44 CHANNEL ISLANDS OF CALIFORNIA 



Sierra Madre, San Jacinto, San Antonio, San Bernar- 

 dino, on the mainland, sixty miles away. Along the 

 shore from Avalon, to the east, there is a road leading 

 to Pebble Beach Canon, filled with rare trees and 

 shrubs; or, one can ascend by mountain roads and so 

 reach the mountains and canons to the south. 



The town of Avalon is unlike any other place in the 

 world. It stands directly on the crescent-shaped bay, 

 at the mouth of a large canon, which nearly bisects 

 the island here. At the upper end, a mountain ridge, 

 which has withstood the gnawing tooth of time, rises 

 like a grim wall, and gives to this section what is 

 undoubtedly the nearest approach to that anomaly, 

 the "perfect climate." When I first saw this canon it 

 was a mountain wash, filled with cactus and chaparral. 

 To-day it is a grove of stately eucalyptus trees, which 

 shelter the homes of eight or nine thousand people in 

 summer, and of many all the year around. The town 

 climbs the hills and canons, the homes adapting them- 

 selves to circumstances and the physical conditions. 

 On the front are the large hotels, the Tuna Club, a 

 pavilion for concerts; while up in one of the canons is 

 a Greek theatre where the Santa Catalina band plays 

 all summer. Up the main canon are the picturesque 

 golf links and tennis club courts. 



Avalon is a remarkable town, inasmuch as it is based 

 on angling with rod and reel. Here yearly is held the 

 greatest convocation of sea-anglers in the world, as 

 they come from everywhere. There are varied allure- 

 ments, such as the cHmate and pastimes, but the one 

 thing upon which Avalon is based is the fishing, and 

 everything is subservient to that. The bay is filled 

 with launches and boats of all kinds, devoted to this 



