The Mexican Mesa	384
	Over Barren Plains Towards the Rio Grande	404
	Texas at Last--Victory in Sight!	407
	Busy Days	437
	Farewell U.S.--Back to the Pampas	441