Santa Rosa Island Service, Channel Islands National Park, California
Sierra Club Outings Trip | Service/Volunteer
Highlights
- Enjoy the channel crossing to Santa Rosa Island
- Help recover ability to capture and use fog
- Hike spectacular trails, beachcomb, and explore
Includes
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Ocean ferry ride to/from Santa Rosa Island from Ventura
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Lodge accommodations and meals
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Education in the ecology of the island Cloud Forest
Overview
The Trip
We will work to restore the terrain of Santa Rosa Island while simultaneously enjoying its wondrous beauty. At 84 square miles, Santa Rosa is the second largest of the Channel Islands. Sheer cliffs on the southern shore are backed by high mountains, while deeply cut canyons give way to gentle rolling hills and marine terraces. Grasslands blanket about 85 percent of the island, but groves of island oak, scrub oak, and ironwood are found among the canyons, as are Torrey pines and closed cone pines
The Trip
We will work to restore the terrain of Santa Rosa Island while simultaneously enjoying its wondrous beauty. At 84 square miles, Santa Rosa is the second largest of the Channel Islands. Sheer cliffs on the southern shore are backed by high mountains, while deeply cut canyons give way to gentle rolling hills and marine terraces. Grasslands blanket about 85 percent of the island, but groves of island oak, scrub oak, and ironwood are found among the canyons, as are Torrey pines and closed cone pines.
There are over 195 bird species and native mammals, including the island fox, deer mouse, and spotted skunk. Harbor seals may be seen in the island’s rocky tide pools, and juvenile elephant seals lie on the sandy shoreline. Chumash Indians lived on Santa Rosa Island 8,000 years ago, and the island has over 160 documented archaeological sites. The trip leader will be sending you more detailed information about the Channel Islands in pre-trip mailings and email letters.
In 1980, Congress established the Channel Islands as our 40th national park, designating the ocean six miles out around each island as a National Marine Sanctuary. Channel Islands National Park is part of UNESCO’s Man and the Biosphere Program to conserve genetic diversity and an environmental baseline for research and monitoring throughout the world. As a result, fisheries are being restored and otters and whales are returning to the area. The Sierra Club has supported these to help restore Santa Rosa Island to its natural state with service trips to the Channel Islands for the past two decades.
A beautiful destination itself, the Channel Islands National Park is conveniently situated just off the coast near even more of California’s charms such as Santa Barbara, Ventura and Oxnard, all offering dining and recreation opportunities before and after the work week.
The Project
We will be working on the Cloud Forest Restoration project, already several years in process. 150+ years of recently-ended ranching changed island vegetation from mostly woodland/scrubland that could intercept fog water and self-irrigate, to mostly non-native grasses and bare ground that has lost the capacity to capture fog water and hold it in the soil. Our project is working in remnant woodland on the top of the island to reduce erosion, accumulate soil, and establish vegetation to serve as a nucleus for future island-wide vegetation recovery. The exact tasks may include installing erosion control materials, working with a field irrigation system, installing fog water collection structures, planting nursery grown plants in the field, and working in the nursery.
Itinerary
Day 1: We’ll meet at the dock in Ventura at 7:00 a.m. for our 8:00 a.m. departure. Please plan to stay somewhere near Ventura the evening before the trip starts. After we take the ferry to Santa Rosa Island, we’ll move our food and belongings from the dock and into our rooms in the Research Station. We’ll get settled and have lunch. Later, we’ll have an orientation session with the station manager and our National Parks representative
Day 1: We’ll meet at the dock in Ventura at 7:00 a.m. for our 8:00 a.m. departure. Please plan to stay somewhere near Ventura the evening before the trip starts. After we take the ferry to Santa Rosa Island, we’ll move our food and belongings from the dock and into our rooms in the Research Station. We’ll get settled and have lunch. Later, we’ll have an orientation session with the station manager and our National Parks representative.
Days 2-6: We’ll work four days and have one free-day to hike the many trails or visit the beaches or possibly some of the archeological sites on our beautiful island. There will be a choice of free-day activities.
Our daily itinerary is always subject to the needs of our park hosts and the weather, but typically we work four six to eight-hour days and have one full “off” day during the week to enjoy the park or relax in our spectacular surroundings. Our work days will typically begin around 7 a.m. for breakfast and for making/packing our lunches. On some of those days, we will travel by vehicle approximately 20-30 minutes to our work site, where we may then have a short walk, carrying our packs and tools. For participants who are “off” cook duty—we will rotate turns helping the cook—there usually is time/daylight for relaxing and exploring at the end of the work day.
Day 7: We will pack up our belongings, clean up our area at the Research Station, and return to Ventura on the 3:00 p.m. ferry, docking at about 5:30 p.m.
Logistics
Getting There
This trip price includes the $104-$114 fare for ferry boat transportation between Ventura (on the California mainland) and Santa Rosa Island. Our round-trip ferry transportation will be via Island Packers. The trip leader will make all of these arrangements and reservations. The boat trip will take between two and three hours each way. Trip members prone to sea-sickness should come prepared with their own medication.
While Island Packers permits each passenger to carry up to three items, each weighing no more than 45 pounds, this allotment includes the food that our cook will be bringing. Please limit your personal baggage to two items. It will be easier to get your belongings on and off the ferry if you pack them into a backpack. Roller bags do not work well on the boat
Getting There
This trip price includes the $104-$114 fare for ferry boat transportation between Ventura (on the California mainland) and Santa Rosa Island. Our round-trip ferry transportation will be via Island Packers. The trip leader will make all of these arrangements and reservations. The boat trip will take between two and three hours each way. Trip members prone to sea-sickness should come prepared with their own medication.
While Island Packers permits each passenger to carry up to three items, each weighing no more than 45 pounds, this allotment includes the food that our cook will be bringing. Please limit your personal baggage to two items. It will be easier to get your belongings on and off the ferry if you pack them into a backpack. Roller bags do not work well on the boat. Our park hosts will transport our baggage and food by truck from the dock to the lodging.
More details on how to get to Ventura and the dock will be sent to you once you have been accepted on the trip. You can fly into Los Angeles and then either take public transportation to Ventura or rent a car. There is also an airport in nearby Oxnard, and Amtrak has a stop in Ventura. Each participant will be responsible for getting to the Island Packers ferry dock. The leader will help everyone share travel plans to promote carpooling.
Please do not make non-refundable travel arrangements until notified to do so by the trip leader.
Accommodations and Food
Our lodging on Santa Rosa Island will be bunk-style sleeping accommodations in the California State University, Channel Islands Research Station. The Research Station is a center that initiates, facilitates, and supports research, education, and outreach programs that include several disciplines. The station works in partnership with the U.S. National Park Service and the California State University Channel Islands.
This trip has been designated an all-vegetarian trip for 2017. The food will be planned and prepared by our trip cook, a registered dietitian, along with participant kitchen helpers. The protein-rich, nutritious, and imaginative meals and snacks will be suited to the work project and participants’ needs and preferences. Within our budget, we strive to choose food options that are organic and produce the minimum amount of waste.
Before applying for the trip, folks with food allergies, dietary restrictions, and/or strong preferences must contact the leader and cook to see if reasonable accommodations are possible within the limits of commissary provisions.
Trip Difficulty
The work will be of moderate difficulty; participants should be physically fit and mentally able to take direction from our trip ecologists. Experience in terrain restoration and replanting could be useful but is not required. Some of the work sites may be steeply graded. We will all work at our own pace, and no one should feel obliged to work beyond his or her comfort level. Note that the weather in the Channel Islands can change quickly, and all participants should plan for fog, rain, sun and varying temperatures (and blustery winds on the windward side) throughout the week. Layers are always in order.
Equipment and Clothing
The Park will provide the tools and work gloves necessary for our project, but you will need sturdy boots and water-proof outerwear to ward off wind, fog, mist, rain, and damp ground. Bring a small, water-resistant backpack or day pack suitable for carrying your lunch, water bottles, extra clothing layers, camera, binoculars, and other personal items.
For packing your lunch, you will need to bring eating utensils, a water bottle or canteen, and at least one container with a tight-fitting lid for lunch. We will have a first-aid kit for emergencies, but you should bring moleskin, Band-Aids, aspirin, and any personal medications you require.
The leader will provide a complete list of equipment to registered participants.
References
Websites:
- Channel Islands National Park: www.nps.gov/chis/index.htm
- Island Packers (Santa Rosa Island ferry boat service): islandpackers.com/santa-rosa-island-2/
- Ventura: Channel Island Views and Laid-Back Shores, California Coastal Trail: www.kcet.org/video/coastaltrail/#v84237
Books:
- Eaton, Margaret, Diary of a Sea Captain’s Wife, Tales of Santa Cruz Island. 1980.
- Insiders’ Guide to Santa Barbara: Including Channel Islands National Park, 4th Edition.
- National Geographic Guide to National Parks of the United States, 7th Edition.
Conservation
The Sierra Club is an environmentally focused organization. We are concerned about conservation and sustainability of resources, both locally and globally. Our work is accomplished by volunteers who are supported by office staff, and encourages grassroots involvement. Our outings seek to empower participants toward greater understanding, advocacy, and participation in the goals of the club.
Our work, information, and evening talks will pertain to helping to restore Santa Rosa Island to its natural state and conserving this area so that future wildlife and human generations may continue to enjoy the maritime habitat. You will learn about our continuing efforts, and those of other groups, to restore Santa Rosa Island to its natural state. Removing invasive plant species continues to be an economic problem at the local, state, and national level, and we will contribute to those efforts on this trip.
Staff
Important Notes
- Carbon Offsets
- Carpooling
- Electronic Billing and Forms
- Electronic Devices
- Equipment
- Essential Eligibility Criteria
- How to Apply for a Trip
- Leader Gratuities
- Medical Issues
- Non-discrimination Statement
- Participant Agreement
- Seller of Travel Disclosure
- Single Supplements
- Terms and Conditions
- Travel Insurance
- Trip Feedback
- Trip Price
- Wilderness Manners