About the Book
Captain James Cook was one of England's ablest navigators. In 1768 he set out in the Endeavor, bound for Tahiti, ostensibly to observe the Transit of Venus. His secret orders, however, provided for charting the coast of New Zealand and searching for 'the Great South Land.'
In October 1996 photographer Richard Polden sailed from Fremantle, Western Australia, bound for London aboard the magnificent Endeavor replica. Richard's photographs from the voyage capture in brilliant color, the very feel of sailing on the Endeavor, from swabbing the decks to scaling the mainmast, from hauling in the sails to fighting a gale. Complemented throughout with extracts from both Cook's original journals and the reports of the contemporary crew, this book is both a visual delight and a fascinating record.