Happy Spring

Greetings. So here is the tale of our spring break camping trip on Santa Cruz Island:

We got up nice and early on Saturday morning and went to the Ventura Pier. There were loads of people waiting around already but it turned out that they were all going for day expeditions. Many of the people were going to kayak or scuba dive and there were only three parties that were camping. The boat was packed and we headed out toward the islands. The water was pretty rough and the boat was pitching quite a lot. The captain had to kill the motors several times as we approached massive swells. This also meant that every time we hit a peak, the whole starboard side of the boat was sprayed with water. There was apparently the possibility that we would see whales or dolphins but we didn't see any. At one point Chance and I decided to venture out onto the lower deck on the left side of the boat which was protected from the wind and spray. However, a massive spray still managed to come across the front of the boat and completely drenched my arm. Otherwise, the boat ride was pretty quick and uneventful.

When we arrived at the island we piled on all our stuff and headed for the campsite. When I had made the booking the individual campsite was packed so I booked a group campsite for us. Both campsites were in a river valley that was lined with eucalyptus trees (very native indeed). We trekked on past the lower campsite and arrived at the upper, group campsites. We had site A, which was right in the middle of the two trails leading into the site. There was a huge school group that was still packing up after a week of camping so we just put our stuff down and tried to figure out the best place to pitch our tent. The wind was viciously cold as it swept through the canyon so it was starting to look like a pretty dreary place to set up camp.

We decided on a place right by the picnic tables for out site, but then the advice began. Every person who had been camping previously had advice for us about where we should put our tent. A woman with the school group warned us about falling branches from the eucalyptus trees and told us not to put our tent near the campsite but way far away on another group's site. I walked around trying to assess where the wind was least but it seemed pretty unrelenting everywhere. Everything had to be weighted down or else it would blow away. And then the ravens started shredding our paper towels that were sticking out of the top of our food bag. So anyway, we tried putting our tent in one place, and then some other man who had been camping before recommending putting it over on the side of the valley so that it would be protected from the wind. And then he accidentally almost walked away with our bag of food. We were a bit concerned about setting up camp on someone else's plot but there seemed to be no other choice. So carrying the tent like a kite, we moved it over to the side of the valley and started trying to stake it down. The tent is definitely designed for light use and the stakes did not seem like they could secure anything to the ground. We got the rainfly on and put in two stakes when another group of men came by. They told us how they put their tent right where our tent was and it was the only one that blew away. So we pulled up the stakes and moved it again, rearranging the weights, not losing the ties, and flying it like a kite over to its final resting place behind a random tree. Then one guy went on to tell us about how everything got infested with earwigs so we had better put our stuff in a tree. Then some other man came up and told us that things were way better on the other side of the valley but we finally decided that where we were was good enough. whew. So we got the tent all assembled and took a nap.

After the refreshing nap and lunch, we decided to go for a hike. The islands are certainly not flat (the highest point is 2,500 feet) so we had to do quite a bit of climbing to reach the main trail at the top. We went on a long walk to a distant cove and then walked back. (see pictures). We were also offered more advice from people we passed. There were lots and lots of fuzzy wuzzy caterpillars and the geology is quite random. Because it is light out for such a long time, we took quite a long route around and arrived back at camp around 5:30. We cooked dinner, but we given advice from the camper next to us to set up our stove inside the bear box. I brought hot cocoa mix which tasted terrible (TJ's brand, not so good). We tried reading in the tent once it got dark but the lights just attracted earwigs so bedtime became 8pm.

During the night, it rained. And a skunk came by our tent. By morning we were ready to go home on the early boat rather than staying until our scheduled departure time of 4pm. But, it was Easter Sunday, so the earliest boat home wasn't until 12. And we had to talk to the rangers and arrange with the captain of the ship for up to go home on the early boat. And this time there were about 50 campers heading home with about 100 pieces of gear. Because it is all on that little pier and has to go down the ladder to the boat, they make the campers form one long bucket line and send all the gear along and onto the boat. Because we were so eager to get home, I was at the end of the dock, handing all the gear down the ladder to the boat and Chance was on the boat handing it to the people in the hold. They tell people that the maximum weight per bag is 45 pounds, but it still was quite a work out passing all that gear along.

Once we were all loaded up, we had a nice and peaceful ride home. No whales or dolphins though. Came home, showered, and slept. The end. All has been documented through pictures.

Also posted are my pictures from the previous weekend's trip to the Santa Barbara Zoo. Enjoy.