15 photos from San Miguel

Over the past year, we sailed Aldebaran to Santa Cruz, Santa Rosa, and San Miguel islands to get her ready.

I'll post 15 favorite photos from each island, our crew, and boat during this "shakedown" year. Check back for the next installments.

(click this link if the slideshow below doesn't load)

Where is San Miguel Island?

• The most north-west of the Channel Islands
• Located 26 miles from the nearest mainland (Point Conception)
• About 8 miles long and 4 miles wide. 

Two incredible facts:

1. One of the largest concentrations of wildlife in the world is found in San Miguel island: up to five different pinniped species and over 30,000 individuals cluster at Point Bennet on its western tip.
2. One of the oldest known American Indian archeological sites (11,600 years ago) is on the island.

Sources:
NPS

The origins of Aldebaran, our good ship

Four years ago, I sent my family photos of the boat I was hoping to buy. It was called Aldebaran, a 42ft trimaran built in 1968. 

My mom responded: "Amazing! That is the name of your great-uncle's boat!"  

In fact, I later discovered that my great-uncle not only had one Aldebaran, but he also built Aldebaran II. He then sailed in an epic journey from Brazil to Greece and back.

The stars were aligned! (excuse the pun)

Still, I hesitated. This is a large boat for someone without deep pockets. It is very expensive to moor in marinas.  It is extremely maintenance intensive, being made from a composite of plywood and fiberglass.   

The main reason to purchase such a large boat was a stable platform for exploration and adventure ecology -- to have space for others such as scientists, artists, and lovers of the outdoors and the sea. This is what motivated me, and I went ahead. True to expectations I labored (along with my boat partner) for years with sweat and sawdust and stressful costs.

Now the boat is finally finding its stride, and the vision is coming together. I look forward to sharing it. 

Easy to spot near Orion, Aldebaran is an extraordinary orange star on the top left of the "V" of Taurus, considered the "Bullseye"

Go West, Young Mammoth!

Did you know that elephants are the best swimmers among land animals?  It is interesting that Mammoths became "pygmy" by swimming West.  It reminds me of a story from my family.

My grandmother was born in North Dakota. She was a strong Norwegian woman.  She once asked my dad why he decided to move to Hawaii.  What was wrong with their idyllic life in sunny California, she wondered?

"It's simple," he responded. "I'm doing the same as you did -- I'm just heading further West."

Ah... the beacon call to head West, somewhere over the horizon.  I have felt that tug, and bought a sailboat.  It is the search for opportunity, for novelty, for 'greener fields'.

40,000 years ago, the Mammoths also felt that urge:

"Leaving the heavily grazed mainland behind, the mammoths swam towards the scents of abundant vegetation from the huge, mountainous island of Santarosae" (National Park Service)

Back in those icy times (with lower sea levels), the four northern Channel Islands were united into one large island, "Santarosae". The 14ft tall Columbian Mammoths smelled the fresh grass, and took a risk. They swam 4-6miles to the unexploited pastures. Was it their wooley version of Manifest Destiny? Or just a response to necessity, adventure, and spontaneity?

As the Earth warmed and sea level rose, the islands split up and became smaller. Less food became available. So the smaller mammoths began to live longer. They became smaller and smaller, until they had shrunk from 14ft to just 7ft tall.  Over the course of time, they evolved into... Pygmy Mammoths, a species only found in the California Channel Islands.

Different Mammoth and Elephant sizes

(BBC)

Why is the Pygmy Mammoth the mascot for this sailing trip, you wonder?  Besides being unique to the  Channel Islands, they are an icon of Change -- and this is what we're trying to understand. What sudden changes have the islands dealt with, and where is restoration leading us? Who better to guide us than an invasive animal (they swam to the island) that turned endemic (found nowhere else)?  At least, their paradoxical nature will help us ask fresh questions.

What is this Project about?

There are eight California Channel Islands, drifting in the hazy horizon. Though only 20-60 miles offshore, they are a world away.  Catalina is the only one with convenient access.  What do we know about the rest?


What mysteries and changes have they captured over time?  What is their current state, and what lies in their future?


As animals, plants, and humans have come and gone, the face of the islands has completed shifted. In "Sailing with Pygmy Mammoths", we will visit the eight islands (or try to, weather permitting!) and explore the radical restoration efforts happening today.


Vast pig eradications.  Feral cat and goat removal.  Rat poison.  Sea otter embargoes. Extremely contentious marine reserves.


Why are we doing these hugely expensive and difficult restorations?  What state of ecologic health are we hoping to return to?  We need to look into the past, and visit the islands themselves, to understand this epic effort happening just over the horizon.