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Brandon Wilson’s “Yak Butter Blues – A Tibetan Trek of Faith.” Everyone Said it was “Impossible!” But for One Couple, a Tibetan Journey of a Thousand Kilometers Began with One Bold Step

(PRWEB) November 9, 2004

“Impossible” was what everyone told Brandon Wilson and his wife Cheryl when they began talking about walking a 1000-kilometer ancient pilgrimage trail across Tibet. But those “impossibilities” only made them more determined. Their quest to become the first Western couple to trek this trail across the earth’s most remote corner was far from your usual travel fare — some even called it sheer lunacy. It was certainly far from easy or predictable.

Yak Butter Blues: A Tibetan Trek of Faith (Pilgrim’s Tales, 2nd edition, November 2005), $ 16.95 pb, $ 26.95 hardcover) is an edge-of-your-seat tale of survival.

Alone, with only their stalwart Tibetan horse Sadhu, the Wilsons faced Tibet’s ruthless environment head-on: the blistering winds, extreme temperatures, sandstorms, blizzards, and the thinnest of air…made all the more challenging by exhaustion, hunger, illness, inflexible bureaucrats and implacable, trigger-happy Chinese soldiers.

Although the land and climate left their imprints daily, an even more lasting impression on these adventurers was created by Tibetan pilgrims, monks and generous villagers eager to share what little they possess: yak butter tea, the warmth of their family’s fire, camaraderie and a steadfast trust in the Dalai Lama’s return.

Inadvertently, the couple became an invaluable witness to a culture pushed to the brink of extinction by brutal occupation. The author sympathetically interweaves the story of Tibet’s current plight and struggle to survive into their own.

Along this simple path, the Wilsons discovered the human link connecting us all, a link that becomes clearest on a trek that removes the distractions of modern life as it unveils the truths of “deliberate travel.” In doing so, the couple found a sense of greater purpose, wonder, a renewed faith and ultimately what it takes to endure.

This colorful, candid, caring and classic tale leads readers along on a physical, spiritual and emotional pilgrimage across this startling land — on a thousand-kilometer odyssey once called “Impossible.”

Early Praise:

“Wilson takes readers through the hardships of late-season trekking and into the homes of the Tibetan people, on whom he and his wife were dependent for basic survival.…the couple engaged in a series of charades and cross-cultural bargaining that brought humor and no small amount of suspense to an otherwise difficult journey.

Wilson observes the impact of the Chinese occupation on the daily lives of Tibetans, which distinguishes his book from Heinrich Harrer’s classic Seven Years in Tibet, which took place before the invasion of China and the fleeing of the Dalai Lama.

Recommended for adventure travel and Tibetan culture collections.”

Library Journal, 10/15/04

“I have to admit I was skeptical when I picked this book up. Why should I spend my time, etc. But those doubts melted away like yak butter under a hot sun as I came under the spell of Brandon Wilson’s lively and vivid prose. He is a fine writer—perceptive, funny, a great way with words—making the book a whopping good read.”

Royal Robbins, world-renowned mountaineer, adventure kayaker and author

“A soaring travel diary. It places the reader in the thick of the action every bit as well as Marco Polo transported Italians to China and, as it seems to me, better than Lowell Thomas led readers in the dust of Lawrence of Arabia…Not one reader in a million will ever make the trek, but I don’t think any reader — regardless of age or physical ability — will ever read this book without dreaming of the whole trip.

Travel books of the usual sort have no place on the 21st century book shelf, but you’ll be glad you made room for this one.”

Joseph W. Bean, Book Reviewer, Maui Weekly

“Travel in Tibet is rough, but attempting it Tibetan-style—and with winter approaching—amounts to sheer lunacy. Brandon Wilson and his wife Cheryl—along with a trusty packhorse named Sadhu—set off on the ultimate trek: to walk an ancient pilgrimage and trading route from Lhasa to Kathmandu.

Their zany adventures leap from the pages of this book—getting showered in dust, coated in snow, hammered by the wind, getting lost, getting shot at. More to the point, this grueling form of travel brings them close to the extraordinary people and the breathtaking landscapes of the Tibetan plateau.

Told with humor and insight, this vivid narrative allows you to vicariously experience life at true Tibetan pace, one step at a time: so close, you can almost smell the yak butter.”

Michael Buckley, author of Tibet: the Bradt Travel Guide and Heartlands: Travels in the Tibetan World

“A moving and emotional testimony, and a travelogue that is the next most vivid experience to hiking upon the trail oneself.”

Midwest Book Review

“Are you ready for a walk? Because it’s doubtful after reading Yak Butter Blues you’ll be able to sit still. The land of the Dalai Lama and Shangri-la calls with a voice too mysterious, too ancient to be ignored. And Brandon and Cheryl are the ideal guides—passionate folks (not corporate-sponsored lackeys) delightedly figuring things out as they execute an improbable hike from Chinese-controlled Lhasa to Kathmandu.”

Dan Austin, director of True Fans

“Brandon Wilson has written a remarkable account of bravery and determination. Wilson leads us through a harsh and beautiful landscape and takes us into the hearts of the people who live there. Time and again he shows us that hardships can become blessings.”

Jean Aspen, author of Arctic Daughter: a wilderness journey and Arctic Son: fulfilling the dream

“This is the first-person account of Brandon and Cheryl Wilson’s walking pilgrimage from Lhasa, Tibet to Kathmandu, Nepal.…although everyone they meet tells them it is impossible to take such a journey, they find a way to do it despite many obstacles.…Subsisting on cha (strong tea brewed with a handful of salt, then topped with yak butter), ramen noodles, dehydrated food packets, and the occasionally Tibetan beer, and sleeping on spare cots at the homes of villagers, or camping in their tent in subzero temperatures, they make their way over the desolate Tibetan landscape to Mt Everest base camp, and then on to the lush green glory of Nepal using a map that shows little. It wasn’t an easy trek considering the physical demands, the confrontations with the military, vicious villager’s dogs, and needing to not only find a place to sleep for themselves but also for their da (horse) so he could be fed and tied down for the night. This book stimulates the reader’s interest in seeing the world…one step at a time. Well done!”

BookHeadReview (Chicago), 5 out of 5 stars; posted on amazon.com 9/28/04

“Wilson and wife Cheryl trekked a thousand kilometers along a thin-air pilgrimage trail in Tibet. This account of their journey is vivid and engaging.”

Honolulu Star-Bulletin, 9/26/04

“This was no walk in the park! Having walked the Appalachian Trail, I can attest to the inner fortitude required to walk long distances across rugged terrain and through less than desirable weather. Even Indiana Jones would have reconsidered the expedition, but the Wilsons drew strength from their faith in humanity and each other, as well as from countless Tibetans offering yak butter tea, rugged lodging, and meals cooked over burning yak dung. The Wilsons journey across Tibet serves as a beacon of light for a repressed people held captive within their own country.”

Jeff Alt, author of award-winning A Walk for Sunshine: A 2,160-mile expedition for charity on the Appalachian Trail

“…There were times when Wilson says he wondered why he was there and wanted to just go home. But ‘it’s moments like those that teach you a lot about yourself and what’s important in life.’”

Gateway Newspapers, Pittsburgh, PA, from a feature article, 10/6/04

About the Author:

Brandon Wilson is an adventure-travel writer whose stories have appeared in many national magazines, newspapers and on Internet sites. An adventurer and expert long-distance trekker, he is passionate about inspiring others with the possibility of discovery through long-distance hiking.

Although already a voracious explorer of over ninety countries, this Tibetan odyssey opened his eyes to the deep satisfaction of traveling “one-step-at-a-time.”

By slowing down, he believes, “We absorb the hidden ‘magic’ in the world. We travel outside— while traveling within.”

Since Tibet, Wilson has hiked three other major pilgrimage trails: the famed Camino de Santiago across Spain; the ninth century, 1150-mile Via Francigena from England to Rome (he is the first American to complete this route), and the 400-mile St. Olav’s Way across Norway.

Wilson’s photographs have won awards from National Geographic Traveler and Islands magazines.

About the Book:

Yak Butter Blues: A Tibetan Trek of Faith

by Brandon Wilson

280 pages, Travel Narrative/Non-Fiction

27 duo-tone photographs & maps

ISBN: 0-9770536-6-0 * $ 16.95 trade paperback 5.5″ x 8.5″

ISBN: 0-9770536-7-9 * $ 26.95 * hardcover 6″ x 9″

Publication date: November 2005 (2nd edition)

2nd edition published by Pilgrim’s Tales

Distributed by Ingram and Baker & Taylor

Available at bookstores, Amazon.com, BN.com, Borders.com, or YakButterBlues.com.

For a preview with sample chapter, photos, and media room, visit http://www.PilgrimsTales.com.

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