Channel Islands National ParkFive islands, 145 endemic species, and the "Galapagos of North America" — a one-hour boat ride from Ventura

The Channel Islands have been called "the Galapagos of North America" because their isolation has produced 145 species and subspecies that exist nowhere else — the island fox (one of the world's smallest canids), the island scrub-jay (the most range-restricted bird in the continental U.S.), the island night lizard, and giant coreopsis among them. The Chumash people inhabited the islands for at least 13,000 years; archaeological middens at Daisy Cave on San Miguel are among the oldest known sites of human occupation in North America. The park was first designated a national monument in 1938, expanded into a national park on March 5, 1980, and declared a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve in 1976.

Anacapa, the closest island, is actually three small islets — East, Middle, and West Anacapa — anchored at the eastern tip by Arch Rock, a 40-foot-tall natural sea bridge that's the unofficial logo of the park. The 1932 Anacapa Light, still operating, sits on East Anacapa above a 1.5-mile loop trail past Inspiration Point. Santa Cruz is the largest island in California (96 square miles) and home to Scorpion Ranch, the Painted Cave (a quarter-mile-long sea cave, one of the largest in the world), and the only island scrub-jay population on Earth.

Plan a full day for any island trip — Island Packers boats leave Ventura Harbor in the morning and don't return until late afternoon. Santa Cruz Scorpion Anchorage is the most popular destination for first-time visitors: the boat lands in a sheltered cove with hiking trails to Cavern Point and Potato Harbor, swimming in the kelp forest, and ranger-led tide pool walks. Bring layered clothing — even on warm mainland days the islands can be windy, foggy, and 15°F cooler. Whale-watching season runs December–April (gray whales) and June–September (humpbacks and blue whales).