By Boyd Lemon / Guest contributor
I am surprised to learn that many people who live in the 805 have never visited one of its greatest treasures —the Channel Islands. They are relatively unspoiled, and uninhabited, except by a few employees of the National Park Service, since they became a National Park in 1980, and of the Nature Conservancy, which owns the western part of Santa Cruz Island.
Last week I visited, for the second time, the largest of the Channel Islands, Santa Cruz. Only a limited number of campers are allowed to stay overnight, but a day trip is available. Leaving by boat from Ventura Harbor, we arrived at the Scorpion Anchorage in about an hour. Comfortable boats leave three times a day during the summer, as early as 8 a.m., returning at 4 p.m., which leaves plenty of time for hiking, kayaking, swimming, bird watching, exploring the many beaches and just plain relaxing in a gorgeous setting with a fascinating history. You can also camp overnight, but the facilities are primitive and very limited in number of sites.
There are eight Channel Islands off the California coast split among the jurisdictions of three counties, Santa Barbara (four), Ventura (two) and Los Angeles (two). The four northern islands used to be a single landmass until the melting of the last ice age. Only Catalina in Los Angeles County is inhabited by the public. The Channel Islands at low elevations are virtually frost-free and constitute one of the few such areas in the 48 contiguous states. It snows only rarely, on higher mountain peaks.
Separated from the California mainland throughout recent geological history, the Channel Islands provide the earliest evidence for human seafaring in the Americas. They are also the site of the discovery of the earliest paleontological evidence of humans in North America. The northern Channel Islands are now known to have been settled by maritime Paleoindian peoples at least 13,000 years ago. Archaeological sites on the island provide a unique and invaluable record of human interaction with Channel Island marine and terrestrial ecosystems from the late Pleistocene to historic times. Historically, the northern islands were occupied by the Island Chumash Native Americans, while the southern islands were occupied by the Tongva.
The Chumash and Tongva were removed from the islands in the early 19th century, taken to Spanish missions and pueblos on the adjacent mainland. For a century, the Channel Islands were used primarily for ranching and fishing activities, which had significant impacts on island ecosystems, including the local extinction of sea otters, bald eagles, and other species. With most of the Channel Islands now managed by federal agencies or conservation groups, the restoration of the island ecosystems has made significant progress.
The Channel Islands are part of one of the richest marine biospheres of the world. Many species of plants and animals are found only there, such as the Island Fox, the second smallest fox in the world — about the size of the average house cat — a unique species of Tory Pine, the Channel Islands Spotted Skunk and many others. Many of these species were close to extinction until the National Park Service and the Nature Conservancy began steps a few years ago to preserve them. Even the Bald Eagles are back. Among many other preservation programs, they removed wild pigs and sheep from the Islands that were introduced by European ranchers and were not native to the area. They were killing off native plant and animal life.
Our cruise last week from Ventura Harbor on the 9 o’clock boat was quite pleasant, affording lovely views of our coast. Santa Cruz Island loomed into view under the marine layer. The boat slowed, and we docked at Scorpion Anchorage about 10 o’clock. After disembarking, we listened to a knowledgeable volunteer nature guide tell us about the plants and animals and history of Santa Cruz Island. We then accompanied him on an easy guided walk about two miles out to the north coast. On the walk, after passing the preserved Nineteenth Century farm buildings, we saw several Island Foxes, numerous native birds and plants and ended up on a cliff overlooking the beautiful, rocky northern shore. Sometimes sea lions play on the rocky beach, but not that day. Later in the afternoon as the marine layer lifted, Anacapa Island loomed off shore to the East.
We headed back to Scorpion Campground, ate our lunch at one of the picnic tables and spotted two more Island Foxes engaged either in combat or play. We couldn’t tell which. After lunch we read about and saw videos of the Island and its flora and fauna in the Visitor’s Center, then hiked toward Smugglers Cove — about seven miles round trip — up and down, a fairly strenuous hike for my 69 year-old friend and me, not so much for his 28 year-old daughter. We enjoyed the views of the eastern part of this 22 mile long, 2 to 6 mile wide Island and would have seen another coast, but we had to head back to be sure not to miss our 4 o’clock boat to the mainland.
As we sailed away from this idyllic island, the boat suddenly turned away from the mainland, and we soon saw why — one of the highlights of the trip — a pod of hundreds of dolphins that soon swam alongside our boat, jumping out of the water and playing as dolphins do, their silver coats glistening in the afternoon sun, watching us as we watched them. After awhile, the boat turned toward Ventura and accelerated, but the dolphins kept up with us for about ten minutes. What a magnificent sight!
I haven’t spent a more pleasant day. Island Packers is the company that runs the trip. The trip, including admission to the Park costs $56 dollars for adults, $51 for seniors and $39 for children under 12. Campers pay $75 each. 805ers shouldn’t miss this opportunity.
— Boyd Lemon is a retired lawyer, who re-invented himself as a writer, living in Ventura. He recently returned from a year in France and Italy. His memoir, “Digging Deep: A Writer Uncovers His Marriages,” has just been published. It is about his journey to understand his role in the destruction of his three marriages. He believes it will help others to deal with their own relationship issues. Excerpts are on his website, http://www.BoydLemon-Writer.com