The deepest cave on earth was a prize that had remained unclaimed for years and years, long after each other ultimate discovery have been made: both poles by 1912, Everest in 1958, the Challenger Deep in 1961. In 1969 we even walked within the moon. Yet as past due as 2000, the earth’s deepest cave-the supercave-remained undiscovered. This is the story of the men and women who risked everything to think it is, getting their place in history beside the likes of Peary, Amundsen, Hillary, and Armstrong.

about Blind Descent: The Goal to find the Deepest Place on Earth

In 2004, two great scientist-explorers are attempting to find underneath of the world. Daring, heroic American Expenses Stone is committed to the vast Cheve Cave, located in southern Mexico and deadly actually by supercave requirements. On the far side of the world, legendary Ukrainian explorer Alexander Klimchouk-Stone’s polar opposing in temperament and style, but every bit his equal in scientific knowledge, physical bravery, and sheer determination-has targeted Krubera, a freezing nightmare of the supercave in the Republic of Georgia, where underground problems are compounded from the horrors of separatist war in this former Soviet republic.

Blind Descent explores both the brightest and darkest areas of the timeless human urge to discover-to be first. Additionally it is a thrilling epic about a pursuit that makes also extreme mountaineering and sea exploration pale by comparison. These supercavers spent a few months in multiple camps nearly two vertical kilometers deep and many more mls from their caves’ exits. They had to contend with thousand-foot drops, deadly flooded tunnels, raging whitewater rivers, monstrous waterfalls, mile-long tummy crawls, and much more. Perhaps even even worse were the psychological horrors made by weeks plunged into absolute, perpetual darkness, beyond all hope of recovery, including a particularly insidious derangement called The Rapture.

James M. Tabor was granted unprecedented access to logs, journals, photographs, and video footage of these expeditions, aswell as much hours of personal interviews with making it through participants. Blind Descent is an unforgettable addition to the traditional literature of breakthrough and adventure. It is also a testament to human survival and endurance-and to two incredible males whose relentless pursuit of greatness led them to levels of triumph and depths of tragedy neither could have imagined.

Includes a 16-pg full-color insert