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Wrigley Memorial and Botanical Gardens
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12 reviews for Wrigley Memorial and Botanical Gardens
The Wrigley Memorial and Botanical Gardens are a 'must see' for me every time I visit Santa Catalina Island. It's a peaceful respite away from the hustle and bustle of the city area with spectacular views to Avalon Bay and beyond.
The visitors and education center is the first structure you'll encounter as you enter the gate on the left. The looped videos were especially made for a general audience so you might not find them very interesting.
I can appreciate the effort Wrigley took to gather the cactus specimens and other plants that are all maintained beautifully in the gardens. The variety is interesting and many are unique native only to the Channel Island chain.
The Wrigley Memorial itself sits on the highest point in Avalon and has some beautiful tile work where the fountain waters once flowed. Lead glazes make the colors pop to this day. A side note: The only other place I've seen tile work of this quality was in West Palm Beach, Florida. The fountains were drained and turned off years ago due to the high cost of maintenance, but the patterns of these tiles are still dazzling to the eye. The Memorial is a somber place to reflect on the work of a man who made his fortune selling something as simple as chewing gum and to enjoy the views of one of his philanthropic contributions to the island.
It's an easy hike to and from this site or you can catch the tram that regularly runs from the tour center up to the Memorial for a small fee.
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Not what I was expecting and something I wouldn't do again.
I thought there would be more plants to see and the only thing I saw was a lot of desert plants. I think if that's what you're into then great! Check this place out! I'm more into flowers and plants that are more colorful and green!
The memorial was just a building with no roof. I didn't really get it.
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I got to learn all about Catalina's native plants! For a 5 dollars admission fee, it wasn't TOO bad. The glass cases and videos at the front were a little boring, I'll admit....and we were on a tight schedule with our cart rental....so we walked sort of quickly through the gardens and spent most of our time at the memorial.
My friend's and I had a blast with our photo shoot. The only bad thing was the weather. It was overcast the entire time we were there so no cool shots of the ocean view, just some ugly clouds and haze. err but I guess it was good we didn't get all sweaty from hiking around.
I like nature. Yeah I do. I like nature. You should too.
Check out the flora and fauna of Santa Catalina (some of which is native to the island) then head up to the Wrigley Memorial. But don't just look at it and think "Wow that's cool, but I'm already tired from all that walking and it looks pretty high up." You strap your ballsack on and man up, climb those steps, appreciate the architecture of the memorial and bronze doors that were shipped in specifically for it, then you march you ass up to the very top of the tower and check out that view. Yeah. It's a doozy. Yeah I said doozy, so what, I climbed up there so I can say it.
Do it or zombie jesus will send his undead angels into your homes to om nom nom on your precious brains.
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This was one of the spots I visited during my day trip to Catalina. Be sure you take a golf cart or another mode of transportation here because it's pretty high up. I much prefer a golf cart...
This place is not like any other botanical gardens I've seen. Don't expect to see much flowering plants here...their collection is mostly desert species with some rare plants indigenous to California and Catalina Island. The gardens itself is set on a mild incline, but keep at it. Overall, a pretty layout.
Definitely go to the top of Wrigley Memorial even if the walk up tired you out already. The view from the top is worth the hassle. At the top, you can see all the way to the ocean. Good photo ops here.
This is a great attraction that gives you a lot of history behind Catalina. Yes. Wrigley memorial is made to honor the chewing gum guy. Yes. The same guy Wrigley Field is named after. Betcha didn't know that...
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The Botanical Garden started in 1935 as the Wrigley's Desert Plant Collection. It was expanded in 1969 to include plants of the Channel Islands and those endemic to Catalina.
The Wrigley Memorial, honoring William "the chewing gum guy" Wrigley Jr., is a beautiful stone structure with red roof tiles and all colorful handmade glazed tiles, perched high up on the hillside overlooking Avalon Bay.
It is about a mile hike uphill from Crescent Ave. You can also bike to the gate or take a golf cart. Admission in $5.
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Eager to walk off the pound of breakfast burrito lying in my gut....the wife and I made the journey up Avalon road to check out some local vegetation and what not.
We were here in early March so there was a great cool breeze the whole hike up. It was just over a mile from our hotel and unfortunately a bit of an uphill battle...especially if you're pushing a stroller with a little 20lb human being in it....a challenge, regardless of how cute she is. =) We made it in roughly 40 minutes and I was no worse for wear. Don't forget to hydrate....BRING WATER!
Open 8am to 5pm 7days a week. Admission is $5 a piece for the wife and I and baby gets in free! The Desert Plant collection was planted back in 1935 and has an interesting array of cacti and succulents... reminds me of childhood back home in the High Desert pulling cactus needles out of my appendages.....ahhhh, the memories. Beautiful architecture and great view from the top of the memorial. I think it's awesome that this was all built with "gum" money.
All in all, well worth the hike...if not simply for the fact you'll get your blood pumpin'! The walk back down to town is A LOT easier and goes surprisingly quick. Amazing what selling a little juicy fruit can afford ya, huh?
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beginners hike spot. this is the spot you take to warm up for bigger hiking sights. it's a cool area with lots of desert plants and plants native to the island. it was started by william wrigley jr. which coincidentally there is a really cool memorial to him. you can see the ocean from there and get some really good pictures too, so definitely make your way there.
speaking of pictures, there are lots of opportunities to take plants/flower pictures and read the history of said plants/flowers. it makes a for a great field trip for children if you're a teacher.
good way to work off that lunch just don't go when it's really hot because well, there is no shade anywhere throughout the path.
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In all my trips to Catalina...I had NEVER made the journey back into the canyon to view the Wrigley Memorial...until recently!! And so glad I did....
You can either walk the 1.5 miles up Avalon Rd. or, as I would suggest, rent a gold cart for the trek up the hill. You can park outside the gate and it only costs $5 a person to gain entrance to the park.
From there, it's a light uphill hike on a dirt path past a multitude of plants (all labeled as to origin) up to the memorial itself.
The memorial apparently was completed in 1934 in honor of William Wrigley of Wrigley Gum fame after taking about a year and half to build. It's one of those things you would have to just see...a description doesn't really do it justice. There's about 100 steps up to the first plateau of the memorial structure and probably about another 50 or so to the top at which, if you get there, you'll find the most lovely of views of the Pacific beyond Avalon's harbor.
On your way back down the dirt path, make sure you cross over the bridges and enjoy the plant life and smells...really relaxing and quite enjoyable!!
Bring water on a hot day!!
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A bit of exercise on a relaxing vacation doesn't hurt anything does it? The short jaunt to the Monument shouldn't take more than 45 minutes or so and is a nice break from spending money on drinks. Although, on a warm day, nothing is more rewarding than a Gin & tonic after the walk.
If you want to challenge yourself or your group, there is a trail to the right of the monument that will take you to the very top of Catalina. I have no idea what the name of the mountain is but the view is spectacular. Bring some water though.
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Definitely don't walk...it's a long gradual hill and you'll be drenched before you even get to the entrance. We took the trolley and it's worth the $4.00 fare. Entrance to the Garden is $5.00. Even the walk to the memorial is long on the heat not to mention the 100+ steps to the memorial...definitely go, the view is priceless.
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Definitely worth walking or driving via golf cart/trolley. We ended up walking it & it's definitely not 1/2 mile, it took us at least 30 mins to get up there since it's a slight incline, but coming from the garden is much faster. The different assortment of plants, especially cacti is interesting. The building structure shows the past skilled craftsmanship.
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