Oh! Give Me a Home...

...where the buffalo roam, and the deer and the antelope play. Where seldom is heard a discouraging word, and the skies are not cloudy all day."
This song plays over and over in my head as Mr. Smith and I venture out to our favorite campgrounds for a picnic. Hundreds of buffalo have the same idea. Yes, hundreds! Little Harbor is nestled in a charming valley dotted with palms. Here, fresh water is pumped into a trough for the buffalo and there are showers, portajohns and shaded picnic tables for the campers. The temperature is at least 10 degrees cooler here where the ocean freshens the desert breezes. We bond with the buffalo while they graze on sparse grass and we dine on our potato salad and shrimp cocktail picnic. We offer to share but they snub our table. Little did they know I had fresh from the oven banana bread too!
To get to Little Harbor from Two Harbors, just follow the only road out of town and the signs to the airport. You can't miss it! Or, if you are traveling by boat, navigate around the west end of Catalina Island to the back side, sail beyond Catalina Harbor and it will be the next harbor with suitable anchorage. Shark Harbor is just beyond. And if there aren't any buffalo there when you arrive, stick around awhile!

Where the Buffalo Roam

He just sat there. High on a knoll overlooking the harbor, the town's resident buffalo took on a kingly air. I first spotted our elusive town mascot this evening on a stroll with Mr. Smith on our way into the village to mail a letter. With camera in hand I set out following the 'buffalo chip trail' to get a closer shot.
And he continued to just sit there as I tiptoed from behind him, closer, then around the front, easing my way with quiet determination. It wouldn't have been prudent to startle the beast. They can move fast and change direction seemingly on a dime. We made eye contact and his tolerant expression never changed as my camera whizzed and I inched nearer. As I hunkered down in the dry grass in front of him, I noticed his tagged left ear, and the multitude of scars on his hide. Despite the Catalina Conservancy's best effort, buffalo don't think twice about walking through barbed wire fences when the grass looks a bit greener on the other side.
Now you can't blame them. This year is proving to be the driest on the Southern California's historical record. I have never seen the island so dry and it wouldn't take too much imagination to envision the scrubby hillsides as sand dunes. Lately I had been noticing quite a few more 'chips' scattered about than usual - evidence that a few had broken away from their inner island herd, no doubt searching for edible vegetation and a watering hole.
Originally 14 bison were transported to the island for the 1925 filming of The Vanishing American. Since then the population of bison has grown and has been as large as 400. To maintain their health and the island's ability to sustain their population, the bison herd is occasionally kulled (reduced). Buffalo burgers can be found on some island menu's, the most famous served from the Buffalo Springs Station located at the Catalina Island Airport. Buffalo meat is often seen in the meat section of Avalon's grocery stores.
They are an amazing animal, and aside from their inability to clean up after themselves, I view buffalo as a whole, a generally polite species. On your next visit to the island, pay your respects to our local residents and bend an elbow in salute with a Buffalo Milk libation.