The sleepy island across the sea provides a perfect antidote to the lockdown blues for Nick Stark
It’s no secret that for many people the toughest part of the Covid-19 pandemic is social isolation. We humans are social animals and being stuck within the same four walls for weeks at a time – no matter how large and cohesive a family you may have – is incredibly challenging.
I’ve been a recreational sailor for almost fifteen years and an avid racer for eight – I was lucky enough to spend almost every weekend on the River Thames as a boy so a love of being on the water was sparked and nurtured at a very early age and has stayed with me even – or especially – as I edge close to retirement age.
For me sailing serves multiple purposes – relaxation, exercise, fresh air and socializing with like-minded folks. And we are lucky enough in Southern California to have a year-round season with at least ten months of an active racing calendar. This year of course almost all races have been cancelled, not just because of the dangers of contracting the virus on the boat, but because of the obligatory after party at the yacht club. That’s been hard on a lot of us.
To some folks this may all sound like a classic gripe of white privilege and of course I am primarily thankful that I have not contracted the virus and that my main concerns are how quickly I can get sailing again, rather than fighting for breath in a hospital bed with a ventilator stuck down my throat. But we all process our frustration and anxiety differently and for me there was no better medicine than getting over to Catalina Island three times this month with friends for long weekends.
Since Catalina is entirely dependent on tourism revenue they have been eager to open but have had to balance that with concern about spreading the virus in a confined area with limited resources. The result is that they didn’t open to visitors at all until May, and then they did only in a very limited way. My favorite spot on the island is The Isthmus, also called Two Harbors – the pinched bottleneck towards the island’s west end where you can walk from one side of the island to the other in a matter of minutes. At the Isthmus there are really only five amenities. The bathrooms, the showers, the Harbor Reef restaurant/bar, a coffee shop and a small shop. On my first visit the Harbor Reef was closed, but the single shop and coffee shop were open to visitors provided they wore masks and practiced social distancing.
If you’ve never visited Catalina you may not know that a trip over there seems to transport you to the California of a bygone era. Once you get away from the busy main port of Avalon with its ubiqitous golf carts and hillside condos, it’s like going back in time to California of 100 years ago. If, like me, you avoid Avalon at all costs and stick to the Isthmus, the transition is even quicker.
My first visit at the end of June was aboard Beauty, a 42-foot sailboat with four other sailors. We picked up a mooring ($140 for three nights) and spent three fabulous days snorkeling and kayaking in the crystal clear (but cool) water and hiking on the island. The mooring field was perhaps 5% full. Most folks were not quite ready to chance a visit, which worked out great for us. We could dinghy over to the dinghy dock without fighting for space, we could hike deserted trails boasting fabulous views, and we could enjoy cocktails and dinner in the cockpit without disturbance from the generators, boom boxes and raised voices which can sometimes disturb the harmony of the place. Now don’t get me wrong, the Isthmus is a sleepy backwater most weekends. This year it’s just that bit sleepier.
Our second and visit third was on Macondo, a 48 foot Beneateau on which I regularly race. A crew of six of us enjoyed much the same routine – leave LA on Friday at noon, arrive about 5pm. Pick up a mooring, inflate the dinghy and visit the island for a quick hike before heading back to the boat for drinks and dinner. Watching the stars and moon come out over a classic California landscape while on the horizon spying the distant glow from Long Beach and Palos Verdes is a memorable experience. Plus there’s nothing quite like falling asleep to the gentle rocking of a sailboat and waking early to see dawn break over a glassy sea. The arid island cliffs rise sharply all around the harbor, covered in scrub and cactus, and if you’re lucky, you might spy a bison, a legacy from a Western filmed here back in the golden days of Hollywood.
One feature of the island of which I was not aware is the disc-golf course just inland from the harbor. It’s essentially golf played with a Frisbee instead of a ball where the ‘holes’ are metal stands with baskets and chains to help snare the flying discs. Each hole has a par and participants typically get three differently shaped Frisbees, each of which flies differently, representing a driver, an iron and a putter. Apart from the fun and the exercise, the course also boasts fabulous views across to the Isthmus’s ‘other harbor’ – Cat Harbor on the backside of the island, a fabulously secure haven offering year-round shelter for boats no matter what the wind is doing.
We usually left for home around noon on Sunday, casting off and heading regretfully – but divinely relaxed – back across the channel to arrive at Marina del Rey in the early evening. But even if you don’t have access to a boat, there are ways to access the island. The Catalina Express ferry offers a regular schedule to both Avalon and the Isthmus and there are plenty of accommodation options at Avalon. At the Isthmus, you’ll most likely be limited to the waterside campground, but hey, it’s cheap and you can’t beat the view. And next to the public toilets you can find public showers at $2 for three minutes, which are a welcome choice if you want to wash the dust – or seawater residue – off your body.
If you are feeling adventurous you can kayak up (or down) the coast to some stunning caves and snorkeling spots. The clarity of the water and the amount of marine life it contains is truly astonishing. And for hikers, the island boasts a myriad of hikes, long and short, but most boasting jaw-dropping views as far as distant San Clemente island, which lies to the south west.
At time of writing the main restaurant at the Isthmus, the Harbor Reef was open, subject to social distancing, but given the recent spike in Coronavirus cases, that could change at any moment.
For more information, accommodation and reservations, go to www.visitcatalinaisland.com
