How To Read Water

The author of the top ten bestseller The Walker's Guide and The Natural Navigator unlocks the secrets hidden in the water around us, from streams and puddles to oceans and waterfalls.

'seriously fascinating stuff' The Times
From the bestselling author of THE WALKER'S GUIDE TO OUTDOOR CLUES AND SIGNS and THE NATURAL EXPLORER

A must-have book for walkers, sailors, swimmers, anglers and everyone interested in the natural world, in How To Read Water, Natural Navigator Tristan Gooley shares knowledge, skills, tips and useful observations to help you enjoy the landscape around you.

A Sunday Times 'Must Read' book

'A magical and inspiring quest for knowledge' - Countryside

'Anyone who spends time in, on, or by, water - whether at the helm of a narrowboat or merely playing Poohsticks with grandkids - will benefit from some of the extraordinary insights in this book.' - Waterways World

'Jam-packed with information, this book will fascinate sailors, fishers, birders, naturalists, hikers, and anyone interested in the natural world.' - Forbes

'This study of rivers, lakes, puddles and seas brims over with astonishing facts...His observational skills can be breathtaking' The Sunday Times

'This inspired guide to water in all its forms will make a big splash...Gooley has done his subject proud - this is seriously fascinating stuff.' The Times

'The quirks and habits and secrets of good old H2O were crying out to have a book written about them. That said, it had to be written by the right person... Fortunately, the job went to Tristan Gooley.' The Spectator

Includes over 700 clues, signs and patterns.

You'll learn how to:

Interpret ponds like a Polynesian

Spot dangerous water in the pitch black with the help of a clock face

Read the sea like a Viking

Forecast the weather from waves

Find your way with puddles

Decipher wave patterns on beaches

Decode the colour of water

Unravel a river like an expert

From wild swimming in Sussex to wayfinding off Oman, via the icy mysteries of the Arctic, Tristan Gooley draws on his own pioneering journeys to reveal the secrets of ponds, puddles, rivers, oceans and more to show us all the skills we need to read the water around us.