Day 2: Black Jack Campground to Two Harbors Campground – 13.5 miles, 24.2 miles total (4.23.2021)
The second morning on trail started with the promise of a breakfast burrito! The Trans-Catalina Trail goes right by the island’s small airport, the Airport in the Sky. There is a restaurant at the airport that is famous for serving bison burgers! I found out from a few other hikers the night before that they serve breakfast burritos in the morning, too. Since the airport is only about 2 miles away from Black Jack Campground, it was the perfect breakfast stop.
On the way to the airport, we saw two bison wandering through some tall grass, but they paid us no mind as we passed them. There were a few blind curves in the section of trail so we tried to make noise and keep our eyes and ears open to avoid surprising any bison. We didn’t see any more and made it to the airport ready to eat!
Airport in the Sky
I ordered a bacon breakfast burrito and Madalyn ordered one of the famous bison burgers. While we were waiting for our food, I looked around for an electrical outlet to charge my phone. Even though I had a power bank with me, I use my phone for taking pictures and navigation, so I wanted to give it some extra time to charge if I could. The only outlet I found was on the back patio, which was fine with me because the patio was super cute and had an awesome view!
Our food arrived and we dug in quickly. Even after being on trail for one night, I was excited for some “real” food. While we ate, Madalyn confided in me that she was really tired from the day before and didn’t think she would be able to hike almost 14 miles that day. Based on conversations with other hikers, we had learned that there is a taxi service that drives people around the island, so Madalyn wanted to see if she could take a taxi and meet up with me later in the day to cut down her mileage a little bit. She arranged for the taxi to take her from the airport to Little Harbor Campground, six miles away, where I had been planning to stop for lunch. The taxi wouldn’t be leaving for a few hours, so we would actually get to Little Harbor about the same time. I was a little bummed at first, but I also enjoy hiking alone so I quickly got over it.
We ate breakfast on the patio of the restaurant
After spending about an hour at the airport eating, charging my phone, and buying a few (lightweight) souvenirs at the gift shop, I set off towards Little Harbor on my own. I had been hiking for about two miles, when I looked out on the trail ahead of me and saw a small fox jump out of a bush! We’d seen several signs warning people to keep their food safe from foxes, but I didn’t expect to see one, especially not in broad daylight. It was smaller than I expected, a little bigger than a cat, and grey in color. It was so cute. But as soon as it saw me, it scampered into the bush before I could get a picture!
View shortly after leaving the airport
Even though the sky was cloudy, I was up on a ridge line so the views were beautiful. I was mesmerized by the calm, grey ocean. Before me, Catalina Island rose and fell. At first glance, the hills seemed so barren, but a closer look revealed an explosion of life. Cacti, shrubs, birds, insects, and ground squirrels all thrive on the island.
I was thriving too. My heart was full and happy. Hiking alone unexpectedly, in a different state, would have been so far out of my comfort zone not very long ago. But at that moment, it felt so natural. Hiking and backpacking have made me a more confident and independent person, and I am so proud of the person I am becoming.
Happy to be on trail
The miles between the airport and Little Harbor passed quickly as I self-reflected and stopped to take photos, attempting to capture the magnificence around me. Before I knew it, I could see Little Harbor below me and I arrived sooner than expected.
Little Harbor, and neighboring Shark Harbor, are beautiful campgrounds. They are right on the beach, surrounded by palm trees. They are also the only campgrounds that face west, so I’m sure they have magnificent sunsets. I wished we could have camped at Little Harbor, but the mileage didn’t work out for the number of days we had to hike the trail. A lunch stop would have to suffice.
Little Harbor beach
Once I arrived at the beach, my mood took a downward turn. When I planned the trip, I imagined soaking up the sun on the beach during my lunch break, but it was cloudy and breezy instead. Not ideal beach weather. Instead of stretching out on the beach to enjoy the sun, I put on my rain jacket to block the wind. To cheer myself up, I ate the massive chocolate chip walnut cookie I got at the airport. It was delicious and well worth it.
I perked up even more when I saw Madalyn coming around the corner. She was rested from her morning off and was ready to tackle the next section of trail. I packed up my stuff and we set out towards Two Harbors, still another five miles away.
At mile marker 19, halfway done with the Trans-Catalina Trail!
Right as we left Little Harbor, we passed mile marker 19, which is basically the halfway point! There was also an amazing view overlooking Little Harbor and the ocean. We stopped to take a few pictures before continuing.
Little Harbor and Two Harbors are at sea level. Between the two, the trail goes up and over a mountain with an elevation of 1200 feet. Because the trail has to gain 1200 feet and then lose 1200 feet in a little over five miles, there are parts that are fairly steep. At first, it wasn’t too bad. All the steep sections were short and there were flat sections in between that gave us a bit of a break.
Looking up the hill at our steepest, longest climb so far
But then I got to the top of one section and saw that the trail was about to go straight up the side of a mountain. It was longer and steeper than anything we’d climbed up until that point. I could see a few people at the top and they looked tiny and impossibly far away. After hiking all day, I was definitely not excited about it, but didn’t have any other options. Our campsite was on the other side of that mountain. We just had to put our heads down and climb. I got into a slow but steady pace and eventually reached the top.
Looking back from where we had come
The views from the top were some of the best on the entire trail in my opinion. Because the trail was along the edge of the island, I could see all the little coves and inlets along the shore. The sun was finally starting to peek through the clouds casting rays of light down onto the water and the land. I could see the ridges and valleys of the island rise and fall all around me. It was completely breathtaking.
View from the top of the big climb – totally worth it!
Once Madalyn reached the top, we continued along the ridge and finally began to descend towards Two Harbors. At this point, my feet were really starting to hurt. I was ready to be done hiking. To distract myself, I tried to focus on the landscape in front of me. Now we could see the top part of the island where we would be hiking the next day. We also realized it was sunny down in Two Harbors. After cloudy skies for nearly two days, I was ready for some sun.
The sun shining through the clouds in front of the top part of the island
We finally reached the town of Two Harbors, which isn’t really much of a town. There is a main square with a general store and a restaurant. The Two Harbors Campground is a short walk down the shore from the square. Unfortunately, we had to walk up a small hill to get to the campground. I told Madalyn that once we got to camp, I was not walking back to town, so if she wanted anything from the general store, she would have to go by herself. After hiking for 13.5 miles, my feet were done.
Two Harbors
We located our campsite and I pitched my tent while Madalyn decided to go back to town to get a few things from the general store before it closed. After I got all of my stuff set up, I realized I had cell service for the first time since leaving Avalon! I caught up on text messages until Madalyn returned.
My tent at Two Harbors Campground
As we had hiked into camp, we ran into our friends from Hermit Gulch Campground. They invited up to join them at their campsite for dinner since they already had a fire going. We had a great time laughing and exchanging stories from our first two days on trail. Having dinner with our new friends around a warm fire was a wonderful way to end the day. I went to bed early and fell asleep almost immediately!
