[Day 4] Back to Avalon

I started the day out of Shark Harbor, headed back towards the town of Avalon. Officially, the Trans-Catalina Trail ended at Two Harbor, but I decided to milk the time and hike back to Avalon. My route was either to follow a mix of dirt roads on a more western side of the island, an area unseen, or follow the trail back to Avalon. Ultimately, I decided to take the same footpath back, largely to take in the views of the ridge line walks and to seek out a herd of bison. The area between the airport and Two Harbor was marked with open grassy hills, hoove prints, and dried cow (bison?) pies. I figured they should be about here, if anywhere.

🗓️ Date	February 13th
⇢ Mileage	19.6
📍 Trip Mileage	73.9
⛅️ Weather	Sunny 65°F with some wispy clouds
🏞️ Trail Conditions	Trail and road back to Avalon

I followed the ridge walk out of Little Harbor, and a few miles before the airport, just before trail merged up with Empire Landing Road, I found a bison herd on a hillside adjacent to trail. Of course, I wasn’t going to turn up the opportunity to get closer to them. I managed to only come across the Monarch of the Plains in a quantity of a single one on my entire CDT hike. Here, I found myself on a Southern California island, filled with cactus, foxes, and ocean views, next to a heard of some 20 bison.

Locked out.

I made a brief passing through of the airport to see if there were any happenings. It was dead on this Tuesday morning. I continued on my way, eventually approaching the turn off between Mt. Orizaba and Blackjack Campground back towards Avalon. I started my way up Orizaba, only to be blockaded by a fence. Turning back, I continued the route towards Avalon, rolling through the canyons.

I decided to take a alternate route into Avalon, which I ultimately regretted. It ended up being many miles of pavement into town. There was a longer alternate that went further south on the island, and I sure wish I had down that instead. But, then again, it’s better I leave some stones unturned. I undoubtedly will be back to hike this island over again — I say this with every trail I hike. But, in this case, many friends have expressed interested in a Catalina hike.