Santa Barbara Island "Report"

[Kings Gambit]

Admiral and I just returned from a second "annual" Santa Barbara Island Rendezvous with two companion boats out of Long Beach over Memorial Day Weekend. NOAA zonal weather forecast along with that of the program "Windyty" were accurate for the weekend. Essentially, winds not exceeding 12 to 13 kt with very little swell component from the south. Consequently, the anchorage at Landing Cove was very nice. [We were the only sailboats in there with a couple of fishing boats.] Motored Friday morning and afternoon until within about 6 n.mi. where we picked up enough westerly wind to sail at > 5 kt into Landing Cove and anchor up by 1530 after a trek of about 48 n.mi. Sunny on Saturday and Sunday; just beautiful. We were "pounded" Friday night by California flying fish being chased from the water by the resident sea lions that hunt at night. I took 4 or 5 hits plus found one in the dinghy the next morning. These are fairly large flying fish; probably near 16 inches total length. The island was closed due to damage to the landing platform from the winter storms around here this past season. Among other "activities" I became engrossed in a book, Sailor Historian: The Best of Samuel Eliot Morison. The many writings of this former Harvard professor are a joy to read. [You East-coasters would find much of interest in them.] Monday departed for Coches Prietos on Santa Cruz Island but found it swelly and cold by comparison; stayed one night. [Anchorage there is open to south versus east for SBI so "a little goes a long way."] Moved on to Smugglers; warmer but still swelly due to some increase in height of southerly swell component. Spent Wednesday night at Little Scorpion which is protected from southerly swell. Very nice, but cold with "low clouds and fog." Sailed the 18 n.mi. home to Ventura on a 9-12 kt westerly breeze yesterday. Very nice but "chilly." See link below for last year's "report."

http://forums.sailboatowners.com/in...-forecasts-santa-barbara-island-visit.170872/

 

[jeepbluetj]

Thanks for the report. Does anybody know if/when the landing platform will be repaired? (Wanna do a big Channel Islands loop soon, and it'd be nice to go ashore)

 

[marke14]

Excellent report, KG. I look forward to doing this trip one day on my own boat.

We've been to Santa Cruz (Smuggler's) and to Anacapa, both for overnight camping via Island Packers. We've also been to Santa Cruz once for a day trip.

The Anacapa trip was quite a wild one. We were there in May one year maybe six or so years back. The island was COVERED in seagull nests, each with 2 to 3 eggs being sat upon by their mothers. The wind was whipping when we arrived and continued to build and build through the afternoon into the night. Our tent was being blown sideways and down on to of us all night long. The ranger arrived at our modest campsite about 15 minutes after dawn and told us to be prepared to be evacuated in an hour's time. We began striking the campsite. He showed up again about 15 minutes later and told us to bring our stuff down to the landing immediately, or we'd have to camp out until the wind subsided. Quite an adventure! Beautiful, if small, island, by the way ...

 

[Kings Gambit]

Thanks for the report. Does anybody know if/when the landing platform will be repaired? (Wanna do a big Channel Islands loop soon, and it'd be nice to go ashore)

A Ranger I spoke to at Channel Islands Park Headquarters in Ventura a few weeks ago told me that the SBI landing platform was a lower priority for repair than the pier at Scorpion Anchorage which was also damaged and cannot even now be used for embarking or disembarking visitors using Island Packers. The Park website (see link) also reports that the closure will remain in effect until 2017.

A big "Channel Islands loop" is a worthwhile undertaking, but can also be a challenging one. There are various versions that might be tried. Most people tend to visit anchorages lying in the eastern 2/3 of Santa Cruz Island, north and south coasts. Further west, Santa Cruz Island and the other two, Santa Rosa and San Miguel, are more under the influence of prevailing conditions of the "outer waters"--in short--windy (often at gale force) and cold. I made two unsuccessful tries at a "loop" in my Pearson 30 leaving from Long Beach several years ago, and have yet to sail the Bavaria 38 to San Miguel Island although we have visited the other islands. In my first try as a companion boat to a friend who had his boat in Channel Islands Harbor, it blew a gale reaching all the way to Anacapa Island for the entire nearly two weeks we were hoping for a window to go out. Never left harbor except to go back home (vacation time over ). On the second attempt, now just the Admiral and me, we arrived at Ventura Harbor to leave the next day for Little Scorpion when fog so thick I could not see the end of my boat only 10 ft away rolled in, and stayed for three days. When it finally "lifted" I could start back southeast following the 30 ft isobath barely in sight of the beach (no radar or chart plotter for us in those days!).

So, I would start "conservatively" in the eastern areas of Santa Cruz Island and move west as the conditions permit. A good route from Dana Point would be Long Point or Isthmus Cove, Catalina Island; Santa Barbara Island, Coches Prietos, Santa Cruz Island--then east around SC island to Pelican Bay and/or Frys. If you decide to come up the coast, then DP-Cabrillo Beach anchorage at San Pedro; Paradise Cove; then Channel Islands Harbor or Ventura Harbor for staging, and then out to SC Island and do the semi-circle around the eastern end as described above. The old adage always applies: "Good weather, good cruise; bad weather, bad cruise!"


https://www.nps.gov/chis/planyourvisit/conditions.htm

 

[Kings Gambit]

Excellent report, KG. I look forward to doing this trip one day on my own boat.

We've been to Santa Cruz (Smuggler's) and to Anacapa, both for overnight camping via Island Packers. We've also been to Santa Cruz once for a day trip.

The Anacapa trip was quite a wild one. We were there in May one year maybe six or so years back. The island was COVERED in seagull nests, each with 2 to 3 eggs being sat upon by their mothers. The wind was whipping when we arrived and continued to build and build through the afternoon into the night. Our tent was being blown sideways and down on to of us all night long. The ranger arrived at our modest campsite about 15 minutes after dawn and told us to be prepared to be evacuated in an hour's time. We began striking the campsite. He showed up again about 15 minutes later and told us to bring our stuff down to the landing immediately, or we'd have to camp out until the wind subsided. Quite an adventure! Beautiful, if small, island, by the way ...

Thanks, Marke
My first visit to any of the northern Channel Islands by sailboat [on a friend's sailboat out of Channel Islands Harbor] was to visit Anacapa Island on Easter weekend of 1999 where we saw the type of nesting activity you describe, but it included the California Brown Pelican as well as gulls. However, we did not go ashore. Just circumnavigated the island plus anchored near East Fish Camp for lunch that day, then sailed on the afternoon wind back to Channel Islands Harbor whence we had departed. Glorious! Since then we've visited a few other times most recently anchoring at Frenchy's Cove on the north side of the island for lunch the Saturday following Easter weekend of this year. You may know that there are no "recommended" overnight anchorages at Anacapa Island, so I did not mention visiting there to jeepbluej in an earlier post.

 

[marke14]

Yes, it's pretty deep water all around the island (Anacapa) as far as I know. Those cliffs rise straight up out of the Pacific in most places ... there is no easy way "down to the water" from atop the island, save for the stairs leading down to the landing.

The Brown Pelicans were nesting/roosting as well, but they were on the extreme east end of the island, and no footpaths led over there.

 

[Kings Gambit]

Yes, it's pretty deep water all around the island (Anacapa) as far as I know. Those cliffs rise straight up out of the Pacific in most places ... there is no easy way "down to the water" from atop the island, save for the stairs leading down to the landing.

The Brown Pelicans were nesting/roosting as well, but they were on the extreme east end of the island, and no footpaths led over there.

You can anchor at Frenchy's Cove (north side of Anacapa) in about 20-25 ft, if I recall correctly. There's a small beach to land. A cut nearby allows with some climbing (but not too much) one to go over to the south side of the island. Island Packers makes one or two day trips there to Frenchy's each year; puts visitors ashore, and guides them over to the south side to visit the tide pools. Overnight is not recommended b/c Frenchy's has only minimal protection from the west and none from the northwest. If the weather got up in the middle of the night (we know the old story) from the west or northwest where it usually does, you'd be against a lee shore with rollers coming in hard--not too pleasant of a thought!

 

[Brian D]

I live vicariously through your "reports". Please keep them coming.

 

[Kings Gambit]

I live vicariously through your "reports". Please keep them coming.

Thanks, Brian! Such a nice complement. Sailing off California as we know offers us few overnight (anchorage) destinations away from harbor in the space of even a 3 to 4 day weekend. The richest selection in Southern California is at the northern Channel Islands and along the Santa Barbara county coast, although there are a few "tucked away" places at Catalina Island outside the mooring areas which dominate boater use there. There are four or more bareboat charter businesses operating collectively out of Channel Islands, Ventura, and Santa Barbara harbors. Back before I bought the Bavaria (i.e., when visiting here in my Pearson 30 was a bit arduous), we chartered (via Marina Sailing) with another couple for day sails to Anacapa Island. I also see overnight charters out there from Santa Barbara. This past week (on Wednesday) there was a chartered (overnight) Hunter 380 at Little Scorpion out of Channel Islands Harbor (Oxnard). Maybe get with a couple of friends and try it out if you haven't already!