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

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.

New River Gorge National River Area To Become A National Park

Great news for those that enjoy National Parks, West Virginia's New River Gorge Region, or West Virginia tourism. Included within the Fiscal Year 2021 Omnibus Appropriations Bill signed by President Trump last night (December 27th) is the New River Gorge Park and Preserve Designation Act. The act will designate the existing New River National River and over 72,000 acres of land within it as a National Park and Preserve. The New River Gorge Bridge will continue to be the centerpiece of the new New River Gorge National Park and Preserve. (Adam Prince, 2007) The river and surrounding land, which was added to the National Park System in 1978, will be our 63rd National Park. The designation preserves over 7,000 acres as a National Park. This area will not allow any hunting. The remaining 65,000 acres of the existing park will be designated as a preserve allowing hunting and fishing. The main attractions to the New River Gorge - whitewater rafting, camping, hiking, mountain bikin

Douglas Memorial Bridge; the ruins of US Route 101 and the Redwood Highway over the Klamath River

Near the village of Klamath in southern Del Norte County, California sits the ruins of Douglas Memorial Bridge which once carried US Route 101 and the Redwood Highway over the Klamath River. The Douglas Memorial Bridge was a arch concrete span which once crossed the Klamath River. The Douglas Memorial Bridge was noted for it's unique grizzly bear statues which still adorn the remains of the structure. Completed in 1926 the Douglas Memorial Bridge was the original alignment of US Route 101 ("US 101") and stood until it was destroyed by the Christmas Floods of 1964. The Douglas Memorial Bridge is named in honor of G.H. Douglas who was a Assemblyman of the First District of California. Below the Douglas Memorial Bridge can be seen during it's prime (courtesy bridgehunter ). Part 1; the history of the Douglas Memorial Bridge The history of what would become US 101/Redwood Highway begins with the approval of the 1909 First State Highway Bond Act . The First Stat

The Great PA 48 Clearance Sale

It's not often that any department of transportation sells land it purchased. They are usually in the business of acquiring land for right-of-way. But in 1982, the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation did exactly that. Offering to buyers land it purchased just 15 years earlier for the never-built Route 48 Expressway. Background: The sale was a result of the 1970s cash crunch the PennDOT experienced. Many projects were cut back, shelved, or eliminated. The 'New 48', or the North-South Parkway, which was touted for nearly 20 years as a connection from the industrial Mon Valley to the Turnpike and Monroeville was one of the casualties. In the mid-late 1960s, movement to construct the new highway began with targeting a two-mile stretch of highway from the Route 48 intersection at Lincoln Way in White Oak to US 30 in North Versailles. The plan was then to continue the highway northwards to Monroeville. Extension south across the Youghiogheny River and to PA 51 would

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