Santa Cruz Island Scorpion Canyon Campground

Lovely campground. Lots of water spigots and toilets. All in good working condition. Lots of sites to choose from, some closer to each other than others and some without shade. Lots of eucalyptus trees and shrubs throughout. Very minimal bugs; only saw one mosquito in two days. Things probably have read before if coming to camp but reinforcing: Weather; gets cold even on warm days. Windy often. Trash; pack it in, pack it out. Impressed how respectful everyone is. Didn’t see much of any trash. Swimming/Snorkeling; awesome snorkeling from Scorpion Beach. Water shoes are a must, very rocky beach. WiFi/Cell Service; barely available. Foxes; yes their cuteness lives up to the hype. Trails; lots of great hikes, various lengths and all go up the mountain.

This is a great campground on Santa Cruz Island and depending on your camp site is between 0.2-0.6 miles from the boat dock. You should pack like you are backpacking as you need to transport all of your gear from the docks to your site and you don't want to spend half your trip walking back and forth. Many of the sites have eucalyptus trees for shade and the campground's location in a valley helps protect it from the high winds that are typical on the channel islands. The endemic island foxes frequent this campground and are very cute and fun to watch run through the camp. From the campground there are beautiful hikes along the cliffs along the ocean, ocean kayaking, and the park rangers usually have a short movie or program on weekend nights.

We camped here during late November with two kids. The Del-Norte lower campground. We were on site 20. This is our 2nd trip to the Channel Islands itself and we do really love the experience. * You need to take an 1hr+ish boat ride to get here from Ventura. * Pack a wagon/cart if you need to haul a "boatload of stuff" it's $10 extra and worth it * You need to pack out what you take including garbage so be prepared. * The luggage if lucky will be moved on the boat with a "bucket brigade" style if lucky and ample campers are onboard else you could be on your own. * The weather was variable during our stay and unexpectedly more windy than we had anticipated. Note there are no windbreakers. * The restrooms near the pier in general smelt less. They are reasonably well maintained but there is heavy camping and visitor traffic on this island. * The campsites are well maintained. Surprised to see eucalyptus trees (invasive) all around us. * Small foxes (smaller than the ones in Santa Rosa) thrive in this campsite. It was like witnessing Darwin's theory... * The campsites.is central to many trails on this side of the island. * The water outlets have had a lot of yellow jackets. - There were very few other insects that were bothersome. We did observe some giant insects but they came out.at night and were fun to observe. * There was no place for.cleaning utensils, it seemed ad-hoc and could create campsites where people washed and left remnants in different places. A defined spot like Santa Rosa would be great. * Not all campsites are the same, so pick and choose carefully. At the end of the day the island is fabulous but still... * lastly, the campground is relatively near the boat drop-off zone and the Kayak rental spot. Have fun camping!!

This is a great way to take a relaxed vacation, away from people. We visited in mid December, and had very pleasant weather, even though the nights were a little cooler. The scenery, ocean life, and bird life are beautiful. If you are visiting for the day, take a hike over to Potatoe Harbor, or take a guided tour with Channel Island Adventure Company on a Kyack ride. If you are camping, consider taking a hike over to Smugglers Beach as the beach over there is beautiful. Be prepared to be on the look out for wildlife. We were privileged to see foxes, ravens, scrub jays, seals, Sea lions, Spotted Towhee, Bald Eagle, Peregrine Falcon, Sea Urchins, dolphins, humpback whales, and sea stars. Some things to keep in mind. -There is no transportation on the Island except for walking. -There is only pit toilets on the Island, but they are relatively nice. -When hiking take enough water, as there is very little shade on the Island except for in the campground. -The water on the Island at Scorpion Canyon is drinkable and doesn't taste to bad. -If camping, pack in backpacking style as you have to hike everything in to the campground. -Be prepared to keep all scents in the Animal proof boxes as the foxes and crows are great theaves. Even visiting for the day, don't let your backpack unwatched as the foxes /ravens are around. -Take all the food you will need. Either a small propane stove, or self heating O'Meal packs of food.

Site 14 is the best! You only have one neighbor on one side and the other side is all greenery and trees. There was a creek running though the back so the trickling water was really peaceful. Most of the other sites are out in the open and not much privacy. Restrooms and water about a minute away. Lots of hikes and pretty views on the island. We had a wonderful time