The Man Who Climbs Trees

April 1, 2018
An expert tree-climber and wildlife cameraman introduces readers to a handful of his favorite trees and related adventures.Aldred has vast filming experience with National Geographic and other outfits, and his specialty is climbing massive trees to set up blinds or just get the shot that a particular scene demands. Here, the author highlights 10 serious climbs--from England to Borneo to the Congo to Costa Rica to Morocco to Peru--detailing the lengths he and his colleagues have gone to arrange for such shoots. Each chapter is a stand-alone story in its own right, with drama, shocks, grimy interludes, and unparalleled views. While Aldred is clearly obsessed with trees, he also respects them greatly and takes all the caution necessary to climb trees that sometimes reach more than 300 feet. The book wouldn't be complete without the author's facing plenty of physical and mental challenges, including cerebral malaria, maggots crawling under his skin, and trying to get a footing on the perfect, thorn-laden branch to get a photo of a harpy eagle nesting--as its mother attempts to poke at his eyes. Aldred does two things particularly well: He avoids being unnecessarily macho, and he pauses to commune with the trees and to appreciate their history and the sanctuary he finds in their sky-high branches. "Whether the soft shimmering glow of a beech canopy in springtime, or the vast sun-blasted canopy of a tropical giant," he writes, "each tree has a unique character, and it is the privileged feeling of getting to know them a little better--of physically connecting with them, if only for a short while--that draws me back into their branches time and time again." Truly connecting with these behemoths might mean encounters with dangerous creatures or the pleasure of admiring a gorgeous poison-dart frog carrying its tadpoles on its back "high up into the canopy to deposit them within water-filled bromeliads."An addictive book for nature lovers.

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May 1, 2018

Wildlife cameraman and experienced tree climber Aldred presents a memoir detailing his lifelong devotion to the wonders of trees and the animals that live in the forest canopy. Aldred's expertise in rigging climbing ropes and capturing footage atop giant trees allows him access to a rich and hidden natural world. Describing his many intense adventures working on documentaries in rainforests and jungles around the world, Aldred provides a view of both the hardships and joys of capturing the beauty of rare flora and fauna while dangling from ropes at precarious heights. Buoyed by his deep appreciation for wild creatures and the natural landscape, Aldred faces charging elephants, swarms of biting insects, malaria, and the ever-present risk of falling. While some sections are engaging and dramatic, this memoir also includes long descriptions of various tree climbs, which can become repetitive. VERDICT Aldred's life story will interest aspiring tree climbers, wildlife documentarians, natural history aficionados, or armchair adventurers interested in the challenges of filming nature programs such as Planet Earth.--Ingrid Levin, Salve Regina Univ. Lib., Newport, RI

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