On Thin Ice
An Explorer's Memoir of Siberia, Surveillance and Survival
Format:Paperback
Publisher:Duckworth Books
Publishing:11th Jun '26
£16.99
This title is due to be published on 11th June, and will be despatched as soon as possible.
The astonishing account of one man’s solo trek through the icy wastes of Siberia, who finds himself caught up in the paranoia of Putin’s Russia
In early 2022, Charlie Walker set off to walk 600 miles along the frozen rivers of Siberia to learn more about the world’s coldest inhabited region and the people who live there. Instead, he found himself marooned in a country on the brink of war. He was arrested on suspicion espionage and thrown into a Siberian prison - this is his story.
'This almost insanely intrepid and dangerous trek in remotest Siberia is astonishing in itself. But it also brings invaluable experience of Russian reactions to the war against Ukraine. Altogether extraordinary' Colin Thubron, author of The Amur RiverIn early 2022, Charlie Walker set out to hike 600 miles along Siberia’s frozen rivers. He hoped to cut through the myth of the gulag and the permafrost to understand who its people are and how they reckon with their haunted past, as well as what the future might hold for this remote corner of our world. But on 24 February, Russia invaded Ukraine, with devastating consequences. What had begun as an adventure swiftly descended into a paranoid nightmare, as Walker began to suspect he was being monitored by the Russian authorities.
On Thin Ice juxtaposes the harsh beauty of a Siberian winter with a thriller-like series of events that exposes the dark heart of Putin's propaganda machine. It is both the extraordinary record of one man’s walk through the most inhospitable place on earth and a powerful insight into a deeply troubled – and troubling – nation.
'This almost insanely intrepid and dangerous trek in remotest Siberia is astonishing in itself. But it also brings invaluable experience of Russian reactions to the war against Ukraine. Altogether extraordinary' Colin Thubron, author of The Amur River
'A powerful and haunting report from one of the world's most inaccessible places. Part quest, part fugitive drama, Walker navigates the ice roads and shattered towns of northeast Siberia to reveal the complex - and dangerous - politics of travel in Putin's Russia. On Thin Ice is a captivating book' Clare Hammond, author of On the Shadow Tracks
'I was hooked from the very first, chilling words. On Thin Ice reads more like a Soviet-era spy thriller than travelogue, full of derring-do, panache, but also – importantly – insight. Imagine John Le Carré mixed with James Bond, add a dash of that master of travel writing, Colin Thubron, and you’ll have some idea of what’s in store' Benedict Allen, author of Explorer
'On Thin Ice is a remarkable book, and joins the ranks of those rare travelogues where a writer's journey gets overtaken by world events. Walker is the best of guides, curious, honest, humble. I was gripped by the hardships of his journey, and his growing paranoia as the walls close in around him. In both his trek across Siberia and in his subsequent incarceration, it does what the best travel books should do, providing a unique and captivating insight into an utterly unknown world' Adam Weymouth, author of Lone Wolf
'This is a rare kind of expedition – a vast solo journey through one of the coldest inhabited places on Earth, undertaken just as history shifts beneath his feet. Charlie Walker’s travels capture the deeper uncertainty of moving through a landscape where danger is shaped as much by geopolitics as by ice' Alastair Humphreys, author of Microadventures
'A wonderfully well-observed account of what happens when a British explorer comes up against the hard realities of Putin's wartime Russia. From the frozen expanses of Siberia to the inside of a prison cell, Walker is empathetic, clear-eyed, and engaging' Howard Amos, author of Russia Starts Here
'Walker captures the Arctic’s unforgiving nature and exposes the importance of storytelling in places where truth is fragile. An absolutely gripping read' Levison Wood, author of The Great Tree Story
ISBN: 9780715656730
Dimensions: unknown
Weight: unknown
272 pages