• AT HAND: Deuce Lee, The Big Dipper
• LOCATION: Near Avalon and Two Harbors, Santa Catalina Island, CA
• DATES: September 26-29, 2022
• STATS: 4 days/3 nights, 41 miles – 8,469 feet EG

“It’s easy to grin / When your ship comes in / And you’ve got the stock market beat. / But the man worthwhile, / Is the man who can smile, / When his shorts are too tight in the seat.”

–Judge Smails

For the conscientious seeker striving to maintain a path of enlightenment, dipping your toes into the gilded waters of the unapologetically wealthy comes with the risk of significant spiritual peril. Walking barefoot (and un-burdened by the world’s distractions) through the shiny Potemkin city that obscures the ugly slum beneath is a necessary evil when one’s destination can’t be accessed on a solely physical plane. Stepping in Bison shit could be a tragedy or a revelation when your trotters are shorn. The view from above paints a picturesque scene…but…how many yachts does one man need to fill the void? Two too many. Desert vibes prevail, with cacti stepping menacingly into your path while you’re distracted by that big, pacifying, endless blue. And when you sweat through your shorts multiple times a day, it’s okay if they don’t fit quite right.

Of consequence: Underestimating the girth of a nearby bison; the hot hot heat; stunning afternoon fog rolling in to cover the coastline in a weighted blanket; copious amounts of trash and a found football left by a bunch of yahoos; waterfront camping and swimming near Two Harbors; cliff diving at Little Harbor; isthmuses.