Travelling to the Arctic with a Mobility Scooter

Have you ever packed your bags for a holiday and wondered whether you’d forgotten anything? Passport, plane ticket, hotel booking...

But what if you also had to remember to find out whether you could use the shower in your hotel? Or how many steps you had to climb to get to your room? Or whether you could get on and off the trains in the country you were travelling to?

These are only some of the challenges facing a traveller who happens to have mobility issues. When Maureen Corrigan, a former medical doctor and health administrator, developed multiple sclerosis she began to make a series of adaptations in her life in order to be able to continue doing the things she loves – chief among them, travel. With her practical spirit and her inability to take ‘no’ for an answer, Maureen is an inspiration to us all, whether or not we have mobility issues. Her latest adventure, to Norway and the Arctic, provides us with a fascinating insight into how those adaptations play out in real life, as well as taking us on a journey to the starkly stunning vistas of the land of the midnight sun.

Reviews

Reviewed by Jack Magnus for Readers' Favorite (5 Stars)

Unexpected Rewards: Travelling to the Arctic With a Mobility Scooter is a non-fiction travel memoir written by Maureen T. Corrigan. Corrigan had been an active and successful woman who was a medical doctor and later a CEO in the healthcare industry. Her life changed dramatically when a series of troubling symptoms led to a diagnosis of multiple sclerosis. She quit her job and decided to take advantage of the situation to begin living the life she had always wanted. That meant travel, adventure, and writing about the challenges and the pleasurable surprises that she would
discover while on the road. Her decision to travel to the Arctic was one such ambition, following on her earlier trip to the Antarctic several years before. An Australian, her Arctic adventure would lead her far from home.

First, she had to find the right cruise for her and her friend, carer and companion, Sue. She didn't want the stereotypical cruise with formal dinners, dancing and thousands of passengers. Rather, she wanted a cruise that offered scientific lectures at night, that had a small passenger list, one that would show her the real Arctic. After extensive research, she found an expedition cruise entitled 'Polar Bears, Islands and Fjords.' It began in Oslo and explored coastal Norway up into the Arctic Circle. Now, all she had to do was make travel arrangements that could accommodate her Luggie travel scooter and that provided the necessary hotel accommodations.

Maureen T. Corrigan's non-fiction travel memoir is an exciting and inspiring account of the author's travels to Norway and the Arctic Circle. I was most impressed with her resilience when making travel arrangements that could accommodate her, and I was mentally cheering her on as she braved ice, snow, mud and travel confusion. Corrigan's descriptions of Oslo and her expedition cruise are brilliant! Her narratives are filled with local color, funny mishaps and unforgettable snapshots of her travelling companions as they cruise in the Arctic on the MS Fram. Unexpected Rewards is a well-written and grand read that will have readers considering their own future Arctic adventures. It's most highly recommended.

Reviewed by Sefina Hawke for Readers' Favorite (5 Stars)

Unexpected Rewards is a book not only about traveling, but also about overcoming the limitations placed on us by ourselves and others. Unexpected Rewards follows Maureen T. Corrigan (the author) through her travels and her flashbacks on Multiple Sclerosis (MS).

I personally found Unexpected Rewards to be an interesting read on several levels. First off, I enjoyed it simply as a travel book with interesting stories. Second, I found it inspiring, as a family member to someone with a chronic pain condition, that someone could do so much while still fighting Multiple Sclerosis (MS). I found Unexpected Rewards to be particularly well written and it is clear that Maureen T. Corrigan is not only a seasoned traveler, but also an exceptional, gifted writer as well. The places that she visits are so clearly described that I could picture them in my head as I read, without having to look them up. I truly enjoyed Maureen'sbook and I hope that there are more to come.

About the Author

For many years, Dr Maureen Corrigan was a medical practitioner who worked in a broad range of healthcare roles, from general practitioner to CEO. She retired early as a result of developing multiple sclerosis (MS). Maureen is now able to pursue her many other passions, including travel and writing, which has led her to say, ‘I sometimes think getting MS was the best thing that happened to me!’