04 June 2011

Potato Bay - Santa Cruz Island

The banks of Potato Bay rise steeply out of the Pacific on the northern side of Santa Cruz island. This breathtaking inlet instills the awe of nature in ones being when view from the bluffs above, and to a weary ship at sea it beckons protection from the wind and choppy ocean water


Potato Harbor - Photo Credit: Gneiss_kitty 

To get to the cove we left camp and climbed the eastern side of scorpion canyon (opposite side as yesterdays hike) and walked along the bluffs overlooking the ocean with stunning views of Anacapa island. 


Ascent out of Scorpion Canyon shown in red




Scorpion Canyon during our ascent




The trail



Anacapa Island peering at us through the fog





Entire Route



View from the bluffs



Not the softest beach

The bluffs plunged directly into the ocean mostly, but occasional a rocky beach could be spotted. The terrain is primarily dry grassland with some small shrubbery. The island originally had nearly impenetrable vegetation, but the sheep brought in by ranchers profoundly altered the island's vegetation.


A look inland






Sheer bluffs along potato bay (note our path in upper left)



Potato Bay

The bay reminded me of a tropic island. The water was almost clear blue, and the air was fresh and warm. This picture below demonstrates how big the island is... notice the other side of Santa Cruz island in the background.



(That's still Santa Cruz Island in the distant background)




Unforgiving banks, harsh vegetation



Life is sweet on the Jenny May





On the walk back




Fields of yellow


Speed Elevation Profile

Download the KML file to explore further in Google Earth