Key Points
- San Clemente Island is a Navy-owned, civilian-prohibited military training site near California.
- Military operations include live-fire exercises, unexploded ordnance, and ongoing ship, air, and SEAL drills.
- “Off the coast of California, 50 miles from Orange County, there’s an island you cannot visit.”
On a crisp, clear Southern California day, Catalina Island is easily visible from the Southern California mainland. But if you squint, just south of Catalina, there’s another landmass in the Channel Islands chain: San Clemente Island.
But this one is off-limits, verboten. For decades, visitors have been motoring out to nearby Catalina Island, enjoying the quaint town of Avalon, searching for the elusive buffalo, snorkeling and scuba diving in the rich marine seascapes, and more. San Clemente Island, however, is different. It’s owned by the U.S. Navy, and civilians are prohibited.
In the video below, find out the secrets of San Clemente Island, what’s actually going on there, and the reason why it’s forbidden to anyone outside the U.S. Navy…