Erling Kagge (b. 1963) is a Norwegian explorer, author, philosopher, publisher, and leading collector of international contemporary art; he is also father to three teenage girls.
Kagge was the first in history to reach the “three poles” — North, South and the summit of Everest. He has written nine books on exploration, philosophy and art collecting which have been translated into 42 languages, and has also written for The Financial Times, The New York Times and The Guardian.
Kagge’s books include Silence (2018) , Philosophy for Polar Express: An Adventurer’s Guide to Surviving Winter (2019), Walking: One Step at Time (2020), and The Philosophy of the Explorer (2021). His most recent book The North Pole, an epic adventure story of humanity’s obsession with the North Pole, was published by Viking in 2025 and received brilliant reviews, described by Elif Shafak as ‘The book of a lifetime, from a rare writer-adventurer whose obsession and passion for his subject knows no bounds’.
Kagge’s passion for exploration is not limited to the natural world, and in 2010 he descended into the subway, sewers and water tunnels of New York alongside urban explorer Steve Duncan, walking for five days and nights through the mythical underground of the metropolis.
The New York Times has described Kagge as “… a philosophical adventurer or perhaps an adventurous philosopher.” Now and then he also tries shutting out the world.
