Himalaya bound : one family's quest to save their animals - and an ancient way of life

A gorgeous work of literary journalism that follows a nomadic family's fraught migration to the high Himalayan plains in a rapidly changing world. In the vein of Tim Cope's On the Trail of Genghis Khan and Scott Wallace's The Unconquered, Himalaya Bound tells the story of one man's immersion with a tribe of nomadic water buffalo herders on their annual spring migration into the Himalayas. Even more than a glimpse into a rarely seen and endangered way of life, this beautiful book is an exploration of the relationship between humankind and wild lands and the effect conservation efforts on the species and peoples they are meant to protect. Michael Benanav, the acclaimed author of Men of Salt, spent forty-four days living, walking, eating, and sleeping alongside the Van Gujjars, a hidden tribe of forest-dwelling nomads in northern India. Over the course of the tribe's annual migration to the Himalayas, Benanav documented their traditional way of life, but there was... A gorgeous work of literary journalism that follows a nomadic family’s fraught migration to the high Himalayan plains, as a changing world closes in around them. Following his vivid account of traveling with one of the last camel caravans on earth in Men of Salt, Michael Benanav now brings us along on a journey with a tribe of forest-dwelling nomads in India. Welcomed into a family of nomadic water buffalo herders, he joins them on their annual spring migration into the Himalayas, a superb adventure that explores the relationship between humankind and wild lands, and the dubious effect of environmental conservation on peoples whose lives are inseparably intertwined with the natural world.The migration Benanav embarked upon was plagued with problems, as government officials threatened to ban this nomadic family—and others in the Van Gujjar tribe—from the high alpine meadows where they had summered for centuries. Faced with the possibility that their beloved buffaloes would starve to death, and that their age-old way of life was doomed, the family charted a risky new course, which would culminating in an astonishing mountain rescue. And Benanav was arrested for documenting the story of their plight.Intimate and enthralling, Himalaya Bound paints a sublime picture of a rarely-seen world, revealing the hopes and fears, hardships and joys, of a people who wonder if there is still a place for them on this planet. A gorgeous work of literary journalism that follows a nomadic family's fraught migration to the high Himalayan plains, as a changing world closes in around them.--Men of SaltThe migration Benanav embarked upon was plagued with problems, as government officials threatened to ban this nomadic family--and others in the Van Gujjar tribe--from the high alpine meadows where they had summered for centuries. Faced with the possibility that their beloved buffaloes would starve to death, and that their age-old way of life was doomed, the family charted a risky new course, which would culminating in an astonishing mountain rescue. And Benanav was arrested for documenting the story of their plight.--Himalaya BoundLaced with stories of tribal cultures from India to Yellowstone, from Jordan to Kenya, Benanav deftly wends through the controversial terrain where Western ways of protecting the environment clash with indigenous understandings of nature. Himalaya Bound celebrates and mourns an ancient way of life, while revealing an unlikely battleground in the fight to save the earth Following his vivid account of traveling with one of the last camel caravans on earth in Men of Salt, Michael Benanav now brings us along on a journey with a tribe of forest-dwelling nomads in India. Welcomed into a family of nomadic water buffalo herders, he joins them on their annual spring migration into the Himalayas. More than a glimpse into an endangered culture, this superb adventure explores the relationship between humankind and wild lands, and the dubious effect of environmental conservation on peoples whose lives are inseparably intertwined with the natural world. --amazon.com