Catalina Island

Hermit Gulch Trail to the Lone Tree Trail in Avalon

We were pleasantly surprised by the hike in Avalon on Catalina Island. It was about 9 miles in total and took us about 4 hours. Hermit Gulch trail starts at the back right corner of the campground, and continues to zigzag straight up. You need to be wearing appropriate hiking clothes for this adventure. If you continue a little further than the top point of the Hermit trail, it will take you to the start of the Lone Tree Trail. This trail is very difficult and it follows along a path that is straight up and straight down, making it difficult to hike in both directions. The end result was a picnic table on the edge of the Earth. When you come back the other side of Hermit Gulch you will land at a gardens, mostly filled with cacti; it was really cool!

Downtown Avalon

The downtown area was very touristy but it was nice to come back from the hike for ice cream, wine, and "Freaking Catalina Wine Mixer" hats!

How To Get There

We used the Catalina Express from Long Beach to Avalon to hike this trail. We heard there are better hikes in Two Harbors, which is where you can see buffalo along the trails. I will be checking out that side of Catalina next time I am near Southern Cali! Here is a link for adventure tours.