60 ALLAN HANCOCK PACIFIC EXPEDITIONS VOL. 1 



appearance and in vegetation there is much general resemblance to the 

 Santa Barbara Islands. 



Santa Catalina is the largest of these islands, and it lies nearest the 

 mainland, 18 miles across the San Pedro Channel from Point Fermin. 

 It is 18% miles long with a greatest width of 7 miles. Six miles from the 

 northwest end it is almost divided into two parts by Catalina Harbor on 

 the southwest coast and Isthmus Cove on the northeast ; the low isthmus 

 is only half a mile across. There are two inhabited areas both on the east 

 coast, the one at Isthmus Cove and the other at Avalon (Dakin Cove), 

 near the southeast end of the island, with smaller settlements at other 

 points. The shore is rugged and even precipitous in places, with few 

 beaches, and these small. 



It affords so few satisfactory locations for shore collecting that very 

 little has been done. The only shore collecting station is in Fourth of 

 July Cove, on the north side of Isthmus Cove. The seaward slope is 

 steep, so that there is little shallow water out from the coast. To the west 

 and southwest there are strong currents and little shelter from the strong 

 winds. It is but a short distance out to muddy bottom, and the stations in 

 this bottom give little but polychaetes, brittle stars, and sea cucumbers. 



All of the remainder of the way around the coast of the island dredg- 

 ing has been extensive, from close in shore to as much as 6 miles out. One 

 bank, 6 miles east of Long Point with a loose rock bottom in 225-230 

 fathoms, is particularly rich in echinoderms. The favored locations have 

 been off the northwest end of the island, off Emerald Cove, off Isthmus 

 Cove, off Long Point and White Cove, off Avalon, and off the southeast 

 end of the island. 



In the deeper parts of San Pedro Channel, as well as in the other 

 wide channels, except on certain small banks, the bottom is of green mud, 

 but in shallower water this often gives way to sand, sometimes with shell 

 or coralline, and then to rock, although there are rock patches well scat- 

 tered over the whole area. Gravel patches or pebble beds seem to be con- 

 spicuous by their absence. 



Lying 21 miles to the westward of the northwest end of Santa Cata- 

 lina Island is Santa Barbara Island, the smallest of the four. It is only 

 1% miles by 1 mile. There is a wider shallow-water area around this 

 island, which area is rocky and heavily provided with kelp. Off the south- 

 west end of the island the area is particularly foul with rocks and reefs. 

 A rocky island — Sutil or Gull Island — lies 200 yards offshore, the chan- 

 nel foul and shallow. The islet is 300 feet high and is quite conspicuous. 

 There is no very safe anchorage. 



