Peter Wilson
Low Again is Peter Wilson’s fascinating coffee table book celebrating the wonderful people and places of his incredible antipodal circumnavigation by helicopter with Andre de Freitas in 2024. Andre became the first Brazilian to circumnavigate by light helicopter. Peter became the only person to have circumnavigated by light helicopter through antipodes twice. Together they travelled through 34 countries to complete the journey of about 34,000 nautical miles/ 63,000 kilometres in 106 days.Andre and Peter set the fastest official1 circumnavigation by helicopter through antipodes landing at the twinned cities of Bichura (UIUA) in Russia and El Calafate (SWAC) in Argentina. Two pilots, VFR, 01 October 2024. 1The record is ratified by the FAI.Andre and Peter cycled five times through Temperate, and twice through Arid, Tropical, Continental, and once through Polar climate regions. They witnessed much of the east and west coasts of the Americas and the Steppes of Europe above the Alps and Asia while skirting above Mongolia and China. They crossed the Caspian Sea (largest lake in the world) and Lake Baikal (deepest freshwater lake in the world) experiencing the warm welcomes and stunning geography of Turkey, Georgia, the Stans and Siberia including Kamchatka. From squiggly rivers to conical volcanoes to conurbations of all types they were privileged to enjoy the beautiful world in which we live.The route took them through the following 34 countries including: Brazil, French Guiana, Guyana, Grenada, Sint Maarten, Dominican Republic, Turks & Caicos, Bahamas, USA, Canada, Greenland, Iceland, Faro Islands, United Kingdom, Germany, Austria, Serbia, Bulgaria, Turkey, Georgia, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Russia, Mexico, EL Salvador, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Chile, Argentina and Uruguay. The antipodes were Bichura in Russia followed by El Calafate in Argentina. The start and finish point of the journey was Jaguaruna, Santa Caterina, Brazil.For Peter this route combined the beauty of his previous Round Latin America and Round the World routes. However, by taking the northerly route through Europe, Turkey, and entering Russia from the Stans the pilots saw the beauty of this region including Lake Baikal and Kamchatka whilst able to avoid the monsoonal weather of the southerly route.Low Again is presented in gorgeous spreads celebrating the journey, their preparations for long-range flying, the people who helped make them happen, the challenges they faced with weather and earth’s breath-taking scenery seen from their helicopter vantage point.
