Skip to main content

National Park Wednesday; Channel Islands National Park and East Anacapa Island

By
This past month I visited Channel Islands National Park for the third time.  The destination on this particular trip was East Anacapa Island.


Channel Islands National Park is located in California and consists of five of eight of the Channel Islands of Santa Barbara Channel.   Channel Islands National Part currently consists of nearly 250,000 acres of land and water.  Protection of the Channel Islands began in April of 1938 when Anacapa Island and Santa Barbra Island were added to Channel Islands National Monument.   Channel Islands National Monument was declared in March of 1980.  The new Channel Islands National Park added Santa Rosa Island, San Miguel Island and Santa Rosa Island to the previous protected lands of Anacapa Island and Santa Barbra Island.

My journey to East Anacapa Island began from Channel Islands Harbor in Oxnard.  From Channel Islands Harbor there is about a dozen miles of open water in Santa Barbara Channel to East Anacapa Island.  Exiting Channel Island Harbor provides an excellent view of Naval Station Ventura County.






In 2019 there was only a handful of dolphins to be seen in Santa Barbara Channel on a somewhat murky day with a low overcast fog line.


Back 2016 when I last visited East Anacapa Island that definitely wasn't the case when there was a massive pod of hundreds of dolphins present.











The trip to East Anacapa Island passed by a remaining oil platform in Santa Barbara Channel and a medium size freighter ship.




Approaching East Anacapa Island the weathered Arch Rock and Anacapa Island Light both come into view.   East Anacapa Island is the eastern most of three islands that make up what is known as Anacapa Island.  Anacapa Island along with Santa Barbara Island were formed from volcanic eruptions which occurred 19-15 million years ago.  Anacapa Island is a cliff island chain which is eroding into Santa Barbara Channel. 





The landing at East Anacapa Island was built in 1930 when construction of the Anacapa Island Light began.  The first Anacapa Light was simply a 50 foot spire which was erected in 1912.  In 1933 the Anacapa Island Light became operational when it's Fresnel Lens was installed.  The 1933 Anacapa Island Light remained an active Coast Guard Station despite being annexed into Channel Islands National Monument in 1938.  During World War II the Navy also manned Anacapa Island as a surveillance platform as the Anacapa Light was blacked out.   During it's peak the Coast Guard Station on Anacapa Island had numerous homes form families, a single enlisted barracks and a water tank facility capable of holding 30,000 gallons of water.  The Anacapa Island Light was automated in May of 1967 and the remaining Coast Guard Station was slated for demolition.  In 1970 the Coast Guard Station was transferred to the Park Service which preserved the buildings.  One building houses the Fresnel Lens of the Anacapa Island Light.























East Anacapa Island includes about 2 miles worth of trails.  The signature view point is located west of the Anacapa Island Light and is known as Inspiration Point.  Inspiration Point looks eastward towards Middle and West Anacapa Islands.  There is no access to the coast on East Anacapa Island aside from the 1930 Coast Guard landing.






Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Abandoned US Route 40 in the Truckee River Canyon

By
Within the Truckee River Canyon in the Sierra Nevada range numerous abandoned portions of US Route 40 can be found alongside modern Interstate 80.   This segment of highway was opened during 1926 as a bypass of the Dog Valley Grade which carried the early North Lincoln Highway and Victory Highway. The corridor of the Truckee River Canyon State Highway would be assigned as US Route 40 when the US Route System was commissioned during November 1926. During 1958 the segment of Interstate 80 between Boca, California and the Nevada state line was complete. When Interstate 80 opened east of Boca numerous obsolete portions of US Route 40 were abandoned. Some of these abandoned segments have been incorporated into the Tahoe-Pyramid Trail.  Part 1; the history of US Route 40 in the Truckee River Canyon The Truckee River Canyon for centuries has been an established corridor of travel known to native tribes crossing the Sierra Nevada range.  The first documented wagon crossi...
Post a Comment
Read more

Former US Route 50 and the Pioneer Route Lincoln Highway on Johnson's Pass Road

By
Johnson's Pass Road is one of the oldest highway corridors in California.  Johnson's Pass was part of the Lake Tahoe Wagon Road as it was completed during 1856 over the Sierra Nevada.  The pass would later be incorporated into the Pioneer Branch of the Lincoln Highway in 1913 and US Route 50 in 1926.  Johnson's Pass Road would be bypassed by a new alignment of US Route 50 over Echo Summit in 1938.  A replacement of the Meyers Grade east of Johnson's Pass would be opened to traffic in 1947.   Johnson's Pass Road remains accessible to traffic and is still signed by the Lincoln Highway Association.  Pictured as the blog cover is the view from the top of Johnson's Pass Road overlooking modern US Route 50 and Lake Tahoe.   Part 1; the history of Johnson's Pass Much of the history of what become the Lake Tahoe Wagon Road is discussed in the  September 1950 California Highways & Public Works  during its Centennial Edition.  The or...
Post a Comment
Read more

Former California State Route 41 past Bates Station

By
When California State Route 41 was commissioned during August 1934 it was aligned along the then existing Fresno-Yosemite Road north of the San Joaquin River.  Within the Sierra Nevada foothills of Madera County, the original highway alignment ran past Bates Station via what is now Madera County Road 209, part of eastern Road 406 and Road 207.   Bates Station was a stage station plotted during the early 1880s at what was the intersection of the Coarsegold Road and Stockton-Los Angeles Road.   The modern alignment bypassing Bates Station to the east would be reopened to traffic during late 1939.   Part 1; the history of California State Route 41 past Bates Station Bates Station was featured as one of the many 1875-1899 Madera County era towns in the May 21, 1968, Madera Tribune .  Post Office Service at Bates Station is noted to have been established on November 23, 1883 and ran continuously until October 31, 1903.  The postal name was sourced...
Post a Comment
Read more