Santa Barbara Island
Posted July 2025
We visited in the middle of July it was overcast both days we were there and fairly cold for the middle of the summer. When we arrived we took a lap around the island to get a feel for the place. The north side was particularly enchanting. the low cloud cover, high cliffs, and sea life made the island appear mystical.
Santa Barbara Island: NPS
Sail Channel Islands: Good info from 2007 and 2022
Sutil Island: NPS
Dive Info: DAN Dive Center
Anchoring
There is a lot of space to anchor in many places around the island. I’ve only been here once, but from what I see you can find reasonable protection most of the time. We anchored on the east side to spend the night and were comfortable. On a monohulls or power boat it would still have been ok, but not great. On the second day we dropped anchor on the north side so we could check out the black sand beaches. This spot won’t be comfortable most of the time, but it worked out for us. The last photo in the gallery you will see a photo of a small boat anchored on the south side. I dropped a pin for the approximate location I think he was anchored. There are some rocks in that general area so approach with caution!
East Side Anchorage: Google Maps
North Side Anchorage: Google Maps
South West (Approximate): Google Maps
Going Ashore
It would be more appropriate to titled this section “not going ashore”. I don’t mind loosing some skin and blood for a good adventure, but this landing was still out of the question for me. With a pretty mild swell the surge at the base of the platform was still super sketchy. Yes, it is possible to run a tender up to the rocks and drop a couple of people off, but the rocks are going to be slick and a surge might come in and ruin your day before you get high enough to be safe. If an unexpected swell pushes you to the right you will get destroyed on a super sketchy cave/cliff shoreline.
When we were there the stairs were occupied by many large sea lions with no way around them. They won’t move because they don’t have anywhere to go. We were there during peak pup season so maybe it won’t be as crowded later in the summer or earlier in the spring.
My next trip out I’m going with a plastic kayak, gloves, shoes and giving it a go as long as the sea lions are not blocking the stairs. From what I can tell the hike and photography will be awesome if I can make it.
Sealife
Sea lions are everywhere out here! Most California sea lions give birth in early June so we got to see a lot of young ones on our trip.
There are a lot of birds which is part of the reason drones are not allowed to fly here. You will notice all my drone photos are from a mile offshore which is required. Please be respectful of the animals and don’t scare them by flying close.
No Fishing Marine Reserve: Map
