Tuesday, my wife, along with my sister, Bev, daughter, Allison and I joined a group of hikers on the 62,000-acre Santa Cruz Island, the largest of 5 islands in Channel Islands National Park, 30 miles off the coast of Los Angeles. The late morning weather was sunny with a temperature of 58 degrees and a stiff ocean breeze from the east. From the parking lot on the mainland, we boarded a ferryboat and headed west toward the island where we observed a few Common Dolphins surfacing close by. Once on the island, it didn’t take long before I spotted an Island Fox. About the size of a housecat, this ancestor of the gray fox exists only in the Channel Islands. Also, unlike the nocturnal gray fox, this species has no natural predators and thus is active as well as visible during the day. Nearby, I paused to watch a Monarch feeding on the flower of Eucalyptus which is the preferred tree for these overwintering butterflies. We ascended the trail up a steep grade where outcrops of whitish Diatomaceous Earth were noted as well as large, exfoliating boulders. Reaching a high bluff, I gazed southwest at a scenic coastline and far below at a group of Pelicans along with Cormorants perched on a guano-covered rock formation. After examining an old lava field of Basaltic rock, we turned east and began out descent where I noticed a colorful field of Mustard blossoms swaying in the cool ocean breeze. Upon further descent, I stopped to examine a Western Fence Lizard basking on a Scoria rock. This small reptile will lighten or darken its skin to blend in with the background. Continuing the steep descent, I spotted 3 immature White-crowned sparrows on a Lemonade Berry Bush. Finally, we reached the end of our hike, hopped on the boat and headed back to the mainland.
Journey continues
Wandering west
Wonders of nature
Remain my quest
Peaks on high
Rocky beach
Cormorants dive
Dolphins breach
Pelicans soar
Higher than most
Pounding surf
Carving coast
D. DeGraaf
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