Santa Barbara County Trails Council

GIRL SCOUTS VOLUNTEER @ BARON RANCH Join us in giving a shout-out to the nascent environmental stewards with Girl Scout Troop 50886 who volunteered to plant native plants to help restore Baron Ranch. The Scouts planted over 30 plants that included California Wildrose, Wild Rye Grass, Black Sage, and Spiny Redberry. Learn more about each plant here:... https://sbtrails.org//Girl-Scout-Troop-50886-Native-Plants You can see the habitat restoration work the Scouts did by visiting the Baron Ranch Trailhead on the Gaviota Coast. Learn more about the trail: https://explore-santa-barbara-county.com//baron-ranch-tra/ All trail users are invited to explore eight miles of trail seven days a week. NO DOGS ALLOWED.

Mulching Party for Native Plants Join us at the Baron Ranch Trailhead to help the native habitat restoration project survive our dry season. We have over 400 native plants that would benefit from being surrounded by a thick layer of mulch. We will also be watering the plants due to near-drought conditions. WHEN: Saturday, June 12th, 9 am to noon or so.... All participants must sign a waiver to participate in this project. We will provide all tools, supplies, and training. Bring plenty of water, sunscreen, hat, and eye protection (sunglasses are okay). Wear long pants and sturdy shoes (no sandals or shorts). Please be at the gate by 9 am or preferably earlier to sign waivers and attend our brief safety and tool talk. Bring your own gloves. Current COVID-19 protocols will be followed. We will have wheelbarrows, shovels, rakes, and other tools, but feel free to bring your own. An extra wheelbarrow or two would be helpful. NOTE: Trail to Camino Cielo is now open seven days a week to all trail users. NO DOGS ALLOWED. Stay on the trail. Activities monitored by hidden cameras. ------------------------------------------- DIRECTIONS From the South: 1) Hwy 101 North, 2.4 miles past Refugio Road exit, turn right at the road crossing onto Arroyo Quemada Ln., just past a yellow sign indicating cross-traffic ahead. There is no northbound deceleration lane, so the turn-off must be anticipated. 2) Immediately turn left onto Calle Real and proceed approximately mile until the road reaches a turnaround circle. Park on Calle Real. DIRECTIONS From the North: 1) Take Hwy 101 southbound to Refugio State Beach exit. Exit 101 and go under the freeway and take the northbound Hwy 101 onramp. Travel 2.4 miles north and turn right at the road crossing onto Arroyo Quemada Ln., just past a yellow sign indicating cross-traffic ahead." There is no northbound deceleration lane, so the turn-off must be anticipated. 2) Immediately turn left onto Calle Real and proceed approximately mile until the road reaches a turnaround circle. Park on Calle Real.

Happy #NationalTrailsDay! Whether you like to run, walk, bike or hike, there are hundreds of miles of trails to explore in Santa Barbara County in a socially distanced sort of way. We hope you will spend time in nature this weekend. As you already know, beyond being fun, time in nature can help relieve stress and anxiety, improve your mood, and boost feelings of happiness and wellbeing. Trails don't just randomly appear for our enjoyment. The development of new trails takes ...a lot of work. Most new trails take a decade to plan, permit, fund, and build. The hurdles are high, and the obstacles are many. However, the results make it all worthwhile. National Trails Day is an opportunity to thank the public and private land agencies, park employees, and rangers for their help in developing and maintaining the trails. The community relies on land managers and land developers to provide opportunities for new trails. Thank them at every opportunity. It is also a day to thank all in the community who support new trails by donating time and money. With your help, the countywide trail system left to us by previous generations will be an even bigger gift to future generations.

In 1973, the Trails Council published a report proposing expanding the countywide trail infrastructure to include Mission to Mission Trails. A long time has passed, but we are finally making significant progress. A quarter of the California Missions Trail spans our county and includes Missions from Ventura to San Luis Obispo. The popularity of walking and cycling mission to mission has been growing in recent years. We are excited to have guidebook author Sandy Brown partner w...ith Trails Council on this ambitious project. His book will be published by Cicerone Press (https://www.cicerone.co.uk) that publishes guidebooks for walking hikers, trekkers, and cyclists in the fall of 2022. Our vision for the California Missions Trail is to establish and maintain an exciting walking and cycling route that celebrates California’s diverse communities, cultures, and landscapes, intersecting the twenty-one remarkable California Missions now and into the future. Please take a minute and pledge your support for the vision of the California Missions Trail here: https://californiamissionstrail.org/support/ Check out our StoryMap for a segment of the trail through Santa Barbara County: https://bit.ly/cmt-sbc See you on the trail...

CYCLISTS FOLLOW HISTORIC TRAIL On Wednesday, Trails Council board members Paul Herning and Kevin Wallace met travel guidebook author Sandy Brown at the Tomol Park in Carpinteria to cycle a segment of the California Missions Trail. Sally Sheridan, Kim Fly, and Rich Scholl joined the group on the ride from Carpinteria to the Santa Barbara Mission, following side roads and byways. Sandy is making preparations to write a guidebook for the California Missions Trail, the 815-mile... walking/biking itinerary connecting the 21 historic Spanish missions. Last month he experienced the natural beauty of Santa Barbara County when he walked from Sonoma to San Diego. This month he is riding his e-bike north while retracing his steps and collecting information for the book due to be published in the fall of 2022 by CiceronePress. https://www.cicerone.co.uk/ Follow Sandy on his journey here: https://www.facebook.com/CaliforniaMissionsTrail/ To learn more about California Missions Trail in the Santa Barbara region, check out our StoryMap posted here: http://bit.ly/cmt-sbc See you on the trail

On Saturday, the habitat restoration project at Baron Ranch received a little TLC from serial volunteers Jerry, Kathy, ZP, and Mark. Due to lack of rain, we will continue to hand-water the plants. The crew spent the morning making sure the earthen rings around the plants would hold water. Next month we will be adding mulch around the plants to help keep the moisture in the ground through the hot summer months prevent invasives from getting a foothold. We will announce the date on our meet-up site: http://sbvolunteers.org. Hope you will join in on the fun.

Be sure to follow Sandy on his 800+ mile walk through history: https://www.facebook.com/CaliforniaMissionsTrail/

Eight days ago, Sandy Brown entered Santa Barbara County on his 815-mile walk following the California Missions Trail. Today he left our fair County and continued on his way south, now well past the halfway point in his quest to walk to San Diego -- stopping at all the missions along the way. Travel safe.

Day 30 - Santa Barbara to Carpenteria. This was a gorgeous day of walking on bike trails from one coastal town to another, with everything bathed in sunlight and refreshed by cool ocean breezes. A group of us gathered and set out for all (Kim) or some (Sally and Mark) of the 14 mile day.

Walk on Hwy 101 or walk the beach? Easy choice: we walked the beach. One of the most challenging stretches of the California Missions Trail is the stretch north... of Santa Barbara between El Capitan Beach and the Ritz Carlton Hotel at Haskell’s Beach where there is no road or path other than the busy, four-lane Highway 101. Walkers often choose to brave the wide highway shoulder on this 5-6 mile portion, but as you might guess it’s rather unpleasant. Instead of walking the highway, the beach itself provides a fun and fascinating alternative. The problem is that the beach is inaccessible at anytime other than low tide. After studying some Internet resources a group of us learned how to do it safely, then we did it on Monday to show it could be done. Here are the steps: 1) research the timing and depth of the low tides, which come twice each day. You will need at least a +1 low tide. A 0 or minus tide is even better. There are many tide chart apps and websites. Here’s one: https://magicseaweed.com/El-Capitan-State-Beach-Surf-Rep// 2) Bring a buddy to place a car at whichever beach you’ll finish at ($10 parking fee at El Cap). 3) Start walking *at least two hours* before low tide at either Haskell’s Beach to walk north or El Capitan Beach to walk south. There are four pinch points where the tide must be out for you to pass. About 75% of the beach is sand, but about 25% is rocky and shoes with good tread will be helpful in navigating the rocks. The whole walk took us three hours and because we started 30 mins late we had to wade in 6 of water a couple of times, but we had a blast, enjoyed the scenery and would do it again a heartbeat!

JOIN US FOR A WALK from the Santa Barbara Mission steps with travel guidebook author Sanford Sandy Brown on Wednesday morning at 8:30am (4/14/21). This is an opportunity to walk with Sandy for a few blocks or a few miles as he continues on his 815-mile journey from Sonoma to San Diego, California. Sandy is following the CALIFORNIA MISSIONS TRAIL and his goal for Wednesday is to walk from the Santa Barbara Mission to Carpinteria. On Thursday, he will walk along the coastal ...trail through Carpinteria and take the Rincon Bikepath to Ventura. During his eight-day walk through Santa Barbara County, Sandy visited three missions, a presidio, and dozens of other memorable places along the way. Follow Sandy's 40+ day adventure on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CaliforniaMissionsTrail

MAKING WEEKEND PLANS? It’s amazing what a couple of hours outside can do for your sense of well-being. Join Trails Council and REI this weekend in our call to #optoutside. Fresh air, sunshine, and being physically active is good for your body and your mind. BLACK FRIDAY: Any wide open space SATURDAY & SUNDAY: Baron Ranch Trails... The Baron Ranch Trails are open on Saturday and Sunday this weekend. This is a great place to kick off the holiday season with a serene walk in nature on the Gaviota Coast. The trailhead is only 20 minutes west of Goleta. The trail is open for trail running, hiking, and walking. Following social distancing protocols will be doable on the wide ranch roads that make up the trail system. WHAT: Self-guided weekend hiking at Baron Ranch WHEN: Saturday, Sunday, and Monday (the trail is closed other days) WHERE: Gaviota Coast WHY: Wide open trail, parking on Calle Real, views of ocean and islands, abundant wildlife, and more. LENGTH: Approximately 2.5 miles from trailhead to the ocean vista point. The round trip distance is approximately 6.5 miles. DIFFICULTY: The first mile through the canyon is relatively flat. Afterward, moderate to strenuous into the mountains. RESTRICTIONS: No Dogs, No Bikes, No Horses (until after the new bridge is installed) DIRECTIONS: https://sbtrails.org/docs/brt/baron-ranch-directions.txt BARON RANCH TRAIL STICKER AND T-SHIRT Post a photo of the ocean taken from the Baron Ranch Trail with the hashtags #optoutside, #HikeBaronRanch, and we will send you a free sticker to commemorate your hike. The long-awaited completion of the Baron Ranch Trail is near. The construction of the bridge across Arroyo Quemado Creek is in progress and we need only $48,000 to finish the trailhead turnaround, signage, kiosk, fencing, interpretive panels, and the last mile of trail construction. Please donate to support this expansion of the Santa Barbara County Trail System. Donate to the Baron Ranch Trail project and we will send a sticker, a trail map, and an official Baron Ranch T-shirt as our thank you gift. https://sbtrails.org/our-work/donations/#baron #optoutside, #HikeBaronRanch, #SantaBarbaraTrails, #RecreateResponsibly

BE HEARD, TAKE ACTION... Available Now! The Draft Northern Santa Barbara County Interim California Coastal Trail Study identifies a continuous trail from Guadalupe to Gaviota highlighting opportunities for beach access and coastal recreation improvements in northern Santa Barbara County. Tour the trail route via this online story map https://arcg.is/0v5PTS, take the survey and share your comments.... Review the Draft Northern Santa Barbara County Interim California Coastal Trail Study at this link: http://explore-santa-barbara-county.com//CTS-Draft-Public-. Send comments on the draft study to [email protected] by October 25, 2020. Help us to expand trails and recreation in the North County!

The Trails Council is collaborating with Los Padres Forest Association, The C.R.E.W., and Sage Trail Alliance, to repair the fire-damaged and severely overgrown Murietta Trail near Ojai, Calif. Located in the Los Padres National Forest, the Murietta Trail is one of many that still needs to be restored after being devastated by the Thomas Fire. The project was partially funded with a grant from the Thomas Fire Trail Fund. We now need community support to finish the project thi...s fall. DONATE TODAY: https://thomasfiretrailfund.org/donate/ LEARN MORE: https://thomasfiretrailfund.org/2020/09/murietta-trail-work/ TRAIL MAP: https://thomasfiretrailfund.org/docs/Murietta-Trail-Map.png

TRAIL CLOSURE -- RED FLAG WARNING The Santa Barbara Ranger District has announced that all trailheads, campgrounds, and day-use sites in Los Padres National Forest are temporarily closed September 7 through September 14, 2020. By extension, we urge everyone to honor the trail closure and avoid using the trails in the front country of the Santa Ynez Mountains and elsewhere in the Los Padres National Forest. Please do not use the trails until the Red Flag warning is lifted. Clo...sing the trails (with or without a sign) is a way to protect a community asset. The trails are owned by all who live here. Now is a good time to demonstrate stewardship by delaying trail use for a week or so. Trails Council has postponed plans to work on the trails and habitat restoration project at Baron Ranch in Gaviota until the Red Flag warning is over. We have been notified by County Parks that the gates will be locked and trail access prohibited. LEARN MORE: https://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/lpnf/alerts-notices/

DRY, DRY, So Very DRY. The ocean-facing habitat restoration area that parallels the entry to the Baron Ranch Trail is now parched due to summer heat and no rain. The good news is that volunteers Aanjelae, Dale, Gerry, Kiko, Kate, Asura, and Mark arrived on Saturday to water all 335 native plants and remove nearby weeds. The native plants are surviving thanks to the support from numerous volunteers who are helping out until the rainy season arrives.

BE HEARD, TAKE ACTION...share your thoughts about the Santa Ynez River Trail Alignment Study. The deadline to complete the short survey is Friday 8/14. Please go to the link below and scroll to the very bottom of the page - fill out the short Survey. The website is full of interesting maps and information that we recommend you read as well. LINK TO SURVEY:... http://ktuagis.maps.arcgis.com/apps/Cascade/index.html LEARN MORE: The cities of Buellton and Solvang are located approximately 3.5 miles apart but are only connected via State Highway 246 which has a posted speed limit of up to 55 miles per hour. Additionally, Highway 246 only has bicycle lanes within the City of Buellton and only for the westbound direction east of the US 101 interchange. A multi-modal trail connection between the two cities has been included in several plans, with it most recently being the highest priority project in the 2019 Santa Ynez Valley Bicycle Master Plan. An ideal multimodal trail connection would accommodate bicyclists, pedestrians, and equestrians a study is underway to look for alignment opportunities, including along the Santa Ynez River, along Highway 246, or a variety of hybrid options. This project will inform the future selection of alignment, but it will not identify a preferred alignment. The project’s objective is to catalog potential multimodal trail alignments that connect Buellton and Solvang, using the Highway 246 corridor and land adjacent to the Santa Ynez River. Mapping has been conducted with the input of a Technical Advisory Committee consisting of staff from Buellton and Solvang, Caltrans, the County of Santa Barbara, the Santa Barbara County Association of Governments, and local business owners. The study is being conducted through a partnership of SBCAG, the cities of Buellton and Solvang, and the County of Santa Barbara. A public workshop was tentatively scheduled to occur in early April; however, the COVID-19 public health crisis necessitated the need to develop an alternative means to gather public input. As this project relies heavily on spatial information, a web map-based means was determined to best meet the needs of this project. For anyone uncomfortable with this platform, comments may be emailed to Jared Carvalho at [email protected], mailed to SBCAG at 260 N. San Antonio Road, Suite B, Santa Barbara, CA 93110. The project team is also available to connect via telephone to discuss this project. Please call SBCAG at 805-961-8900, leave a message and your call will be returned in a timely manner. As was previously mentioned, the purpose of this project is to inform a future decision by elected officials in the selection of an alignment, assuming the development of a trail moves forward. The comments you provide will be included in the final document produced for this project and will be available for review by the elected officials.