cover image Kayaking the Vermilion Sea: Eight Hundred Miles Down the Baja

Kayaking the Vermilion Sea: Eight Hundred Miles Down the Baja

Jonathan Waterman. Simon & Schuster, $21.5 (223pp) ISBN 978-0-684-80242-8

Disenchanted with life in general, Waterman and his wife of one year, Deborah, sought a wilderness adventure to renew their spirits. They spent two months paddling kayaks down the coastline of Baja California on the Sea of Cortez (Gulf of California), an area rich in history. Waterman (In the Shadow of Denali) recounts their journey in vivid detail. It was a challenging voyage--choppy seas, turbulent tides, storms and biting insects. They met expatriate Americans, windsurfers, a group of kayakers, yachtsmen. They paddled with dolphins and observed a sea-lion nursery. Waterman notes that Isla Espirita Santo is being marketed as a haven for kayakers; other places are looking for the tourist trade. Guess what he finds at the end of the journey? How much work and communication are necessary in marriage. Photos not seen by PW. (June)