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harris-point
San Miguel Island is the most westerly of California's northern Channel Islands, a dolphin-shaped wedge that sits 60 miles from Ventura harbor. Mostly a plateau, San Miguel is nearly impossible to see from the mainland except on a very clear day. But here, behind the mist, a seldom-visited, harsh and enchanting world awaits.
The Pacific Ocean unleashes the brunt of its bad weather on the 8-mile long smear of land: Unrelenting winds and thick, wet fog not only hide the island from mainland eyes, but make it a tough place to get to. The seas separating San Miguel from the mainland can be some of the roughest in the northern hemisphere. Once ashore, tents that aren't tied down have been known to blow away, and when the wind is really whipping up, even staying on the narrow trails takes some effort. When the wind is calmer, the fog settles in, pressing its dewy fingerprints into the island's mounds and canyons.
San Miguel is undeniably magical. Long after you've left, its remote and rugged hand tugs you back to its beautiful, uninhabited shores. From afar, the wailing winds winnow to a teasing whisper, promising exquisite desolation and splendid solitude.
As long as 11,000 years ago, the island was a home to California's native Chumash, a people whose presence still lingers, in the form of crushed sea shells and bony trash piles. More recently, the nearly tree-free mesa found itself hosting hunters, sheep ranchers, and the U.S. Navy, before becoming a national park in 1980.
Many who've lived on the island didn't want to leave. In 1942, resident sheep rancher Herbert Lester -- the self-proclaimed "King of San Miguel" is said to have taken his own life when faced with eviction by the Navy, in part because he couldn't imagine living anywhere else.
Now, the island is a temporary home for researchers and the park rangers who staff a solar and wind-powered ranger station. Each year, fewer than 200 campers arrive for a weekend stay at the small and tough-to-reach campground.
Here, in photos, are some scenes from San Miguel.
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