The Channel Islands national park is an archipelago of islands about an hour and a half away (by sea) from Ventura, California. The islands are beautiful, but if you’re coming just for this, it might be a little disappointing. That sounds harsh, but they are hard to get to unless you’re local to the area. We didn’t see all of the islands (barely anything, honestly), but what we did see didn’t strike us as particularly spectacular, given some of the other national park grandeur we’ve experienced in places like Zion or Acadia.
How to Get to the Channel Islands
You will need to take a boat to the islands. Seems obvious, but there is no bridge that connects them to the mainland. You can take your own boat or book a tour, or you can buy a ticket on an Island Packers ferry like everyone else. Island Packers is the only company contracted by the National Parks Service to ferry between the Channel Islands and the mainland.
Most Island Packers boats leave from Ventura Harbor, but there are a few that leave from Oxnard. The closest airport to Ventura is Santa Barbara, about 45 minutes away. Los Angeles International airport is about 2 hours away; maybe less without traffic (as if, lol).
The daily number of visitors to each island is restricted. For this reason you won’t buy a simple round trip ticket, but you need to buy an outbound ticket for a specific day and time and a return one for a specific day and time. If you miss your boat and it’s the last one, you are literally going to be spending the night on the island until the next day. Bring extra water and prepare to make friends with the other campers.
This national park is freeeeeee! Of course, you have to pay Island Packers for the boat fare, but know that there isn’t an additional fee once you arrive.
The Islands
The Channel Islands National Park is made up of five islands:
Anacapa
Technically this is three islets, grouped together. It’s great for snorkeling, diving, and kayaking. There is no water or food available on the island, so be sure to bring your own. There are only 2 miles of hiking trails, since the island is so small. Be aware: April through August is breeding time for seabirds and it will be full of birds (both alive and dead), super smelly, and very noisy. The NPS site warns visitors of these conditions. I figure if even the park rangers think it’s bad, it’s probably terrible.
Santa Rosa
This island is 3 hours from Ventura Harbor. The conditions are usually very windy with rough seas. It’s the second biggest island and there are lots of hiking trails ranging from easy (short and flat) to strenuous (long and steep) and a few in between. Drinking water is available in some places, but you’ll still need to bring your own food.
San Miguel
San Miguel is even further away than Santa Rosa and requires a permit and liability waiver. It was a former bombing range and there is possibly unexploded ordnance still there, so absolutely no off-trail hiking is allowed. The 16 mile guided hike to Point Bennett should keep you busy for a while though. To access the island, you’ll take a skiff from the main boat to land on the beach so prepare to get wet.
Santa Barbara
Only about one square mile, Santa Barbara island is the smallest of them all. It’s also kind of oddly far away from all the other islands. Santa Barbara island is open April through October and it takes about 3 hours to get there. While there is a visitor center here, there is no food or water so definitely be prepared with your own.
Santa Cruz
This is the biggest island and one of the more popular ones. There are two landing piers: Scorpion Anchorage and Prisoner’s Cove. Scorpion Anchorage has drinking water and a visitor center. Prisoner’s Cove is more remote and has neither. However, it does have vault style toilets and a few shady picnic tables! It takes about an hour to get to Scorpion Anchorage and another half hour to get to Prisoner’s Cove. Santa Cruz island is accessible year round, unlike some of the others. Although it’s the biggest, about three quarters of the island is a nature conservancy with no visitor access, so hiking isn’t as expansive as you’d expect.
Our Experience on Santa Cruz Island
Santa Cruz island is the one we visited. By the time we booked our tickets with Island Packers (one week out, in July), the only tickets still available were to and from Prisoner’s Cove. Maybe our underwhelming experience was due to the fact that we booked a less popular landing! There really wasn’t much to do here, but I’ll tell you what it was like anyway.
The main hike was Pelican Bay trail. It was a moderately difficult 4 mile trail, with sections navigating precarious rocks and steep inclines/declines. We turned back before completing it. The other trails were supposedly along the Navy road, which was a winding, uphill, dirt track. However, we walked on it for a long time and never came upon another trailhead. There’s no shade on the road and the sun was intense so it wasn’t that enjoyable.
There is a small beach on Santa Cruz but the water didn’t look great for swimming. It’s not crowded though, so is a peaceful place to sit and relax. Also, it’s right next to the pier so you can continue to enjoy the island while you wait for the return boat.
The Journey Is the Destination
The stated times for getting to each island can vary depending on whether or not you spot sea life on the trip. The Island Packers boat keeps a watch out for interesting sea life like dolphins and whales and if they’re spotted, the boat will make an effort to slow or turn to allow the passengers to get a better look.
On our way to Santa Cruz island, we spotted hundreds of dolphins. I’d seen dolphins before, of course, but never this many all together, and in the wild. The dolphins weren’t afraid of the boat and swam right up to it, and alongside it. It was the highlight of the trip, actually.
Kayaking at Channel Islands National Park
You have a couple of options for kayaking: go it alone, or book an organized tour with Channel Islands Adventure Company.
If you want to kayak on your own, you can bring a personal kayak as long as you reserve a space for it when you buy your ferry ticket. If you’re renting a kayak, you will not be able to get one on the islands. You’ll need to reserve it ahead of time in Ventura, from Channel Island Kayak Center. You’ll rent the kayak from there, and Island Packers will pack it on and off the boat for you. Regardless of how you’re bringing a kayak, be sure to reserve a space on the boat when you purchase your ticket.
Channel Islands Adventure Company tours begin from the islands themselves, so you will still need to buy your actual boat ticket from Island Packers, but you don’t need to worry about bringing a kayak with you.
Other Helpful Tips
- Bring water! Some islands have drinking water available but many of them do not, and that is definitely something you don’t want to run out of. The Island Packers boat has a little concession station onboard where you can buy food and water as well.
- Pack some food for a picnic lunch or pre-order a lunchbox from the Island Packers website.
- Don’t forget the sunscreen! There is little to no shade on a lot of the islands.
- There aren’t many mosquitos or other bugs here, thankfully, so no huge need for bug repellant.
- Dress in layers. We went in late July and the weather was warm if you were hiking but definitely hoodie-worthy sitting in the shade. I wore shorts, a tank top, and a hoodie. Except for when I was hiking, I was a little cold all day.
- No pets allowed, unfortunately. If you have a service animal, you can get a permit from the park superintendent in advance.
- No campfires are allowed. You can bring an enclosed camp stove though.
Final Thoughts on Channel Islands National Park
For us, planning a trip to this park was a little overwhelming. There are so many different islands and you can’t possibly make it to all of them without a days long excursion (read: expensive) or going out and back several times (read: both expensive and time consuming). Each island seemed to offer some activity, but not a ton unless you are spending a lot of time diving or kayaking, which we weren’t. We didn’t plan very well in advance and so ended up going to the less popular pier on Santa Cruz island (Prisoner’s Cove), simply because that’s what was available. There was enough to do for several hours, but we still had a lot of time to kill before our ferry departure.
Even though the park is free, your boat ticket is going to cost you more than a standard national park entrance fee. And the kayak tours with Channel Islands Adventure Company are $100-$250 per person. So this isn’t a park that offers too much, unless you’re willing and able to shell out a bit of cash.
It was worth it for us to take a boat out there and mark a national park off our list since we were in Ventura anyway visiting Brian’s parents. But as far as planning a trip to the Channel Islands National Park as a vacation experience unto itself…I think there many that offer a lot more bang for both your time and your dollar.
