One of the nearest getaways for Angelenos for a few days of peace and quiet is Catalina Island.
Surprisingly enough most Angelenos I know have never been there. They know about it, they always wanted to go there, but never got around to it. Might it be because Catalina is too easy to reach? After all, it takes only 45 minutes to drive to San Pedro (provided the hellhole on the 110, aka Downtown does not live up to its name) plus a bit more than one hour on a ferry or 15 minutes in a helicopter to get there. One can not milk that for stories of woe and strife getting to the desired destination. Unless the hellhole lives up to its name, which it does – occasionally – oh, the stories I could tell.
But I digress. Catalina Island is a small paradise some 20 miles off the coast, the largest of the Channel Islands. It is a rarity insofar as about 90 % of the island are a vast nature preserve, given over to flora and fauna. The Santa Catalina Island Conservancy does a good job here, a very, very good job. Thank you!
The best time to go and visit the island is outside of the main holiday season – until the beginning of May and after the end of September the crowds of visitors are comparatively small. During this off season even on a weekend one has the feeling to be far away from the pressures and demands of life on the mainland.
This is not a one-off moment:
It is a normal evening scene in Avalon (not during peak season, I have to admit).
Makes bracing the hellhole worthwhile, doesn’t it?