Santa Cruz Scorpion

Great and quiet!

Great campground and island. Flush toilets or at least toilets with less smell would be a great improvement. Most sites in the campground are subject to the smell of chemical toilets in the evening hours when the wind is blowing.

This is a beautiful campground. It's very close to the dock, so hauling your gear to your campsite isn't difficult. There's easy access to water and bathroom facilities, and it's quiet and super dark at night making it perfect for stargazing. The night we camped we could easily see the Milkyway and the Big Dipper looked like it was just an arm's length away. Lots of little foxes and ravens in the campground, so secure your food and food-like items in the fox box located at each campsite. No campfires allowed, but camp stoves are ok, and the fox box makes a great surface for cooking. The hiking traails are well marked, well maintained , and lead to beautiful views. There are hikes for every level of hiker from easy to strenuous. Carry plenty of water if you do a long hike because there's no water on the rest of the island. We kayaked to the sea caves the following day and had a great time. Don't forget to bring a snack, water, sunscreen a hat that can be worn under a helmet, and a waterproof phone case with lanyard if you want to take your phone in the kayak. Check out is at 11, which we forgot. Luckily no one was waiting for our space while we were kayaking, so we didn't have to hurry to pack. Our family will definitely be back for another camping trip and will definitely stay at least 2 nights so we can hike the rest of the island and do some snorkeling as well.

Amazing experience! I came prepared for backpacking type accommodations and was surprised how close and easy to access the campsite was. Folks brought coolers, wagons, etc. from the ferry and you could definitely treat this more as a glamping experience. Easy access to water and pit toilets, trail heads, and a short walk to the visitor center and pier. Highly recommend doing Potato Harbor hike near sunset and taking one of the guided kayak tours if you have time!

I came with my best friend and her tween, we had the best time together. screen free, gorgeous setting, beautiful hikes and got to do the sea cave kayaking. I had been scared of camping due to a previous big animal encounter elsewhere and getting the chance to be on Santa Cruz island (with no big animals) reaffirmed my love for being in the great outdoors beyond a day hike. couldnt recommend more and I look forward to coming back to this magical place.

Deeply wonderful. We had two 5 year olds, a 9 year old, two 16 year olds, and four 40-somethings, and everyone was happy between hiking, kayaking, snorkeling, and just wandering around exploring. It's so lovely to feel safe to let even the little kids wander on their own near the campgrounds and visitor's center. Having pit toilets and potable water both easily accessed made everything super relaxed. Rangers and volunteer guides were friendly and helpful.

No showers, good enough pit toilets, no campers on wheels would have been so peaceful without the noise of the neighbors (not the parks fault) the sites are big enough.

The campground was well maintained with daily visits from park staff. For being a pit toilet it was clean and the smell was well maintained. It was nice that water was close and that campers were given a briefing before being able to go to the campground. I feel this aided in the campers following the rules.

It is difficult to get your stuff from the boat to the camp spot. That should be focused on when packing. Make sure to zip your tent to the top to avoid the foxes getting in your tent. They are relentless. No fires. Some of the tables are not level at all so plan on trying to level your stove since that's all you can cook on. I was a little disappointed on how there seem to be not much care at all for the tables being level. Otherwise, the island is AMAZING!

Incredible.