You won’t be disappointed. It’s well worth a read or two. He describes a California before the gold rush when it was a neglected part of Mexico. Because of prevailing winds, it was hard to sail from Mexico to California and most of California lacked protected harbors. His describes places like San Diego, Los Angeles, Santa Barbara and San Francisco before there were very many people living there.
Dana Point gets it’s name because that is where Dana threw cattle hides down from the cliffs to the beach. The hides were bound for New England to be made into shoes.
I just finished Two Years Before the Mast today. You were right, that is a great book. Bit of a barrier on the nautical terms but a great portrait of early California. I’ll wait a while and read it again.