· exploring · food · national park · Channel Islands NP
In our ongoing mission to visit every national park, we did one of the ones we can’t drive into — Channel Islands National Park, off the coast of California.
We could drive to the visitor center in Ventura, California, though:
After that we stopped for lunch at a nearby place in the marina, Boatyard Pub:
Fish and chips:
Burger and fries (most excellent fries):
Good vibes:
Then we headed to Oxnard for an afternoon boat cruise into the park. Here’s an info sign:
The marina:
Our tour boat was the Vanguard:
Boarding the Vanguard:
Time to go:
Departing:
We were fortunate to see several whales; here’s a blowhole sign of one:
Whale tail:
Low-flying pelicans:
One of several oil rigs:
We also encountered a few pods of dolphins:
A couple of animated GIFs of the dolphins:
More dolphin pics:
Our guide:
Another whale encounter:
Whale GIF:
Pelicans:
The coastguard is still requiring masks, even in an outdoor situation like this, for some reason. So here’s a masked selfie:
East Anacapa Island:
Arch:
There were hundreds or thousands of birds in the air and on the island:
Lighthouse:
Arch:
Birds:
Building:
Sea lions:
