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I've never hiked around Santa Barbara.
I carry a camera, like to take pictures and at the same time I'm looking for a good, long and hard hike anywhere from 15 to 20 miles +. I go about 2.5 to 3mph and I'll have about 9 hours to burn and want to take advantage of the best hike. What are the best loop, vista hikes that are easy to follow? I like to stay on trails.
Thank you.
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[Kevin]

Wasn't sure if you were looking for front country or back country hikes but here's a couple of front country loops--both around 20 miles--that make good long dayhikes. Take a gallon of water at least if you're going this time of year.

1.Start on the Jesusita Trail either in Stevens Park or by the water treatment plant on San Roque. Cross over to Mission Creek (about 6m) then take the trail up the west side of the creek toward Seven Falls, go left up the hill after a quarter mile or so and climb Arlington Peak, follow the ridge over to Cathedral Peak, then follow a pretty bad trail down the backside and then up to La Cumbre Peak. From LaCumbre you can walk east on Camino Cielo a mile or so to Tunnel trail, which will bring you back to Mission Creek. Retrace your steps on the Jesusita back to where you started.

2. Start at the Buena Vista TH in Montecito. Hike the BV to the catway. Follow the catway east to the Romero trail. Take the Romero up to Camino Cielo up to the summit (stay east so you cross Juncal Rd. instead of Camino Cielo). Follow it down the other side to the Blue Canyon trail. Go west to Forbush Flat, then back up to CC. Take the San Ysidro down to the catway, then the catway back to the BV trail and out.

Most of the parts of these two are described elswhere on this site. You just have to put them together. As for the back country, there are some great loops but they're not always really easy to follow. One of my favorites is to start at Nira, head up the Lost Valley Trail to Hurricane Deck, with or without a detour to Pool Rock, go west along the cliffs to the Potrero Trail and back down to Bear Paw and the Manzana. It's a really long day but a great one. 20-25 miles depending on detours so you'll want to hit the trail at first light. Not much water once you leave the Manzana. Again, carry a gallon at least.

Have fun.

[FIGHT ON]

Thanks Kevin!

I'm interested in the first one.
I tried to trace it on acme mapper and wondered if you help me fill in the unclear parts. map
It clearly shows a trail marked "Jesusita Trail" leaving Stevens Park from "A" to "B" that I marked on the map.
From there it looks like the trail connects with a dirt road, then leaves the road and reconnects with it again and leaves it again until it reaches "F". From there it shows a trail going to the east and one going to the west. Where do I go from there?
Do I go up the ridge to Arlington Peak "G" from there or is there a trail not shown?
From Arlington I'm guessing I follow the ridge to Cathedral Peak "H" and from there to "I" La Cumbre Peak.

The road and the The Tunnel Trail looks clear and easy to follow back to "F".

Do I need an adventure pass or anything like that to park at Stevens Park?

I've hiked to Santa Paula Peak and there were a lot of ticks. Any along this route? Snakes? etc.

Thanks again and for any further advice.
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[Diane]

The trail to Arlington ridge is called Cathedral Peak on this site. There is not a trail on the map for this hike. It's a primitive trail that requires some rock scrambling and a considerable amount of searching for the "trail."

Another good hike, similar to Kevin's #2 is to make a loop involving San Ysidro Trail, Forbush Flat, Blue Canyon, Romero, Buena Vista/Edison catway and back to San Ysidro Trail.

Another good option is to map out a good hike that originates around Little Pine Mountain. The hike to Little Pine mountain is pretty scenic. When you go over the other side at Alexandar saddle, there are interesting things to take pictures of. There are interesting things to see along the Buckhorn Road, too.

Also good for pictures is to hike the Manzana Trail, especially down stream toward the Schoolhouse. The Schoolhouse is interesting. If you are willing to search around for the grave site, the grave and the chimney there are interesting. Lots of thorny thistles around that area make it difficult to get to, though. Along the way to Manzana Schoolhouse there are interesting rock cliffs. If you can find the Hurricane Deck trail from the schoolhouse, hiking back to Potrero Trail is scenic. This is not a good time of year to hike on Hurricane Deck, however. People die there from dehydration. There is no water and it is hot and the trail is poor.

In our area, the best time to take pictures are spring and fall. There are better colors, especially in fall when the sycamore leaves change color. It's also a better time to hike in general. It's pretty darn hot behind our mountains this time of year, and the flies can be obnoxious.

[FIGHT ON]

Diane thanks for all the information.
I'd like to stay on the ocean side, seems safer because I don't know the area.
I looked on google earth and can see a trail going up a ridge to the east of Arlington Peak and across to Cathedral Peak but can't see one going north from there to La Cumbre Peak. Is that section hard to get through?
What if I go up the Tunnel Trail? That looks to be a clear and easy trail to follow. Why is it called the Tunnel Trail? Is there a tunnel? Where exactly would I park and start hiking.
Are there signs along the way or is it pretty obvious.
Thanks again.
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[Tonyuphill]

One of my favorites is Jesusita to Arroyo Burro. Arroyo Burro comes out at East Camino Cielo. Walk east on East Camino Cielo then take Tunnel trail back down to Jesusita. Go west on Jesusita and back to where you started. It may be a little easier to follow. I would recommend hiking poles for portions of the Arroyo Burro. Snakes? Anywhere in the hills this time of year. Tony
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See ya on the trail!!

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Hey Tony!

That sounds great!
I marked this mapto show what I am guessing are points along the trail.
I have a some questions I'm hoping you can answer about the hike.

Are there trail signs along the way?
If not where could I go wrong?
Does the map and my markers show the correct path?
Is "A" where you start hiking?
How many miles is it to East Camino Cielo from the start?
How many miles is it to the start of the tunnel trail from there and how many miles is it back to the start?

Thanks
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[FIGHT ON]

I took the Tunnel Trail to the La Cumbre peak and back the same way.
I'll do anything to avoid shopping, even eat sardines!
I started around 10 am and saw about 10 hikers total going down. One was a 76 year old guy whose wife was waiting for him at the top in her car to pick him up.
A couple of times I wasn't sure if I was going the right way because the signs were so messed up.
Saw a bunch of burnt up stuff and a few flowers.
I would have taken more pictures but some water from my bladder hose dripped into my camera and shut it down after the bench mark shot.
Everyone I met along the way was very friendly and I had a great time.
Thanks for your advice.



more pics
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