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Adam Shoalts | |
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| Born | 1986 |
| Nationality | Canadian |
| Occupation(s) | Writer, explorer |
| Known for | Alone Against the North |
Adam Shoalts (b. 1986) is a Canadian historian, archaeologist, author and explorer. [1] [2] His books focus on exploration and natural history in the Canadian far north. Canadian Geographic included him on their list of the 90 most influential explorers in Canadian history
Shoalts was born in 1986 and raised in Ontario near Fenwick, about 10 miles west of Niagara Falls, adjacent to a wooded area that he explored as a child. [3] [4] His father instilled a love of the outdoors, and skills like canoe building and fishing. He earned a BA from Brock University (2009), and a multidisciplinary Masters and Doctorate from McMaster University that included studies in nature, history, archaeology, and geography. [5]
He has published over 100 articles on topics such as edible mushrooms, African explorers and watershed pollution in northern Canada. [4]
The novel Sense of Adventure: An Account of a Journey in the Canadian Wilderness was his first published book. [4]
Alone Against the North is a composite memoir of two solo exploration trips made in his 20s. In 2011, he explored by canoe the 96-kilometre length of the so-called "nameless river", because it had never been named or explored according to historical records. The unnamed river is a tributary of the Sutton River which itself empties into Hudson Bay. In 2012, he explored by canoe the full length of the Again River from headwaters to near the mouth of the Harricana River on James Bay, roughly traversing south to north along the Quebec-Ontario border. There he discovered numerous cataract, canyons, waterfalls, lakes, groves, islands - most previously not visible in old satellite and airplane surveys. Both trips were sponsored by the Royal Canadian Geographical Society, "Shoalts's work will change the map of Canada – a rarity in 21st century exploration," said the RCGS. [5] [6] One of the waterfalls he discovered was over 40 feet tall, possibly the largest waterfall discovered in Canada for nearly 100 years. [4]
The CBC placed his book, Beyond the Trees: A Journey Alone Across Canada's Arctic, on their recommended reading list for the winter of 2020. [7] The book chronicles a 4,000 kilometres (2,500 mi) wilderness canoe trip he took to celebrate Canada's sesquicentennial. [8] The trek was also featured in the documentary Alone Across the Arctic .
He is an elected Fellow of the Royal Canadian Geographical Society. [5] In 2020, Canadian Geographic included him on their list of the 90 most influential explorers in Canadian history. [9]
In 2016, Shoalts was named a national champion of the Trans-Canada Trail. [1] In 2018 he was named Explorer-in-Residence of the Royal Canadian Geographical Society. In 2021, the Writers' Trust of Canada asked him to serve as a judge for the Weston Prize. In 2022, he was given the Louie Kamookak Medal. [1]
The modern-day explorer and author of the bestselling book Alone Against the North: An Expedition into the Unknown (about a previous expedition into the Hudson Bay lowlands) just crossed 4,000 kilometres of remote, Arctic mainland Canada with no one to keep him company but the wolves and bears bold enough to investigate him and his canoe.
Canada was the promised land, but when he didn't fit in and life was more difficult than he expected, Ali turned to drugs and partying before finding his way.
When explorer Adam Shoalts read about planned Canada 150 celebrations in 2016, he decided his own tribute would be a little more extreme. So he set off on a 4,000-km canoe trip across the Canadian Arctic.
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