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IMG_0572.jpg The view from our hotel in Ventura near the dock for our boat to Santa Cruz.	IMG_0577.jpg The Islander took us to Santa Cruz	IMG_0579.jpg Loading the ship	IMG_0580.jpg Ready to depart	IMG_0581.jpg Saying goodbye (temporarily) to the mainland.

IMG_0658.jpg Sign near where we made landfall.	IMG_0582.jpg View near our campsite at Scorpion Bay	IMG_9022.jpg Excited to be on dry land, G found this log near our campsite.	IMG_0583.jpg	IMG_0584.jpg Happy to be here!

IMG_0585.jpg Rolling hills	IMG_9027.jpg The flowers are probably prettier in the spring but we were surprised at the varieties of flowers we saw in August.	IMG_0587.jpg Everywhere we looked on the island the geology was different. We don't know exactly what every type of rock was (this might be chert) but it was striking to see the ground change from white to red to black in the course of a hike.	IMG_0588.jpg Typical beautiful view during our hikes on Santa Cruz.	IMG_0589.jpg Gorgeous views were on top of every hill

IMG_0590.jpg It is so arid here that the trails remain mostly clear of grasses and the soil underneath has become almost like concrete.	IMG_0591.jpg pieces of machinery left near an old abandoned oil rig	IMG_9032.jpg Abandoned oil well.	IMG_9033.jpg It must've been awfully hot sitting in the operator's shed next to the well.	IMG_0592.jpg Anacapa, another of the Channel Islands, is visible to the east.

IMG_0593.jpg .	IMG_0596.jpg Waiting patiently for Bill to stop taking pictures.	IMG_0600.jpg We hiked to Smuggler's Cove, which has a beautiful beach.	IMG_0602.jpg A beautifully grizzled tree.	IMG_0604.jpg When the skies were cloudy, they wre beautiful. When they were bright blue and clear, they were beautiful.

IMG_0611.jpg Rock cliffs at Cavern Point.	IMG_0613.jpg Taking a short hike at sunset to Cavern Point after a long day of hiking.	IMG_0618.jpg .	IMG_0622.jpg .	IMG_0624.jpg Heading back to camp as the sun sets.

IMG_0625.jpg View from the beach near the pier.	IMG_0629.jpg Sunrise.	IMG_0633.jpg Our beautiful campsite	IMG_0636.jpg Flowers were everywhere!	IMG_0638.jpg When the spring rains come, this streambed apparently overflows. Not today.

IMG_0640.jpg The view from Potato Harbor was fabulous and we also heard sea lions playing far below--but we were never able to spot them from our perch on the cliffs.	IMG_0645.jpg One frequent resting activity: emptying out our shoes.	IMG_0648.jpg ;	IMG_0649.jpg A rugged landscape	IMG_0650.jpg ;

IMG_0652.jpg Cooling off our feet after a long day's hike.	IMG_0655.jpg Resting on the locker that kept our food out of the clutches of the critically endangered Island Foxes, which only live on the Channel Islands. We saw fox scat and fox trails everywhere we went on the island but only saw a fox one time. It scurried across the trail and tried to hide in the base of a bush next to us. We watched it for a minute and then moved on to avoid unduly scaring it.	IMG_0659.jpg Some of the farm machinery left on the island that was collected by the Park Service.	IMG_0661.jpg Old tractor	IMG_0662.jpg Tromping up a red rock path.

IMG_0665.jpg We looked for the Mars rovers but didn't find them.	IMG_0670.jpg "Yes, Bill, the trail is going to keep going up higher and higher. Stop complaining and start walking!"	IMG_0671.jpg ;	IMG_0672.jpg This is about as far west as we got. Most of what you can see behind Bill belongs to the Nature Conservancy, which keeps their portion of the Island strictly closed to outside visitors without advance permission.	IMG_0674.jpg .

IMG_0677.jpg ;	IMG_0678.jpg We tried to find a trail listed in our hiking book, but all we ended up finding was a bunch of these prickly grasses embedded into our shoes, socks, legs and feet. We knew we weren't hopelessly lost since the island is relatively small but it is sometimes hard to see a small trail even a few meters away in the rolling hills of Santa Cruz.	IMG_0679.jpg ;	IMG_0680.jpg ;	IMG_0681.jpg Enjoying a well-earned rest.

IMG_0682.jpg ;	IMG_0684.jpg Beautiful trails.	IMG_0685.jpg About to descend back to camp.	IMG_9018.jpg A drilling platform. They have apparently been shut down but the state of California is considering allowing offshore drilling to resume.	IMG_9024.jpg