Fellow Kayakers, Below is my Santa Barbara Island trip report, which is all about wet exits, caves, rock gardens, sea lions, and a lot more. If you would like to see photos with the text, you can go to the Santa Barbara Island trip report webpage at: http://members.aol.com/seakayakpirate/sbi.html The Santa Barbara Island Swim Team by Duane Strosaker Santa Barbara Island is the smallest of the eight Channel Islands off the coast of Southern California. The one square mile island, formed by underwater volcanic activity, is 33 NM off the mainland coast and is the most remote of the five islands in the Channel Islands National Park. The shore is lined with rocks, cliffs and sea caves. Sea lions and elephant seals breed along its rugged shores. In the spring the island terrace is covered with blooming plants. Not many people visit the island. The only residents are usually a park ranger and a few researchers. The ferry service brings visitors for only a few days once a month during the warmer half of the year. The ferry ride is 3 1/2 hours, and there is no guarantee that passengers will be dropped off or picked up due to frequent rough seas and the difficult landing platform, which the ferry has to back up against in surging waves with rocks very nearby. I hadn't been to Santa Barbara Island before, and when Jeff McNair sent me information regarding a club trip he was leading at the island, I just couldn't pass up the opportunity. I have been on a couple of Jeff's club trips in the past and always enjoyed them. He is a lot of fun to joke with, and paddling with him into rock gardens and sea caves is always an adventure. It is easy to get an idea about his type of trips by reading the disclaimer he includes with every trip information packet: "Note: This trip is for experienced sea kayakers with open ocean experience. Other than plastic kayaks may suffer severe damage in caves and near rocks. Princesses (or princes) that need to be supervised constantly should go on a commercial trip." On the morning of Friday, April 7, 2000, twelve of us sea kayakers and some other campers left Ventura Harbor on the Jeffrey Arvid from Island Packers, 805-642-1393. With calm conditions, the ride was smooth. We arrived at the island around 11:00am. Using the "bucket brigade" method, we quickly unloaded the gear and kayaks. The hike to the campground was up a steep canyon that brought us up to the terrace. By about 1:00pm everyone had set camp and was ready to go for a paddle. Launching sea kayaks at Santa Barbara Island isn't easy. There are two ways to do it. One is from the platform, which has a lower level that is about 10 feet above the water and has a ladder going down into the water. Since there is no hoist system that visitors can use, the kayaks have to be lowered from the lower level to the water by hand. The other method of launching is off a very small and somewhat steep rocky slope next to the platform. Launching this way wouldn't be too bad, except that the rocks are very sharp, and as if that isn't bad enough, these sharp rocks are covered with sharp mussels and barnacles. Also, three foot waves were washing up and down the rocks, making seal launches mandatory. With these launching methods, you had the choice of straining your muscles or scratching your kayak. Before launching, we had to get the kayaks off the upper level of the platform and down to the lower level or the rocky slope. Needless to say, whoever designed the platform didn't have kayaks in mind, which had us creating all kinds of ways to move the kayaks around. We found the best way to move the kayaks was with team work, and we were a good team. We were all in the water by 1:30pm. With overcast but calm conditions and plenty of daylight left, we decided to circumnavigate the island, which was a distance of about 6 NM. We went clockwise and headed south down the east side. Along most of the shore on this side of the island were many sea lions. In observance of federal law, we stayed at least 100 yards off the shore to avoid disturbing these marine mammals. However, when the sea lions saw us, they swam out to take a look at us. The way they were jumping and twisting in the air, it seemed like they were excited to see us. Farther south on the east side of the island, we saw elephant seals on shore. The waves on the south and southwest sides of the island were too large to let us explore any of the sea caves there. Webster Point on the northwest corner of the Santa Barbara Island finally offered us some sea caves and rock gardens we could play in. On the southwest part of the point is a beautiful and wide open through cave system with several different routes to take. Most of the sea caves were along the northwest part of the island. Jeff led us through some beautiful caves that started as long and narrow slots surging with waves and ended up in large rooms where the water was calm and we could turn our kayaks around. On prior trips when I was in caves, all I used was a headlamp, which was almost useless. When I shined the light on the walls, all I saw was a small spot. For this trip, I bought a more powerful hand held dive light with a wide angle beam and mounted it under the front bungees. Using it and the headlamp together was much more effective in the dark caves. Jeff led some of us into a particularly challenging through cave on a point near elephant seal cove. Entering the cave was easy, but about 40 yards into the cave was a sharp right turn with breaking waves and a low upside-down rock pinnacle hanging from the ceiling that allowed head and body clearance only in the trough of the waves. After this right turn was a short run for an exit. The right turn had to be carefully timed to avoid the breaking waves and low ceiling, and the spot to wait for the right time had a lot of water surging back and forth. Jeff went first and made it look easy. Next was my turn. I watched the timing for a while and wasn't sure if I wanted to try it, but when Jeff came around for a second go at it, I decided it couldn't be that bad. One of the great things about kayaking with Jeff is that I try things I normally wouldn't try. I made it through the cave twice. A few others made it through the cave also. Joseph was in the cave for a while, and we wondered what happened to him. Then he paddled out of the cave all wet and with a kayak full of water. He said he capsized and swam. He wasn't the only one to swim in that cave. After making it through the cave a couple of times, Mike went back in, and this time he capsized and swam too. When we reached the northeast part of the island, most of the others headed back to Landing Cove, while Jeff, Chip and I stayed to check out Arch Point. Of course, when we saw the arch, the first thing we wanted to do was shoot through it. However, this arch looked more like a portage than a paddle. Waves washed up into a large boulder field under the arch. I didn't even think a fish could get through there, much less a kayak. But Jeff decided to give it a try. It looked impossible, and it was, but you just have to know Jeff to understand why he was going to try. As a wave came in and washed into the boulders, Jeff paddled in, and his kayak became stuck between a boulder and the cliff as the wave washed out. The next wave or two started to wash him back out. As he dropped down about 3 feet and backwards between a boulder and the cliff, his paddle became wedged, and he dropped and lost it. Free from the boulders but still in the wave surge right next to them, Jeff yelled out for Chip or I to throw him one of our paddles so he can go back in for his. Yeah, right! We couldn't even see Jeff's paddle now. Another wave had washed it deep into the boulders. Chip was expressing my thoughts exactly when he yelled for Jeff to use the spare paddle on his front deck. Still in the wave surge next to the boulders, Jeff assembled his two piece paddle and went back into the boulders. The same exact thing happened again, including him dropping his spare paddle. For a moment the spare paddle was out of site and Jeff was hand paddling in the wave surge. Then a wave flushed the paddle out from between the boulders. Jeff hand paddled over to it and grabbed it. Not long afterwards another wave flushed his first paddle within site. Jeff paddled up into the boulders, grabbed it and washed back out safely with both of his paddles. We were all laughing afterwards. We began paddling back and decided to make a run through a slot at the tip of Arch Point. It looked safe. Waves pushed through the slot, which was about 20 feet wide and 75 feet long. One side was a rocky cliff and the other side was a long rock that was straight, or so I thought. I didn't see the big rock sticking out that reflected waves against the cliff. As I passed through, this rock reflected a wave that drove me sideways against the cliff. My bow slammed into a rock sticking out from the cliff and hung there as the current pulled my stern away from the cliff. My stern also dropped into the trough of the wave, and now my bow was hanging 4 feet up on the rock. I fell to my right side and instinctively did an extreme high brace to pop back up. Then I back paddled off the rock and got out of there. More laughs. That evening in camp was cold and windy, and with no campfires allowed on the island, the only way to take the chill off was with a little alcohol and a lot of story and joke telling. The sky was clear Saturday morning, which meant moderate winds in the morning and strong winds in the afternoon, and that was exactly what we had. We decided to circumnavigate the island again, but this time counter clockwise. Around Arch Point we were exposed to the prevailing NW winds. Wonderful large waves rolled into the island and reflected beautifully off the cliffs between Arch Point and Shag Rock. One moment the wind waves pushed the kayaks one way and then the next moment the reflected waves pushed the kayaks the opposite way, making for a tricky ride. Of course, the larger waves meant the sea caves were rougher. I decided to stay out of them, but Jeff and quite a few of the others went into some. While the others hugged the coast, I went around the outside of Shag Rock to see what was over there. As I headed back to the coast, I saw most of the group follow Jeff into a cave that went through a point just SWS of Shag Rock. There seemed like a lot of potential for a large set of waves to break at the entrance and exit of the cave, and I was impressed with so many in the group being gutsy. I decided to stay out of the cave and head around the point. Before rounding the point I saw the last two kayakers go into the cave, and as I came around, I didn't see them come out. I waited to see if they came out. Then I saw one them, Daniel, get hit by a large breaking wave, capsize and swim just outside the cave and near some large rocks. I blew my whistle to alert everyone, started paddling over to the swimmer, and wondered what happened to the other kayaker who went into the cave. I was concerned about getting close to the rocks in the large waves to tow Daniel out of there. Then I was relieved to see Mike, who was the other kayaker, come out of the cave, paddle right up to Daniel, and tow him and his swamped kayak away from the rocks. He did a great job. I prepared to help by anchoring my kayak to Jay's kayak with my tow line to prevent myself from drifting into the rocks. Then after Mike did the hard job, I did the easy job of pulling the swamped kayak over my kayak to dump the water out. Once the water was out, I positioned Daniel's kayak parallel and next to mine, and held it steady while he climbed back into the cockpit. In a sea cave at Webster Point, we had another swimmer. I was going through a rock garden off the point, so I didn't see what happened, but Catherine said a large breaking wave in the cave made her capsize and swim. Ellen and Jay helped her back into the swamped kayak, and she pumped the water out herself. At the cove near Cat Canyon, we had yet another swimmer due to some wave action over rocks. This time it was Jay, who was able to get back in his kayak by himself. At the southwest part of the island, most of the group headed around the outside of Sutil Island, which a tiny island 1/3 NM off Santa Barbara Island. Sutil Island bore the brunt of the southwest swell, so the waves were large and steep there, making for an exciting ride. At about noon, we completed the circumnavigation, and just then the strong winds developed. Our timing was good. When we reached Landing Cove this time, we finally had a system for landing the kayaks and getting them on the upper level of the platform for storage. With that system and good team work, we were able to land and store the 12 kayaks in about 20 minutes, which made us proud. Jeff summarized the day of kayaking very well when he said, "What a day!" After lunch, Jim Gabriel, Mike, Jeff and I went for hike on the 6 miles of trails around the island. Along the way, we were joined by Debbie. The hike was full of wonderful views of the island, and we took a lot of photos. With the strong wind blowing the sky clear, we were able to see the mainland 33 NM to the north and northeast, Catalina Island 22 NM to the east, San Nicolas Island 25 NM to the southwest, and Anacapa and Santa Cruz Islands 40 NM to the northwest. Depending on the wind exposure on the trail, we were either hot or cold, which varied from minute to minute and caused us to frequently put our jackets on or take them off. On both evenings, Jim cooked and shared the calico bass he caught while kayak fishing. With all of the sea lions on the island, we were surprised there were any fish left, but Jim didn't have any problem finding the fish. The cajun spice he cooked it with made it smell and taste real good. Once again we had strong, cold winds in camp Saturday evening. Some of us escaped from the cold by going to the visitor center to watch videos about the Channel Islands. With the strong winds flapping the tents loudly that night, many of us had trouble sleeping. On Sunday morning, some of the kayakers went snorkeling in Landing Cove. It was fun watching the sea lion swim right up to them and then dart away. The sea lions seemed curious about the snorkelers in the water. With strong winds and the ferry scheduled to pick us up that afternoon, only a few of us, Jeff, Ellen and I, went for a paddle. Jeff capsized and swam right in front of a bunch of us during a seal launch off the rocks next to the landing platform. Of course, we had to tease our leader while he grumbled and pumped the water out of his kayak. Jeff, Ellen and I took it easy at first and played in a few rock gardens and sea caves on the way to Arch Point. Past Arch Point we were exposed to wind and large waves. We went on around to the wave reflection zone between Arch Point and Shag Rock, and the waves were much bigger than the day before, making for good rough water practice. Jeff and Ellen went past Shag Rock, while I headed back to practice rolling at Landing Cove before we had to get on the ferry. While I was practicing rolling, sculling and bracing in Landing Cove, Jeff and Ellen came back, and to everyone's delight, there was a sea lion riding on the back deck of Jeff's boat. They said it was on Ellen's kayak at first. The sea lion jumped off Jeff's kayak and then climbed onto my front deck. It stayed there a few seconds, jumped back in the water, and then it climbed on my back deck, where it stayed a few more seconds. I was thrilled! The ranger said he never saw that happen before. Jeff and Ellen paddled south, and when they came back, they had a story to tell. They found a rocky outcrop that waves were washing over back and forth, creating 3 foot waterfalls. When Ellen said she was going to run it, Jeff was surprised, because it looked like a washing machine. She went for it, hit a rock, capsized and swam. While her kayak was in the washing machine, Jeff towed her away from the rock. After a couple of minutes, her kayak washed out. Jeff towed her back to it, and she climbed back in by herself. Because Ellen tried it, Jeff couldn't be outdone and had to try. With some careful timing, he slid right over. The ferry ride back was hell! With rough seas, spray was flying over the top of the ferry and onto the back deck, where most of the approximately 40 passengers had to sit. There was a small cabin, but not many passengers could get in there. Most of the passengers didn't have rain gear to protect them from the spray, so their clothes were soaked and they were cold. I saw a lot of teeth chattering and bodies shivering. I was so glad that I was dry and warm in my paddle jacket and rain pants. I was also so glad that I took two Dramamine to prevent sea sickness. That stuff really works! While I felt fine, I watched the passengers around me get worse and worse. I ended up playing the little game of guessing who was going to puke next, knowing that if I hadn't taken the medicine, I probably would've been puking right with them. I saw a kid who looked like he was going to puke any minute go in the cabin, which I didn't think was a good idea. Then a few minutes later, people came running out. There were at least 10 pukers, and a lot more were right on the verge of it. I was impressed with none of the kayakers puking, but then in the last 15 minutes of the trip, I saw Jeff going for the rail. Thanks, Jeff, for another great trip! *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************Received on Sun Apr 23 2000 - 22:42:00 PDT
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.4.0 : Thu Aug 21 2025 - 16:30:23 PDT