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Catalina Island right of the Cali coast

There's a whole mess of islands off the Cali coast....the Channel Islands. I've only been to Catalina once but would love to go back. I've also been to Anacapa for a diving trip. Pretty nice out there...would love to take some time off and spend a night or two at Catalina.
 
Been there about 10 times. I usually go there to fish off the shores and the 'mole' area where the Catalina Express ferry docks. Caught a bunch of bonito there.
But yeah, the water is clear as if it were the bahamas and its hard to imagine that this place is near long beach. The water is full of orange colored fish called Garabaldi. I've fished around the island too in a boat.
 
I've sailed there on a 38' Sailboat a few times. We leave from Oceanside Harbor at midnight, motor across with the main sail up trading off watches every couple hours through the night. It takes about 7 hours to travel the 40 nautical miles averaging about 6 knots. You have to cross the shipping lanes which is always interesting. Sometimes you see a cruise ship, those are easy to spot from miles off as they are lit up like a Christmas tree, it's the big container ships that have only their running lights on that are tricky. Still, we've never even come within a few miles of one.

Great thing about sailing there is you can get a mooring in the harbor for only $10/night (at least it used to cost this) so we sleep and eat on the boat. Take the dingy to shore to hit the bars, head out to the theater to do some snorkeling off the point there, head up into the hills for some hiking, there are tons of things to do.

I always enjoyed sailing around to the other side of the island though. There's hardly anyone over there except other boaters.

We would usually sail there on a Thursday night and come back the following Monday morning at around 7AM. I remember one time we cleared the shelter of Catalina island and suddenly found ourselves in 50 knot winds with 15' seas. We beat through that weather for about 3-4 hours before it calmed down to 20-30 knot winds and we could easily make 6.5 knots under sail power alone.

Good times. :thumbsup:
 
Richard Nixon used to live there. You've got to be a card carrying member of teh rich to reside there. 🙂
 
Originally posted by: Sawyer
Cali is awesome
Click to expand...

Have you ever been there? If not I would visit before labeling it "awesome".

And no ... I do not live there but I do visit a lot. I got a job offer a few years ago outside LA (and turned it down). Why did I turn it down? Because California is awesome!

Yes, it has some nice places and some not-so-nice places but spend some time there first.
 
I have been to the LA area. And I say it's awesome b/c it has it all, everything from ocean/beaches, to deserts and mountains with snow.
 
Originally posted by: dud
Originally posted by: Sawyer
Cali is awesome
Click to expand...

Have you ever been there? If not I would visit before labeling it "awesome".

And no ... I do not live there but I do visit a lot. I got a job offer a few years ago outside LA (and turned it down). Why did I turn it down? Because California is awesome!

Yes, it has some nice places and some not-so-nice places but spend some time there first.
Click to expand...

I've lived in SoCal for 19 years now.

Cali is awesome. 😎
 
Lol, during WWII my Dad was "billeted" in a movie star's home perched on a cliff on Catalina Island. The movie stars were "doing their part" for the war effort.

He said it was hard to pay for his own drink in the bars in the evening if he lingered on the mainland.

Each day he arose and took a ferry (iirc) to the mainland to his day job teaching swabbies (Navy) naval engineering, and each day he went into his commander's office and begged/demanded to be posted to combat duty in the South Pacific.

But he was more valuable teaching others his knowledge as he was a grad of the New York State Maritime Academy.

This went on for one entire year, at which time his boss finally relented and off to combat he went.

My Dad saw his sister ship, a fleet oiler, blown up by a kamikaze sub that snuck into Ulithi lagoon in 1944, where virtually the entire Pacific fleet was harbored.

My Dad set foot on Japanese soil before the armistice was signed, taking the still functioning light rail from Yokohama Naval Base into Tokyo.

Somewhere, I have TINY "Liberty" pics my of my Dad with a group of other officers in Tokyo, all over 6 foot and clean and Navy smart with a comically cliche 5'4" Japaneese guide in a tattered uni, and also a pic he took of row after row of unfinished midget kamikaze submarines at the base.
 
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