I’ve had a goal to see all the national parks so visited Channel Islands. I took a boat trip to Santa Cruz Island. The boat ride was very rough and I was glad I’d taken motion sickness meds. Many got sick. On the island, the trails are all in the sun and steep. Where two come together, you can see the ocean, but not much there. There are no benches to rest and it was hot up there. After the hike, we ate the lunch we’d brought and then there was basically nothing to do. The museum takes 5-10 minutes to see. There are no places to sit near the boat dock and we had about 2 hours with nothing to do before our boat trip back. We did see one island fox. The boat trip back was smooth and all were glad for that. Oh and there isn’t any pretty plant life on the island.

What an incredible day out! We weren't sure about doing this - getting to the boat, taking the boat, etc. But everything from start to finish was incredible - the boat trip itself was so cool, we saw tons of marine life including whales and dolphins. The island itself was gorgeous and the hike along the cliffs breathtaking. Such a worthwhile day trip!

Have wanted to see the Channel Islnds for sometime. Onlt accesable by ferry or private boat.We took the cruise to Anacapa Island out of Oxnard. About 3.5 hous long. with no land access...only the ferry ride. The water was grey and rough and the skies not that blue the day we went. We saw sea lions, dolphins, a whale, many birds, etc. on the way out. We lived in Hawaii where the water is the prettiest blue with royal blue skies. We have seen our fair share of sea animals there but many people obviously have not. Many taking photos and much excitment when one was in view.Seeing Anacapa up close from the ferry was very nice. We were glad we chose not to land as there were MANY(about 40 or so) metal stairs/steps to climb up from the ferry landing.There are of course other islands in the Park to visit and see but this was about all we could take on. The ferry ride was pretty rough.Very nice visitor center with large gift ship at the Venture landing point.Glad we went.

Gorgeous scenery, including birds and animals found only on the Islands. We did whole day excursions to both Anacapa and Santa Cruz Islands, via Island Packers. (Excellent company, by the way.) Anacapa, also called “bird island,” is heaven for birders. The cliffs are covered with pelicans, seagulls, and cormorants. Anacapa is a small island, with several easy hikes to various overlooks. A small Visitors Center tells the history of the island. A volunteer naturalist from the NPS offered a one hour guided tour of the island that featured historical info as well as trivia about the various plants and animals found there. We leaned a lot. Santa Cruz Island - totally different - has island foxes running around (so fun to see!) and the scrub jay - large cousin to the blue jay. Nowhere else in the world are these two animals found, so that is super cool. We were fortunate to have multiple sightings of both during our five mile hike to Potato Harbor, which has views that are unparalleled. In addition to the cliffs, rock formations, sea caves, and gorgeous blue/green water, there are sea lions lazing around the rocks. (Wear layers, as the boat ride is very chilly, but it warms up quickly on the islands.)

All National Parks are special with incredible scenery and amazing wildlife, but there is no other park that does both so balanced in both marine and terrestrial settings as Channel Islands National Park (CINP). CINP has incredible breathtaking scenery as you stand on beautiful cliffs overlooking the Pacific Ocean. However, CINP also has incredible and unique wildlife sightings and experiences.With that said CINP has its challenges like hard to reach, no food, high seas and the day we visited incredible wind and mud. However, what you will see and do here will make those challenges fade away so that all you will remember is how amazing this place is.We visited on a Saturday in late March, taking the 8:00 Island Packers boat out with a 4:00 return. It is tough to put in words and some of it you will simply see in the pictures but even they will not do it justice. The ride out was amazing as the rain ended and the skies started to clear. We had the most incredible experience following a pod of Humpback whales. When we stopped, we were swarmed by sea lions and dolphins. Additionally, we saw a number of seabirds along the way.With limited time, we were only able to visit Santa Cruz. However, on the boat trip we got great views of Anacapa Island, even seeing Arch Rock. While I am sure every island is amazing, if you are limited to one, Anacapa seems very limited, especially when you can really only visit the east end. On Santa Cruz, we spent the morning hiking a loop through the campground to Potato Harbor and then returning along the cliffs. The hike was incredible, one of my favorites. While we missed the Island Fox, we did see the Island Scrub Jay, found only on Santa Cruz. Hiking in the hills was joyous seeing the verdant hillsides of flowers and grasses come alive in the wind. While great, the scenery only got more amazing as we reach the cliffs and then Potato Harbor, truly incredible when framed by the west end of the island in the background. The hike back was timeless as I was so focused on how beautiful the views were all the way to the coastal mountains of the mainland. We finished both in time and at the picnic tables in the campground for our PB&J packed lunch. After lunch we walked a short distance to the kayak outfitters station to gear up for our afternoon paddle which I thought might get cancelled. Looking back, I may should have heeded the guides suggestion to cancel due to the waves, but I wanted to see the island from the water. I will say I'm glad I went when it was over but the waves in the open water were challenging if not dangerous, wind gust were over 30 mph. When we made it back into the coves under Cavern Point and could hold on to the kelp it was easy and incredible. We got to go in two caves, the first was a large one that fit nearly our entire group while the second was a snug solo trip through a cave call In & Out Burger. While there, we were treated to two seals coming very close to our kayaks to check us out. The return downwind was easy and fast.We had just enough time to change, relax and reflect on the day and then return on the 4:00 ferry which was an adventure starting in 4' seas at Santa Cruz and ending in 10+' seas near Ventura Harbor. All in all, it was an amazing experience with great scenery and incredible wildlife experiences. I cannot recommend CINP more. However, you may want to go on a day where the winds are under 30 mph.