Summary: The sea - the world's greatest wilderness - is celebrated in this spirited collection of writings. In essays that range from the contemplative to the urgent, the writers here express their admiration, their fear, and their fascination with the essence of the sea as well as the nature that teems beneath the waves. From a naturalist's perspective to the solo adventures of an intrepid sailor to a curiosity seeker's taste of that staple of the sea - plankton - each essay here represents a special view of the water that surrounds us all. Icebergs and squalls, rogue waves and shark encounters, the sheer exhilaration of open-sea sailing all set the stage for a reading adventure. Fifty-nine full-color photographs bring the smell of salt water even closer, and the thoughtful introductions by editor Joseph E. Brown fit all the writings into a conceptual whole. The result is a bracing deep-water voyage for every reader.