Anchorage

Scorpion anchorage

4.0United StatesSouthern California

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Shelter: W, SW, S
Seabed: sand, rock, algae
Anchoring: Allowed

Cove with a pier on the north-east side of Santa Cruz Island, in Channel Islands National Park off Ventura, California.

Pontoon
Beach

Guide

Approach and anchoring

The anchorage shelters boats from west, south-west and south winds but stays exposed from other directions. The bottom mixes sand, rock and kelp, so anchor on a sand patch clear of the weed. The Island Packers ferry crosses from Ventura in about one hour thirty minutes.

Practical

No fuel or water at the cove. The nearest harbour services are about 17.7 miles north-east at Channel Islands Harbor in Oxnard. A campground sits a short walk up Scorpion Canyon, with pit toilets and tap water for those staying ashore.

Ashore

An island visitor centre stands at the historic Scorpion Ranch, with exhibits on the island's natural and human history. Hiking trails climb from the canyon for coastal views, and the kelp forest off the cove is a known spot for snorkelling and sea-cave kayaking. The island fox and island scrub-jay are often seen near the ranch.

History

Scorpion Ranch worked the land for sheep and cattle from the mid-nineteenth century until the 1980s. The National Park Service still maintains the ranch buildings, which now house the visitor centre.