In fact, Don Starkell lost all his fingers and some toes in a kayaking expedition in the artic.  He wrote about it and so did the woman he travelled with (2 out of the 4 summers).  I wouldn't have wanted to travel with him.  I didn't think so when I first read the book about the amazon and when I read Victoria Jayson's book about the artic thing.  Here's a link to an article discussing the differences in their books on the same subject (He wrote a book about the trip also).  Gender notes:  Wilderness unfinished pages 5-7
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