From Seasonal Worker to True Local: My Final Years on Catalina Island

After my winter in Lake Tahoe, I packed up and headed back to Catalina Island. But this time was different. I didn’t see this as just another temporary seasonal run. I was returning single, ready to fully immerse myself, and determined to stay year-round until I grew tired of it.

Spoiler alert: I didn’t grow tired of it. It took a major plot twist to finally get me to leave. But before that happened, I experienced the absolute best of what island life has to offer.

Becoming Part of the Community

When you stay on Catalina past the busy summer season, you get to see its true colors. During the winter, the island turns into a bit of a ghost town, but that is when the community really shines.

I stopped being just a seasonal worker and became a true local. Because I was out there without my family, the locals took me under their wing. I had families bringing me homemade tamales and posole on holidays, and friends hand-delivering packaged Easter brunches with my name on them. To pass the time in the slow season, I even joined a local softball league. Our team actually won the championship, and I still have the jacket to prove it!

The Wildlife and Las Casitas

My living situation was a piece of island history. I lived in an area called Las Casitas, which used to be the housing for the Chicago Cubs when they came to Catalina for spring training!

Because I lived in the same area for years, I got to know the local wildlife just as well as the people. I had a whole community of deer living in my yard. Technically, you aren't supposed to feed them, but when you're tossing out vegetable scraps for compost and a starving deer finds it... things happen! Over my four years on the island, I literally watched a tiny baby fawn that used to sleep on my apartment steps grow up into a healthy young doe who would find me every single year. I even watched a set of twin fawns grow into beautiful young bucks.

The Ultimate Island Milestone: The Golf Cart

Here is a wild fact about Catalina: there are barely any cars, and there is a 30-year waiting list to bring one over. For my first few years, I walked absolutely everywhere.

But for my final year, I was fully committed. I moved into a beautiful studio apartment that I made entirely my own, and I finally bought a golf cart! It was an absolute game-changer. It cut down my massive walks to the Descanso Beach Club, and I got to be the friend who swooped up Kyle and Caiden on the way to work so they didn't have to walk, either.

Bartending the Island's Best Events

Work was still a massive part of my life. I was still bartending at the Beach Club and Avalon Grille, but because I was a trusted local, I got to work the most exclusive events on the island.

I bartended late-night sunset parties, massive events in the famous Wrigley Casino, and private dinners up at Mount Ada overlooking the entire bay. Setting up a bar for sailors who had just pulled into the harbor from all over the world was incredibly inspiring. It was wild to realize that so many people I met on the mainland had spent their entire lives looking at Catalina across the ocean, but had never made the 26-mile trip. Meanwhile, I was actually living it.

The Beginning of the End

Island life is messy, beautiful, and sometimes, it throws you a massive curveball.

During the slow season, I took a terrible fall at work and badly injured my left knee, which eventually required surgery. When the high season rolled back around, I tried to go back to work full-time, but I ended up re-tearing it.

Around this same time, I took a birthday trip down to Playa del Carmen, Mexico. I absolutely fell in love with the place and with someone. I even went back in September just to visit him (and get some dental work done!).

As October rolled around, reality set in. The injuries made the physical demands of my jobs impossible, and the financial stress was piling up. While you can make great money on Catalina, it is incredibly expensive; my rent, utilities, groceries, and golf cart gas were costing me around $1,800 a month.

I realized my body couldn't keep up with the seasonal grind anymore. Leaving Catalina was one of the hardest decisions I've ever made. But as I packed up for the last time, I knew the island had given me exactly what I needed: four unforgettable years, lifelong friends, and the courage to start a brand new chapter.