I went to Santa Cruz! I got on shore at Scorpion Harbor & slowly wandered toward Potato Harbor, just me and my camera. It's such a beautiful place. I recall you're an archeologist. Perhaps because the place was so isolated, it seemed unfathomable that I could share the experience of being on that island with the ancient people who have long since vanished, yet there was also a deep sense of connection. There were other contradictions: the island was both barren and rich, both gentle and harsh. When I was there the weather was quite mild, but on an island so exposed to the elements, I can imagine feeling the full force of a storm. I have a picture to show JPickett what he's missing!

In the future I'd like to spend more time and see more islands. I may get a chance this winter to visit SoCal again. For us day visitors the Channel Islands are very enchanting. I wonder what they look like after a decade and a half...

I wasn't sure of the size of the critter, as I was focused on taking a macro picture of a bug. I saw a blur and was startled by the breeze. It was big enough to scare me a little, actually. Was I lucky enough to have an encounter with a fox?