One of the “cuevas” at the anchorage
Cueva is the Spanish word for cave, and Cueva Valdez anchorage on the north coast of Santa Cruz Island features two large ones. The waves generated by the prevailing northwest wind have carved big openings in the soft volcanic rock of the island. A steep canyon climbs from the stone beach into the hills, and seals and sea lions pepper the rocks.
The canyon rising from the beach behind Cueva Valdez is beautiful
We chose this spot because Mike had a phone appointment with a travel nurse to get prescriptions for the last set of vaccinations for Mexico. Mobile phone reception is tenuous at best this far from the mainland, and this location gave the best chances for making a phone call.
We had to motor about an hour out from the anchorage to make the call, but we kept the appointment!
As seems to be typical in the Channel Islands, this spot stretches the definition of “anchorage”. It’s little more than a small depression in the coast carved by the creek running down the canyon. While the headland to the west did a fair job of blocking the wind, there was very little protection from the waves.
Madrone spent the evening bobbing, rocking, and rolling until the wind backed off and the waves slowly abated.
