Zoner Trip to SUP the Sea Caves at Santa Cruz Island, July 24-26.

[Zooport]

Open invitation to all Zoners.  This place is spectacular, the scenery and caves are awe-inspiring.  We only have space for 10 more people and I know of several who plan to go.  You need to let me know as soon as you can. The campsites are reserved and the date is set.  We depart Ventura, CA early on Friday, July 24th and return that Sunday night.  You bring all your own camping gear, food and equipment. 

Cost:  I make no profit from this trip.  Each person will need to reimburse me $7 for the camping fees, I have already paid this and it's all set.  To get you and your SUP to the island, the boat charges around $98 round trip.  This is with the extra fee to bring your board.  Important: You need to make your boat reservation right away as it will be full within the next few weeks.  Don't worry, you can cancel your reservation with them up to a week before the trip and get a full refund.   So make this reservation right away, even if you are not sure.  Tell them you want the earliest boat to "Santa Cruz Scorpion" on July 24th. be sure to tell them you are bringing a 13' "kayak."  Yes, kayak, see below.  (805) 642-1393  Their website: http://www.islandpackers.com/SCIGeneral.html 

SUP's prohibited on the boat  Yep, Island Packers will not transport a SUP or a surfboard.  But we have a workaround that makes this trip possible.  Ralph from Sup-Position is bringing his step van full of Ocean Kayak Nalu's, which are kayak/SUP hybrids.  Those are fine with Island Packers.  They make a pretty nice touring SUP, are very stable and have an acceptable amount of glide.  You can see me on my OK Nalu in the first vid, works great.  Contact Ralph at Sup-Position for rental info.  You can also bring an inflatable SUP if you have one.

More Info:  Since I have been organizing and leading these trips every summer for over 14 years, I have compiled several pages of other information that I will be glad to forward to you. 

Here is the vid I posted a couple of months ago.  It's edited to show mostly me on my OK Nalu SUP. 


This one is all the other clips, showing more of the camping, hiking and my kayaking friends:

[SUPcheat]

I will call them and make my reservation.  Do I understand that I don't need to bring my inflatable SUP? Do you recommend an inflatable or to rent one of Ralph's hybrids?

Anyway, I'll make the reservations and finesse the details later.

[surfinJ]

I would do it.  Sounds great but I'll be in LA in June  .

I would go for the rigid tour board, for sure better glide than an inflatable.
Going to cover some distances I bet.

[XLR8]

That's awesome!  What a cool offer.  I have half a mind to try to fly over from MI.  You're offering a turnkey trip.  Very nice.  The immediacy rules me out, also a July 29 conflict that might require some early availability. 

Pretty cool offer.  Wish I could do it.

[Tom]

Zooport, I'm in. What time and date for the return do we request?

 Thanks for putting this together.

[Zooport]

Return Boat on Sunday:  We return on Sunday, the 26th.  There is usually an early boat that arrives at the island early afternoon and another return boat that arrives at the island late afternoon.  We don't schedule anything on Sunday, so you can go back on any boat you like.  If you want an early start home, book the early boat.  The late boat will give you more time on Sunday to hang around and hike, or paddle a little more.  Your choice.  I often go back on the early boat.

(Sorry, I should have put this info in the original post)

[Zooport]

I will call them and make my reservation.  Do I understand that I don't need to bring my inflatable SUP? Do you recommend an inflatable or to rent one of Ralph's hybrids?

Anyway, I'll make the reservations and finesse the details later.

Hey Cheat,
No recommendations either way.  We have never actually brought an inflatable over there, but I can't see a reason why there would be a problem with it.  It will have to go down into a cargo hold in the boat, might be less trouble just to rent from Ralph. 

[SUPcheat]

I will call them and make my reservation.  Do I understand that I don't need to bring my inflatable SUP? Do you recommend an inflatable or to rent one of Ralph's hybrids?

Anyway, I'll make the reservations and finesse the details later.

Hey Cheat,
No recommendations either way.  We have never actually brought an inflatable over there, but I can't see a reason why there would be a problem with it.  It will have to go down into a cargo hold in the boat, might be less trouble just to rent from Ralph.

With backpack and inflatable, what are the walking distances from parking lot to boat, then from boat to campground?  Would bringing a board/backpack "mule" help?

[Tom]

Zooport,

I called and booked the ferry. They gave me instructions that I need to get there 1 hour before the 8:00 departure to load the kayak. They also said I need a 6 to 8 foot line on the kayak and a carbine on the front. They also need the reserved  campsite number, the confirmation number and whose name it is reserved by. Also, not all returning ferries carry kayaks but the 4:00 one that I booked does.
Thanks, Tom

[SUPcheat]

I made my reservation.  Bonnie also needs the name and the camp site number from me. She told me my inflatable in a backpack with pump is fine. The boat departure is right near the parking lot, the walk to the campsite on the island is about half a mile. She said no problem leaving things for two trips EXCEPT the local wildlife is expert at plundering all manner of gear, so stow food etc. carefully.

Depart July 24th, return 4PM July 26th.

[Zooport]

Camping Reservation Number: Tom and SupCheat tell me that they won't make a boat reservation this year without a camping reservation number...that's a new one.  We are in campsite #1 and #4.

[Zooport]

Bow Line Requirement:  It's no big deal.   Bring 10' of nylon cord with a clip on one end.  Tie it to the front of the Nalu when you get there.  They clip all of the kayaks together to float them from the boat to the island. 

[SUPcheat]

I'll bring the inflatable. She did mention there might be a limit for kayaks on that particular departure, but they could be brought later on another boat. An inflatable in a pack is OK.

The Red Paddle Mega inflatable has reasonable glide.  I assume this is not for racing but is more along the line of a stroll. Of course, it means you guys could ditch me if you wanted. I can also use it as a mattress to sleep on.

[JayInSoCal]

This looks amazing, Zooport.  I think I'm in (and maybe the better half too).  I needs to check some things out then I'll book the boat.  Very cool, thanks for setting this up!!

[Zooport]

This looks amazing, Zooport.  I think I'm in (and maybe the better half too).  I needs to check some things out then I'll book the boat.  Very cool, thanks for setting this up!!

Right on, Jay.  Glad that you might go.  I'm trying to talk my wife into going, but it's doubtful she will.  Island packers might ask about campsite numbers; we have #1 and #4.