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A Favorite Vacation Spot
Santa Catalina Island A few kilometers from the jammed freeways and smoggy air of Los Angeles, Santa Catalina Island offers a tranquil getaway with beautiful beaches, historic buildings and hiking trails. By STEVE FOX To view the article in magazine format,
Please click here for the PDF File  Americans love vacations, and one of the favorite destinations for those living in Southern California is Santa Catalina Island, which attracts about a million visitors every year. Catalina, as it's commonly called, offers a quick getaway from the jammed freeways, smoggy air and nonstop pursuit of money and fame that characterizes much of Los Angeles. Reached primarily by high-speed ferryboats that run several times a day from the mainland, the island is a quiet, somewhat sleepy throwback to California as it was a half-century ago. One of eight islands sprinkled over the Pacific Ocean off the California coast, Catalina is the only one with hotels, restaurants, nightclubs, stores and recreational facilities. The others, including the five rugged and undeveloped islands that form the beautiful Channel Islands National Park, are accessible only by private boats, small planes or helicopters. Two islands are controlled by the U.S. Navy, with one off-limits to the public and used for weapons testing and training. Most of Catalina is a nature preserve open to campers and hikers by permit only. Avalon is the only town, with a population of about 3,500 that swells to more than 10,000 on summer weekends. Originally developed as a fishing camp in the 19th century, Avalon has dozens of hotels with room prices ranging from about $75 to $500 per night, as well as condominiums and cottages that can be rented by the week starting around $1,000. The town is shaped like an auditorium, with multimillion-dollar homes perched on hills that rise sharply from its center and a picturesque small boat harbor situated like an oceanfront stage. Pleasure boaters from the mainland secure their sail or power boats to underwater moorings they rent from the city and go ashore on water taxis. The peaceful town, which sparkles with lights at night, is also a popular spot for weddings and honeymoons. "It's unique," says Tim French, a businessman from Atascadero, California, who has spent the last five Thanksgiving holidays at Avalon. "The town has a character you don't find elsewhere in California. It makes you feel like you've really gotten away." Catalina became well-known across the United States during the 1920s, when a style of music called the "Big Band Sound" was broadcast by radio from the circular Casino building at one end of Avalon. A song called 26 Miles, written in 1957 by a California lifeguard (who had never been to Catalina) and referring to its distance from the mainland (it's actually 22 miles) became a huge hit and made Catalina even more popular. "It's got almost everything I like about California," says Ed Ditlefsen, who grew up in California and now lives in Twin Falls, Idaho. "There are historical buildings, beautiful beaches, hiking trails with great views-all packed into one spot. You can eat Mexican food and spend very little, or have fresh seafood and good wines at a luxurious oceanfront restaurant. Lie on the beach, shop in the little stores or take bus tours to the interior of the island. There are so many choices." Avalon is like a small village with red-tiled roofs, Spanish-style archways inlaid with colorful tiles, and a long, semicircular walkway next to the water. Golfing, camping, fishing, swimming, diving, hiking, shopping, reading and simply lying on a sandy beach are favorite activities for tourists, who generally come for stays of less than a week, according to the Catalina Chamber of Commerce. "It's sunny, quiet and restful-the perfect place near the water to decompress," says Gary Libman, a college professor who lives in the Los Angeles suburb of Altadena. "Almost anything you could want is within walking distance. It's a wonderful blend of relaxation and convenience." Catalina is 34 kilometers long and varies in width from 13 kilometers to less than a kilometer at a mid-island spot called Two Harbors, which has one store, one restaurant and one hotel. Two Harbors primarily attracts pleasure boaters, as well as campers who pitch their tents at designated areas nearby. The island is warmed with sun or partial sun an average of 267 days a year, with summertime temperatures rarely topping 26 degrees Celsius and winter lows averaging around 10 degrees. There is little rain-about 14 inches a year, all of it falling between October and April. The ocean waters surrounding the island vary in temperature from the low 20s in the summer to around 10 degrees in the winter. The sea is much clearer than California's coastal waters, making Catalina's beaches popular with swimmers and scuba divers who prowl the dense kelp forests. This vegetation rises from the ocean floor, providing cover for seals, sea bass and large numbers of bright, orange Garibaldi, which resemble giant goldfish and are California's State Marine Fish. While prices have risen on Catalina, the island remains a relative bargain. Roundtrip ferryboat fares are just over $50 per person, there are many choices of accommodation and food, and the beaches, fresh air and quaint, seaside atmosphere are free. It hasn't really changed much in the last 50 years, which is a large part of its appeal to busy Southern Californians. Steve Fox is a freelance writer, former newspaper publisher and reporter based in Ventura, California. Photo: Catalina Gold by Ruth Mayer, who uses diverse styles to paint a wide variety of subjects-from seascapes, portraits and sports to abstract and impressionistic art. Mayer has traveled across the world and painted hundreds of works, but her favorite haunt is her gallery on Catalina Island. http://www.ruthmayer.com/
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