Catalina Island, Avalon to Two Harbors

[Extreme1]

CONTINUED

During the ride we went past Little Harbor. It has to be the most spectacular views there that I’ve ever seen. We ran into several backpackers that had spent 3 days getting from Avalon to Two Harbors. It took us 5 hours including the lunch stop at the airport.

 

[smorgasbord]

Which of these routes (or another route?) did you take:

 

[Dorkyman]

Only the blue route pictured goes by the airport.

The open-air tour bus does the loop, and it takes a while, I recall.

See any bison? (Technically, no such thing as a "buffalo"). I recall a story about how they were brought over to the island by Hollywood for the making of the "The Vanishing American" a hundred years ago, and after filming, no one bothered to take them back. Without any natural predators, the 14 eventually grew to 600 and clobbered the native grasses. So starting in the 80's some were shot (your Buffalo Burgers) and others were trucked to South Dakota at great expense. Nowadays they put the females on birth control.

 

[Extreme1]

Which of these routes (or another route?) did you take:
View attachment 152404

We took the route from Avalon to the airport, which was 12 miles and the halfway point to Two Harbors. When we left the airport we headed to the opposite side of the island to Little Harbor. That route isn’t showing on your map.

I bought a Catalina map, a dive map actually, off Amazon for $7. It has all the roads and hiking trails all over the island.

 

[Extreme1]

Definitely stop by the airport, Little Harbor, and Parson's Landing. If you're feeling adventurous you can try Starlight Beach (bikeable)

Little Harbor was amazing. We were too thrashed to get to Parsons Landing and especially Starlight Beach.

 

[Extreme1]

Only the blue route pictured goes by the airport.

The open-air tour bus does the loop, and it takes a while, I recall.

See any bison? (Technically, no such thing as a "buffalo"). I recall a story about how they were brought over to the island by Hollywood for the making of the "The Vanishing American" a hundred years ago, and after filming, no one bothered to take them back. Without any natural predators, the 14 eventually grew to 600 and clobbered the native grasses. So starting in the 80's some were shot (your Buffalo Burgers) and others were trucked to South Dakota at great expense. Nowadays they put the females on birth control.

We didn’t see any bison, we looked for them. I’ve got a few friends that live and work on Catalina and one was telling me about a hiker that got charged, gored and stomped by a bison about 5 weeks ago. Needless to say we didn’t go looking for them.

 

[Fyneifivi]

No, the Casino in Avalon has/had nothing to do with gambling. In the 30's it was the site for the Big Bands and an enormous dance floor. My dad as a young man worked for one of the Avalon hotels as a busboy one summer and met lots of big showbiz performers.

I myself grew up in SoCal and lived on a sailboat in my 20's in Marina del Rey (near Santa Monica). Seriously entertained being a tourbus driver in Avalon for one summer; the challenge of taking a large bus on the narrow twisty and steep road from Avalon to Two Harbors appealed to me and I almost took the offer.

My other avocation was flying. I flew from Santa Monica to Catalina Airport numerous times back then with friends in little rented Cessnas. It was great fun to sit out on the veranda in the sun, eating our Buffalo Burgers while watching some distant relatives (buffalo) grazing down the hill from us a hundred yards away. Just don't mingle with the herd, especially during mating season. Those critters are BIG and unfriendly.

Final note was that during Spring Break while going to grad school I sailed over to Avalon, tied up to one of the mooring buoys, and took the dinghy in to the pier. Walking in on the pier I saw a tall but thin guy who said "hi" as a walked by. I did a double-take and went back. It was a very emaciated John Wayne, who had taken his boat from Newport Beach over to Avalon also. I found out later that this was his last appearance in public. He hung around Avalon for only an hour or so, but felt lousy and told his crew to take him back home, and immediately checked into the hospital, where he remained for about two months before he died. Too bad he never played on a site that is recognized as the best gambling site of our time.

Final final note: my mom and dad honeymooned in Avalon back in the late 40's. Now their hotel is a parking lot. Nonetheless, they celebrated their 40th anniversary by having their whole family stay in the Wrigley Mansion, the huge white home on a bluff overlooking the town. The Wrigleys, of chewing-gum fame and owners of the Chicago Cubs back then, brought the team to Avalon for spring training. But they eventually sold the mansion and it lived on for a while as a B&B. We loved the luxury of the place.



Lots of fond memories of Catalina. Haven't been back for amost 40 years.

What a fascinating account of your experiences and connections to Avalon!