Searching for Steinbeck's Sea of Cortez: A Makeshift Expedition Along Baja's Desert Coast
Imagine hitchhiking in Baja's wilderness with a pair of toddlers in tow, then packing them into a sea kayak on the Sea of Cortez. Clearly, Romano-Lax, the author of several guidebooks to Alaska, where she resides, has a nonchalant and intrepid attitude toward travel. With her husband and two children (one still in diapers), she sets out on a journey in search of the tide pools explored by John Steinbeck and Ed Ricketts 60 years ago. Her goal is to duplicate the route described in Steinbeck's The Log from the Sea of Cortez in a small sailboat captained by her mentally unstable brother-in-law. The captain jumps ship midway through the expedition, leaving the hardy family to continue by foot, rental car, bus, and charter boats as they make their way around the shores of the Sea of Cortez. Two months later, the journey ends in Guaymas with the travelers out of funds and both children recovering from minor (but frightening) injuries. This, though, is only half of Romano-Lax's story. The reader travels with Steinbeck and Ricketts as well, in combination with the author's own observations of the invertebrates that inhabit the shoreline of Baja's inland sea. There's sufficient information here for any naturalist, environmentalist, or trekker considering a similar journey to explore this little-known part of North America. The omission of photos is an unfortunate drawback. For most public and academic libraries. Janet Ross, formerly with Sparks Branch Lib., NVCopyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.