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How to Read Water

Clues, Signs & Patterns from Puddles to the Sea

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How to Read Water

By: Tristan Gooley
Narrated by: Tristan Gooley
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About this listen

A must-have book for walkers, sailors, swimmers, anglers and everyone interested in thenatural world, in How To Read Water, Natural Navigator Tristan Gooley shares knowledge, skills, tips and useful observations to help you enjoy the landscape around you.

Includes over 700 clues, signs and patterns.

You'll learn how to:

  • Interpret ponds like a Polynesian
  • Spot dangerous water in the pitch black with the help of a clock face
  • Read the sea like a Viking
  • Forecast the weather from waves
  • Find your way with puddles
  • Decipher wave patterns on beaches
  • Decode the colour of water

Unravel a river like an expert.

From wild swimming in Sussex to wayfinding off Oman, via the icy mysteries of the Arctic, Tristan Gooley draws on his own pioneering journeys to reveal the secrets of ponds, puddles, rivers, oceans and more to show us all the skills we need to read the water around us.

©2016 Tristan Gooley (P)2016 Hodder & Stoughton Biological Sciences Ecosystems & Habitats Environment Natural Resources Nature & Ecology Outdoors & Nature Sailing Sailing & Boating Science Walking Water Sports Swimming Sports

Editorial reviews

'This study of rivers, lakes, puddles and seas brims over with astonishing facts...His observational skills can be breathtaking' ( The Sunday Times)

Critic Reviews

A Sunday Times 'Must Read' book.
All stars
Most relevant  
This book has taught me so much about water and it was absolutely fascinating! Essential reading.

Fascinating book

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Tristan is a highly observant appreciator of nature. His beautifully written story is well researched. Facts are woven into a narrative of sea shanties, old folk wisdom and first principle observation. Tristan paints a series of panoramas with his descriptions, bringing you with him on the journey from puddle to sea. His explanations joined many dots and I thoroughly appreciated my first experience of this author, to the extent I've added another of his books to my reading list.

Informative and most enjoyable

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dense with knowledge and demands your full attention BUT is well worth it. begins small, with cups and bathtubs before working towards seafaring, giving a foundation of thermodynamics that i wasnt prepared for. I will be rereading this soon! thank-you Tristan!

Accessible yet extensively thorough

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In the spirit of reconciliation, Audible acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.