Santa Catalina is an island some 22 miles southwest of Los Angeles. The population is small - just over 4,000 - because almost 90% of the island is reserved as a conservancy. There are only tow towns: Avalon and Two Harbors. There was once a gold rush on the island. Chewing gum magnate William Wrigley Jr. fell in love with the island and helped to develop its infrastructure. He built a casino and moved Chicago Cubs spring training here. It is difficult to live on the island because there is so little land available for development, along with being very expensive. However it is quite beautiful with mountains rising over 2,000 ft. above sea level. Actress Natalie Wood drowned in the waters near the settlement of Two Harbors under questionable circumstances over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend in 1981. Photo from the air courtesy of Wikipedia and NASA, in the public domain; photo of Catalina Island Interior courtesy of Wikipedia and D Ramey Logan, Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0/
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