Kayaking the Vermilion Sea

the long version

With two slender sixty-pound kayaks, a ten-pound medical kit, twenty pounds of books, triple-digit temperatures, and no contact with the outside world, Jonathan and Deborah Waterman spent two months paddling through the violent tides and storms that define the legendary Sea of Cortes. Amid the lore and mythic past of the Baja they discovered that what began as a mutual exploration would soon become an unforgettable test of will. Calmer days provide time for reflection on the mysteries of the 800-mile Baja California coast - tales of giant winged manta rays, pearl diving, and crimson tides. The days are marked with crashing surf, brown pelicans, shimmering neon-green needlefish, spinner dolphins, relentless wind, and shifting currents. At night there are howling coyotes, bittersweet mariachi bands, and evening primrose - and always the numerous fishing boats moving threateningly across the horizon, fishing the sea toward depletion. Exhilarating and lyrical, filled with images of death, beauty, and adventure, this epic journey depicts the past and present of a legendary body of water - and the struggle of a man and a woman to find each other.