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 viewing. In the winter, as many as 50,000 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.

Viewing the Pinnipeds at Point Bennet.


The Impacts of El Nino on Pinnipeds in the California Channel Islands