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San Miguel Island
San Miguel
Island (9,325 acres). Fifty-five miles
off the coast from Ventura, San Miguel Island is the farthest west
of the Channel Islands. Because of its location in the open ocean,
it is subject to high winds and lots of fog. The island is a
tableland of lush grasses and wildflowers, with 27 miles of
jagged, rocky coastline dotted with sandy white beaches. The
westernmost of these beaches, Point Bennett, is the only place in
the world where up to six different species of pinnipeds (seals
and sea lions) can be found.
What to see: San Miguel is famous worldwide for its
pinniped show. In the winter, as many as 20,000 individual seals
and sea lions can be seen at one time on Point Bennett, where they
breed and where the pups are born. Other wildlife includes the
island fox, a species that is found only on the Channel Islands.
Spring and summer the skies are filled with sea and land birds.
Fossil bones of the Pleistocene pygmy mammoth, archeological sites
of human habitation more than 10,000 years old, and a memorial to
Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo, the European discoverer of California,
are all found on the island. A geologic feature called the caliche
forest attracts many people. This ghost forest was formed by
caliche sand castings of plant roots and trunks. Today the plants
are long gone, leaving behind the eerie stone replicas. San Miguel
wildflowers are spectacular, due to the abundance of fog and
moisture.
What to do: Boating, snorkeling, SCUBA diving, swimming,
kayaking, hiking,
camping, wildlife watching, naturalist-led hiking, and
discovering wildflowers are favorite activities on San Miguel.
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