I do not remember how I learned about the Trans-Catalina Trail (TCT). I recall reading a blog about someone arriving late to the campsite, and there were bison—something along those lines. Also, someone else (maybe on Reddit or one of those aggregate top lists) mentioned that it was an easy long-distance trail. There were many reasons, but mostly because the Conservancy, the good folks who own the land, don’t want hikers (or anyone) to pollute it.
1) Potable water is easily accessible, and there are plenty of clean bathrooms.
2) There’s a town (Avalon) and a smaller settlement (Two Harbors) along the 40-mile trail.
3) The official trail is only around 40 miles long.
4) No permits/lotteries are required.
5) The trail was designed to attract backpackers, and I believe it was primarily targeted at beginners.
6) There are no very scary predators, which means no bear spray is required.
7) There are fox boxes (yes) at all campsites to store food.
8) The weather is mostly pleasant (especially in November), neither too hot nor too cold, though very dry.
9) I found out later that there is literally 5G everywhere, though I’m not sure what networks people use because I couldn’t even connect in the towns. I kept my phone on airplane mode all week.
10) Rangers and tours run alongside the trail and can be called upon for help.
11) Due to the lack of canopy cover and well-marked/well-trodden trails, it’s hard to get lost.
12) Most of the trail is very well maintained.
13) It’s an island, so it’s very hard to get disoriented and lost.
14) Hunting is allowed to curb the invasive but highly controversial deer population, but you can’t just show up on the island and start shooting. You actually have to bring your gear to the island and probably answer a lot of questions/permits/briefing before getting on the boat or plane.
15) There are helicopters on the island that can be called for help (though it costs a lot).
16) Though remote, the campsites are all fully booked, and you will cross paths with other people.
I feel like that’s a ton of reasons to make any backpacking trip on the Trans-Catalina successful. And since I have nothing to prove in life anymore, I decided, as a third-life crisis, to tackle my first backpacking trip on the Trans-Catalina Trail. I tried (somewhat) to get someone else to come, but in the end, what company did I need other than my thoughts, a backpack, and a few cameras? Whatever, if I have to do a solo backpacking trip, it doesn’t sound too bad. Actually, I had planned a bunch of other camping and backpacking trips earlier in the year to prepare for this one, but all those plans were canceled due to other commitments. In fact, this trip was almost canceled too, but I decided to play the game—hold onto the reservations and cancel at the last possible minute. And guess what? Everything was freed up! So, 2024 will be the year I do the Trans-Catalina.
Speaking of Trans-Catalina, I should give some background. The Trans-Catalina Trail is a 38-mile lollipop-shaped trail on Santa Catalina Island. Catalina Island is the third largest of the eight Channel Islands of California (there’s also the group of Channel Islands just outside Normandy, France), all of which lie in the Pacific Ocean, facing the Los Angeles metropolitan area. Five of these islands are part of Channel Islands National Park, which I visited on Santa Cruz Island, the largest of the eight. The last two islands are owned by the U.S. Navy and are still actively used for various purposes, including bombardment. San Nicolas Island, one of the Navy-owned islands, also has a tragic story about a lady who lived by herself for 18 years, the last of her tribe, when the entire island was evacuated. It’s called the story of the Lone Woman of San Nicolas Island.
That brings us back to the fact that all native land in the Americas, including most of these islands, was inhabited for thousands of years. In this case, these Channel Islands were occupied by either the Chumash (on the northern islands) or the Tongva (on the southern islands). The Spanish moved all the inhabitants of these islands onto mainland California around the early 1800s (I’m going to assume Los Angeles or Ventura, but I have no clue) and used the land for ranching and fishing.
Just like the Galápagos, anytime there are cool islands just offshore, you can bet they have cool animals. Just like how the TCT is easy for backpackers, evolution was easy too. The apex predators on these islands are island foxes, so called because they have no reason to be big. They branched off from the “normal” foxes, becoming much smaller and having zero fear of anything else. Apparently, there were also dwarf mammoth fossils found on the island, 10% the size of the real ones. Isn’t that just a dog? Anyway, they went extinct around the time human remains were found on the island, which is also the earliest dated adult in North America. The ocean floor between the Channel Islands and LA is also very shallow, which I’m no biologist, but I’m assuming that means lots of seaweed and food, so there are lots of dolphins and whales. In fact, one of the biggest things to do on these islands is to snorkel, dive, jet ski, whale watch, or kayak—basically anything to do with the ocean, not hiking. To be fair, I don’t know what was on these islands before humans, but the foxes were possibly brought over by Native American tribes, probably because they were sacred to the tribes. As a result, these islands were not completely wild, but they’re much less disturbed compared to post-Spanish contact, when sea otters were hunted to extinction (I think?) and farm (or fun) animals like cows, pigs, cats, dogs, and definitely rats were introduced. I thought it was a miracle these tiny foxes (and many other endemic animals) survived.
For a while, the only human activities on Catalina Island were ranching. Around the turn of the 20th century, George Shatto decided to try to make a resort town for nearby LA folks to escape to. Heck, the current slogan for Avalon (the only town/city on Catalina Island) is still “California’s Island Escape™.” I did a quick Google search, and it seems like the Channel Islands are the largest islands on the Pacific Coast until you get to the San Juans in Seattle. George, like most great American businessmen, defaulted on his loan, so the town is now owned by James Lick, the guy who was using Catalina for ranching. The sons of Phineas Banning (important later) bought the island from James, established the Catalina Island Company, and tried to revive the island escape dream. Side note: Phineas Banning is from Wilmington, Delaware, and was known as the father of the Port of LA—guess we learn about another person from the First State! Anyway, the sons were able to grow Avalon, but a fire destroyed half the town and WWI made it unprofitable, so they had to sell shares to stay afloat. Usually, that means extremely wealthy people will start to take control of the company, and in this case, our favorite chewing gum tycoon, William Wrigley Jr. William basically took over, remade Avalon, and also used it as a spring training site for the Chicago Cubs. Philip, William’s son, took over in 1932 after William died and continued building the island dream. Ada, William’s wife, was super into cacti and desert plants (many of which were endemic to Catalina/Channel Islands) and had her own cactus “garden” near Avalon. Philip probably also noticed how cool his island was, so in 1975, he deeded 90% of the island from the Catalina Island Company to the Catalina Island Conservancy. Today, there are two separate entities that run the island—the Company (the civilized part) and the Conservancy (the cool part). The Converservacy has their charter to try to keep Catalina kind of wild but not really – but from now on, I’ll refer to this as wild, even though we all know it is not really wilderness and it is controled conservation.
Okay, now you’re mostly caught up. There’s more crazy stuff that happened here, but we’ll move on. Logistically, to do the Trans-Catalina Trail, you will have to interface with the Conservancy, as they own the trail, campsites, and everything else not in Avalon. I’m not sure where their funding comes from, but they do great work in conservation, so they charge for their pristine campsites. Note, anyone without a campsite can receive a free permit to hike on the hundreds of miles of trail on Catalina Island, but it gets really difficult fast to get to most of the trailheads that are away from Avalon, or even Two Harbors. The Company has shuttle and “taxi” services that can get people in and out of Avalon, but you will be paying a premium. Kayaks can be rented, and there are rowed-in campsites on the Gulf of Catalina side (not the Pacific side), but I’m not sure about the logistics. All in all, the Trans-Catalina might be the most cost-effective way to explore the rest of the island. As mentioned earlier, there are multiple trails on the island, but the official TCT starts from Avalon and ends in Two Harbors, and that’s what I did, so that’s what I’ll refer to. There are four campsites along the trail: Hermit Gulch at mile 0 in Avalon, Black Jack at mile 11, Little Harbor at mile 18, Two Harbors at mile 26, Parsons Landing at mile 32, and Two Harbors again at mile 38. I opted to stay in a hotel in Avalon and Two Harbors and would recommend the same unless you are cost-conscious. Definitely get the campsites early—even though I came in November, which has perfect weather, it is the slow season. All the campsites were taken, yet most people did not show up. The good thing was that most of the campsites were devoid of people, but that also means it was such a waste of opportunity for those who wanted to come. The Conservancy does not recycle these no-shows as walk-ins, so book your trip starting January 1st. I know of people who had to do extra-long days to skip campsites or reroute just to complete this trail. The campsite also acts as a permit for hiking, though I was unaware of any rangers or personnel checking these permits. I did come across a police car in the middle of nowhere, which was surprising—what was she doing, was there a murder? Or is going into the middle of nowhere part of a routine patrol? So many questions.
[Also note, of course, this information is mostly valid as of November 2024. I do not care what happens after this, you can complain to either the Conservancy or the Company or any other third parties about any wrong information here. Let them get back to me. I can’t wait.]
I chose to do the 5 days, 4 nights version (basically stay at every campsite listed above) because I literally had to take a week off for this anyway, and why rush when I can take my sweet-ass time. Also, this was the way HikingGuy has it laid out, and I used most of his planning and strategy. Looking back, if you are not into backpacking but into somewhat easy trail running, you could easily complete an end-to-end run from Avalon to Two Harbors (26 miles) in a day; then the next day, you can opt to complete the other 11 miles loop in the northern section of the island from and back to Two Harbors, or even extend it to Starlight Beach. No camping required, but you will have to pay for baggage to be shipped from Avalon to Two Harbors, which I’ll tell you right now—that service is available. The other option is to do the 4 days, 3 nights option by combining day 3 and day 4 into a longer day. On paper, it looks great, because that’s only 12 miles. I can tell you now that is a terrible idea because you will have to cross the ridiculous ridge twice, and going down the ridge near mile 32 is its own challenge, so only do it if you are fit, really can’t spare 5 days, and love to sweat and swear.
Many can pull up the elevation map and look at the trail and determine for themselves if this is an easy through-hike. But many more can’t, so I’ll tell you. I’m kind of fit—as in, I can run a half marathon anytime, I did a couch-to-ridiculous 50k in 8 weeks or something, I tend to walk 20k steps when I’m on vacation, but I’ve never tried a 40-mile backpacking trip. So everything is from my point of view, and it has been since you came to this site, but I just want to remind all. The TCT is easy—I think, as a trail runner, I could probably run the entire 40 miles in 10 hours, certainly less than 12 hours. Most of the trails are rolling hills, so you might gain a few hundred feet and lose them, and there are no sheer cliffs, so there is nothing technical. Most of the trails remain rather flat, either near sea level or up on the mountain ridge. There are only four sections I can think of that are worth mentioning.
Day 1: Mile 0 to Mile 3 from Avalon. The trail has you climb up to ~1200 feet to the top of the ridge. Hard because you are fresh, but there is plenty of shade. I’ll give this 3/5 difficulty.
Day 3: Mile 18 to Mile 21 from Little Harbor. I hadn’t been climbing for a while, and then I get thrown a freaking wall. Basically, I have to climb over the ridge to get down, so it’s a slow grind. However, there are two much steeper sections, one at around mile 19 and another at mile 20, where I really wanted to throw a rock at something. The good part is I can see miles ahead, the bad news is I literally can see how far up you have to get. Sucks a lot. 4/5 difficulty.
Day 4: Mile 27.5 to Mile 29 from Two Harbors. I’m not sure if this is the best way to make a road. I’m also not sure why we have to gain all 1600 feet in 1.5 miles. I literally was doing quarter- to half-mile walks and just waiting to cool off in between the walks. There is no shade, it sucks, and it sucks. Did I mention it sucks? The view sucks too, so there are no redeeming qualities, except it sucks. The ravens would be quacking at me while flying over my head, telling me it sucks. Everything sucks, and I hadn’t even read NYTimes in 4 days. (This is you know, Nov 2024, you decide why it would suck to read the NYTimes) 5/5 difficulty.
Day 4: Mile 30 down to Parsons Landing. At this point, I’ve gotten to the highest point on the trail, and there are no significant climbs left. It is 2 miles to the campsite, and I could see it. But you know, 1600 feet down in 2 miles, if you hike, you know to pause. I’m not sure what they were doing, but the trail, and only in this portion, was made of very loose red sand/rocks. The ones that, when I step into them, my feet sink and slide. Kind of like on the beach, but at least you know how sand sinks—this is just random. Some spots sink, some don’t, and some sink more than others. And I have to go down it with 50 lbs of stuff in my bag, two cameras in my hands, and no hiking poles. A fellow hiker, Aldo, was coming up when I was going down, and he had it so much easier (going up is definitely the right call), and he thought I was insane doing what I was doing. So did another couple, Bridget and Andrew, who were going down with me. But you know, I am crazy, and I read about bringing hiking poles, and I don’t believe in them. There were portions where I had no idea how to step down, which looking back, I think I should have turned 180 and gone down that way, but I wasn’t thinking as usual. I made it down in one piece, but again, this is ridiculous. 5/5 difficulty.
Looking back, it’s easy to see why breaking the trip up into five days makes sense. Skipping the overnight stay at Two Harbors would require tackling three extremely difficult sections of the hike. Definitely doable, but why struggle so much? Isn’t life hard enough? Speaking of campsites, here’s what I’ve learned from my experience:
Black Jack: All 10 sites are fairly close together, but we were battered by wind at high elevation, so it’s important to find a spot that blocks the wind. There are no showers, two pit toilets, and at least one water spigot between campsites 8 and 10. I didn’t check out all the sites, but I recommend choosing one with a canopy or bushes to block the wind—specifically tent sites 4, 5, and 6. Sites 1, 2, and 3 might also be decent, but the others have nothing to shield from the wind. This isn’t the prettiest campsite, but it does the job
Little Harbor: I opted for a view at tent site 11, literally facing the Pacific Ocean, which includes sites 10, 11, and 12. However, there’s no canopy here. Tent sites 7, 8, and 9 are slightly further back and have good tree cover. Avoid tent sites 15 and 16—they’re up on a plateau with no views, no canopy, and likely strong winds. There are also three more tent sites at Shark Harbor (just a two-minute walk away), all on the beach, though I’m not sure about the water situation there. Little Harbor offers plenty of water, even outdoor showers where you can rinse off after a dip in the ocean. The other tent sites are far from the beach, but this is a beautiful campsite, so don’t skip it. Try to snag a good site. There are plenty of chemical toilets here.
Parson’s Landing: Some people consider this the best campsite, but I found it just okay. It’s shaded during sunset, but we were hit with extreme wind, and the sea level rises quickly here. All eight sites are similar, but sites 1, 2, and 3 are further inland, a bit quieter. Site 4 is closest to the pit toilets and lockers, while site 8 is the furthest. I chose site 7, which is a few minutes away from the bathroom. There’s no water here, so you need to pay in advance for a bundle of 2-gallon water and firewood. However, in November, many people leave behind propane tanks and extra water, so you might get some freebies.
I didn’t camp in Avalon or Two Harbors, but here’s what I did for accommodations:
Long Beach: I opted to spend day 0, or night 0, at Long Beach Hilton, which is a few minutes’ walk from the Catalina Express Ferry Terminal. It’s expensive ($200), but not much more than other hotels in the area. I liked my room, though I arrived after dark, repacked my bag, and went straight to bed. I didn’t check out other amenities. There’s a parking garage at the ferry terminal, but I returned my rental car at the airport and took an Uber back. My driver was very confused by the lack of luggage from the airport.
Two Harbors: There are two places to stay, but I recommend Banning House. It was built by the middle Banning son, who loved this area more than Avalon. The mansion is essentially a fully staffed resort. You can take a towel and swim in either harbor—the Santa Catalina or Pacific Ocean, as Two Harbors is an isthmus—though I heard the Pacific side has more trash and sewage. The view over Two Harbors is incredible, and there’s plenty of space to spread out. The indoor and outdoor dining areas are lovely, and a beautiful wooden hall with a working fireplace. It’s expensive ($270), but they provide concierge service, even offering free rides into Two Harbors. I chose to walk those few hundred feet, but it’s quite a climb on the way back. There’s complimentary cheese and wine at 1600, and a huge breakfast spread. Since there are only a few rooms, and most guests are adventure-seekers, you’re likely to meet interesting people here.
Avalon: Long story short, I ended up staying an extra night in Avalon. There are plenty of hotels and Airbnbs for much less than Long Beach, especially during the off-season, but I got a special rate at the Hotel Atwater, so I have an extremely rose tinted glasses on, so much so that the review for this hotel should not be taken seriously. Although, you shouldn’t have taken anything I’ve said seriously. And take even less seriousness during this portion. The hotel is modern and gorgeous — Wrigley the gum king built it and named it after his daughter-in-law. My cut throat discount rate still included two splits of sparkling wine, $20 credits at fancy restaurants I didn’t visit, and other perks. If you have the cash, this place is right in the middle of downtown Avalon, which is small and walkable. I loved it, but I’d be happy staying elsewhere for a bit less.
Speaking of that, depending on the seasons, the ferries may not run as frequently or daily, especially to/from Two Harbors, the terminus of the TCT. I suggest planning your ferry schedule first, then working backwards. I planned to take the morning ferry from Two Harbors to San Pedro (next to Long Beach), so I aimed for a Friday finish. That meant I had to be in Avalon by Monday morning, so I took the 0600 ferry from Long Beach. Here’s something I wish I had known: e-tickets are all you need to board. Unlike Channel Islands National Park, there’s no need to separate gas canisters or lithium batteries. You just need to show up when the boats are boarding, which is, DO NOT QUOTE ME, 20 minutes before departure. The ferries seem to depart on time, but it’s more like a bus stop—your ticket is checked when you board, so no need to arrive 45 minutes early like I did on Day 1, waking up at 0400 even though I was staying a few hundred feet away. Similarly, when leaving, just be there 20 minutes before departure from Avalon or Two Harbors. In Long Beach, the ferry terminal is warm and cozy with restrooms; at Avalon, I was waiting at a sheltered but open air pier with few chairs; and at Two Harbor, the line starts on the pier, or I guess, chill at the restaurant right across the pier. Basically, there is no reason to be there very early. Ferry rides are about an hour each way, with no wildlife commentary. The boats are huge, with food service onboard, though I didn’t use it. There’s also a VIP buffet upstairs, which I didn’t check out. Ferries will be canceled if the weather is severe — more on that later.
Avalon has two laundromats across from each other—one older, accepting only coins, and the other uses credit cards. A small washer is $5, and $0.25 for a few minutes of drying, so expect to spend about $6.50. Two Harbors, ironically, is much cheaper. There is only one laundromat connected to the only public bathroom dead smack on the tiny strip of downtown, or whatever people call it. Square? Can you call it a square if it is not a square and there is no fountain and nobody sits around it and the main attraction is the restaurant? Anyway, it is way cheaper to use do laundry here – $2 for wash and $1.50 for dry.
This difference is also clear in the shops. There is a Von in Avalon (like Acme/Safeway/Albertson’s), but you will be paying for island prices for everything, though coupons do work, and they have everything most residents need and want. At Two Harbors, the General Store (0800 – 1700 daily) is the typical grocery shop in all National Parks, but their prices are comparable to REI and they have everything. They also carry the only TCT related souvenirs, not even the Conservancy HQ in Avalon carries them. Freeze dried camping related food, or food in general, can be refilled midway through the hike, so there is not a need to carry food all the way from the REI at Long Beach (talking to past me here). I did not pay too much attention to the Von in Avalon, but I will be surprise if they don’t have camping related equipment. There is also a service to pay ahead for food and equipment to be shipped to Two Harbors, which means even less things to pack from Avalon.
Food wise, the prices are ridiculous at Two Harbors and Avalon, but at least the food at Two Harbors is delicious, while Avalon is surely a tourist trap. If I were to plan this trip again, I will recommend eating Day 3 Lunch, Day 3 Dinner, Day 4 Breakfast and Day 5 Lunch in Two Harbors. I think the lack of tourists, and that the people who are working here seemed to choose this location and are on Super Island time – extra laid back since there is no expectations from bossy customers, means they try harder on the food. So yeah, I would pay the premium in Two Harbors. Not so much at Avalon. I talked to people who paid $10 for Starbucks at Avalon – it is not even real Starbucks, but part of an Ice Cream shop which did not even bother to open at night when the business is slow. I do not know what they othered, but when L.A. residents complained about the price of their Starbucks, it is not a good look.
This was my first multi-day wilderness backpack trip, so I have no idea what I needed. I did know I got enough, way more than bare minimum, but here is a summary.
Main gear was around 22lbs, this was measured at the airport twice, since I couldn’t have carry on this bag.
80 Liter Jean Pierre Backpack. I am not sure if this is even a real brand, but it worked;
REI Co-op Half Dome SL2+ No reason to bring such a big tent, but it is the only one I have, and I could cramp it in. I did have to split out the fly and load it at the bottom of the pack. I have seen couples share this huge tent;
Nemo Disco Down: It does get cold, like the 50s, and lower with windchill, and I was extremely comfortable with this down sleeping bag. It also can be cramped down, though it is not particularly good for down;
Cocoon Pillow: It is light, it worked. I had half decent sleeps on these previously, but it was excellent on this trip;
Klymit Static V sleeping pad: It is also exceptionally light, and I did not like it previously. But on this trip, this was amazing. I’m sure I can upgrade from this, but these don’t last that long anyway, I’ll probably wear this one out;
Three sets of clothes: unnecessary, but I rather sleep in clean clothes every day;
Pair of sandals;
Survival kits: Not needed, but they are light and a peace of mind;
Quick dried towels: Did not use because just didn’t get to shower in the wild;
Jetboil Flash: Most people love it; some people hate it. I think this is the best travel companion around the world – as long as I can find gas cannister, I can make coffee, tea and ramen. Heck, boil eggs and vegetables. All under a minute;
Stainless Steel cup and spoon: Nothing fancy here, just find the cheapest and lightest set and bring alone. Spoon is important to eat freeze dried food.
Then my electronics, weighed around 12lbs. These are all unnecessary, and I thought hard about weight, and that my back would feel 10x better, and I shouldn’t abuse most of these non-outdoors electronics, and why make life difficult. But we made the executive decision decided to suck it up and bring 2 extremely heavy cameras, because, WHAT’S THE POINT OF SHELF QUEEN CAMERAS? Anyway, here are all the junk I brought.
Sony A6700 with Sigma 16/1.4;
Hasselblad Xpan with the 30/5.6;
7 rolls of film (Ektar and Velvia);
A Kindle; (did not bring charger though)
Two power banks, one is for the Sony;
Power brick and cables to charge;
Go Pro Hero 8 that really need to be replaced, it isn’t really working anymore;
Garmin FR 920XT, which battery last a day, so I have to charge it daily;
More camera accessories.
Food and water weighed around 15lbs but it does fluctuates and slowly decrease over the journey.
5 packs of freeze-dried meals; (and I’ll write reviews on them)
A roll of bagels; (I might be the only survivor who really want bagels in the wilderness)
Squeezable peanut butter; (on the bagel. I don’t know if this is Kosher or blasphemy. There is a “U” on it)
3 liters of water;
Nutella and Momofuku cookies;
Tea bags;
Tony’s Chocolates; (I’ll also write reviews on these)
A small water bottle for more convenience;
A small backpack that I can use for day trip.
I am probably missing other stuff not discussed yet, but these are the stuff I remember using. I did not actually weight by backpack, but I wouldn’t be surprised it was at least 40lbs at all times. It took my body two days to get used to it, then it was incredibly fun. Ibuprofen is everyone’s best friend, take it when life gets hard.
Alright, I think we are ready to go into the real trip. Next up, Trans-Catalina Trail!
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