Read this post before your visit to Channel Islands National Park and Ventura, CA.
Are you also visiting Redwoods National and State Parks on your California vacation? You might want to read Visiting Redwoods And Eureka, California before you go.
On the way from Joshua Tree, CA to Venura, CA, Stop 7 of our 14 National Parks in 5 States road trip, we passed a wind farm. I was in awe of the sight of the Whitewater Hill Wind Farm. I have never seen anything like this. None of the pictures I took even come close to capturing how crazy it looked to see so many wind turbines working side by side on a few acres of land. I put a visit to Tehachapi Pass to see the largest wind farm in the US on my bucket list after seeing this smaller one in. That's how impressed I was!
Also on our way to Ventura, we warmed up leftover hotdogs for lunch. I learned this trick from my nephew. The sun shining through the windshield warmed them up in no time! Just thought I would pass this helpful hint along.
Stop 7 was the second stop we made in California. We were here to visit Channel Islands National Park. It is off the mainland of California but we could get to it from Ventura Harbor in Ventura, Californa. We set up our trailer at Camp Comfort, a county park in Ojai, California. It was only 25 minutes from the harbor and Ventura. I only found out on the day that we got here that Char Man haunted this area and this park in particular! Why didn't I know that before I booked! It was the only thing I could think about whenever we were at the campground, especially after it got dark out!
After a restless night, we left the campground early to get to Ventura Harbor in time to board a ferry to Santa Cruz Island, the biggest of the 5 islands that make up Channel Islands National Park. We booked with Island Packers Cruises online months ahead of time.
We saw dolphins, whales (actually just the air coming out of their blowholes) and seal (just a glimpse).
It was a very fun one hour ride.
When we got off the ferry, we noticed that a small group was gathered around a volunteer from the National Park service. She was making an announcement that she would lead an informative tour on one of the hikes we wanted to take. Perfect!
One of the first things we learned from our guide was that the Island Fox lived only on the Channel Islands and that the island scrub-jay lived exclusively on Santa Cruz Island. The group was excited to see this island fox moments after hearing about it.
We stopped a couple of times during our hike up the steep hill. I think we were looking at some volcanic ash here. I'm not sure. The only thing I was concentrating on was trying to catch my breath! The guide walked at her pace which was a lot quicker than mine!
We separated from the group after we all sat down for a picnic lunch. Most of the group wandered off before us. The second half of the Cavaran Point Loop brought us to the edge of the mountain where we had incredible views of the Pacific ocean.
After our hike we sat on a bench under a tree when someone left it saying they had seen the island scrub jay. We waited quietly for a good 30 minutes. Just as we were about to give up, a couple of the birds showed up!
They posed for a few pictures before they flew away!
After our photoshoot with the island scrub jays, we headed to Smugglers Road.
This very steep road led us to Scorpion Bluff Overlook where we were able to view Scorpion Rock.
By the time we got down the hill it was time to board the ferry back to the mainland. The dolphins who were sleeping this morning came out to play this afternoon. There were so many of them and they were not afraid to get close to the ferry.
Our last full day in this area was a Sunday so we started the day attending mass. We found a small and beautiful church in downtown Ventura. Mission Basilica San Buenaventura was built in 1782 and is open to tourists when mass is not in session,
Ventura Botanical Gardens was next on our list and only a five minute drive from the church. The garden was very different from any garden we have ever been to as it was on a hillside.
I really liked the inspirational rocks scattered throughout the garden.
As we got higher up the hillside there were lookouts. We could see all the way to Ventura Beach.
It was time for lunch after we got back down the hillside so we headed back to downtown Ventura for a delicious fish sandwich (Soko) and crab cakes (me). The weather was perfect for eating outdoors.
We took a walk in downtown Ventura and window shopped after lunch. It was a great way to work off a few calories.
We also walked back to the church to take pictures of the interior.
The Ventura Pier was just a short walk from downtown.
It seemed to be a popular place for visitors and locals to take a walk, fish and relax.
We relaxed on one of the many benches that lined the pier. It was a perfect way to end our time in Ventura, CA.
Read about Stop 6 of our trip.
Have you been to Channel Islands National Park? Which island did you visit?
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