Winter Willett 2018 | Santa Barbara Hikes

Two years ago we went to Willett's hot spring in August when it was 100 degrees. So why not go in December when it's 50 degrees?

We had beautiful weather. Clear skies and the desert is pretty in December.

The very first creek crossing was full.

Tony is crossing the first creek crossing. This is that side creek before you get to Sespe creek.

The Piedras Blancas.

Here's the creek crossing you get to about half a mile down the trail. It's another side creek. It was full. Lots of the little side creeks were flowing.

The trail is wide. The mountains are crinkled.

Looking over toward the Topa Topa bluffs.

Here's the first big swimming area you get to after about 2 miles of hiking.

It's nice to see water in the creek all along the way.

The interesting Sespe formation visible in the creek bed just before you get to Bear camp.

The swimming hole at Bear Creek was full. Of course it was too cold to go swimming.

<p>Continuing down the creek from Bear. If you've never been on this trail, it seems to go up gently to a corner and drop gently into a valley over and over again.</p>

Continuing down the creek from Bear. If you've never been on this trail, it seems to go up gently to a corner and drop gently into a valley over and over again.

This portion of the creek just needed some ducks to be perfect.

Again, the rounded sandstone of the Sespe formation in the creek. The colors in winter are so muted and pretty.

Cattails in a large creek crossing.

All the dried grasses are beyond golden to almost white. The soft sun of winter adds the golden touch.

A thin band of sandstone resists erosion compared to the shale around it. It is around 3pm in the afternoon and already the shadows are growing.

There's that band of sandstone again.

<p>Here's one of these valleys you go down into between the higher points on the corner. Lots of water in the creek. Lots of camping down below among the oaks and the boulders.</p>

Here's one of these valleys you go down into between the higher points on the corner. Lots of water in the creek. Lots of camping down below among the oaks and the boulders.

We rise up again at the corner at the end of the valley. Lots of camping in those oaks.

A cloud forms. Nothing comes of it.

I spotted a deer far away and zoomed in on it.

You can see all these layers of rock going right across the creek and up the side of the hill.

<p>When you can see that stripey pointy mountain without anything in the foreground, you are there. There being Willett's camping area. When you can see it at all, you are getting close.</p>

When you can see that stripey pointy mountain without anything in the foreground, you are there. There being Willett's camping area. When you can see it at all, you are getting close.

Lots of interesting rock outcrops up ahead.

<p>These weird dead-looking bushes tend to either twist themselves into an upright bundle or they bend over into a hook. This one made a perfect little wedding bower or hobbit door.</p>

These weird dead-looking bushes tend to either twist themselves into an upright bundle or they bend over into a hook. This one made a perfect little wedding bower or hobbit door.

It's big enough to walk through.

Lots of layers looking up toward the Topa Topa bluffs.

Layer cake.

A couple of deer in the valley.

<p>Someone has painted the information on to this sign which has weathered away into oblivion. I think it's a lot less than 1.5 to Willett, even counting the climb up to the spring.</p>

Someone has painted the information on to this sign which has weathered away into oblivion. I think it's a lot less than 1.5 to Willett, even counting the climb up to the spring.

The 4pm sunlight is very golden now. The days are so short!

If you look close you can see the trail that goes up to the spring on the side of the mountain.

Here's the valley below the hot spring where you can camp. When you get to the trail sign with an arrow → go straight instead.

<p>We put up our tent in the sand. It was pretty windy at sundown and we had to place large rocks over the stakes. We don't have a free-standing tent. The tent held up fine, though.</p>

We put up our tent in the sand. It was pretty windy at sundown and we had to place large rocks over the stakes. We don't have a free-standing tent. The tent held up fine, though.

<p>It got cold quickly when the wind came up and the sun went down so we had dinner and skipped trying to go up to the hot spring in the dark. There's a sketchy section we didn't want to have to hike down in the dark.</p>

It got cold quickly when the wind came up and the sun went down so we had dinner and skipped trying to go up to the hot spring in the dark. There's a sketchy section we didn't want to have to hike down in the dark.

<p>We somehow managed to sleep all through the long night without it seeming like a long night. We got up in the morning, had breakfast and went up to the hot spring once the sun was out.</p>

We somehow managed to sleep all through the long night without it seeming like a long night. We got up in the morning, had breakfast and went up to the hot spring once the sun was out.

<p>My camera has way too many lens flares in the winter. There are all these little specks on the lens I cannot seem to clean off. Anyway, we're rising into the crevice in the canyon where the hot spring can be found and looking down on the valley where our camp is.</p>

My camera has way too many lens flares in the winter. There are all these little specks on the lens I cannot seem to clean off. Anyway, we're rising into the crevice in the canyon where the hot spring can be found and looking down on the valley where our camp is.

<p>Animal trails going straight down to the water in the creek. In the summer when the Sespe is dry the hot spring is still flowing. It flows into a creek that flows all the way down into the camping area. It's a little bit alkaline but you can drink it without getting sick. I'd suggest treating it (filter, drops, whatever.)</p>

Animal trails going straight down to the water in the creek. In the summer when the Sespe is dry the hot spring is still flowing. It flows into a creek that flows all the way down into the camping area. It's a little bit alkaline but you can drink it without getting sick. I'd suggest treating it (filter, drops, whatever.)

<p>The hot spring has suffered some minor damage from rock fall. This would be a good project for someone who is strong enough and smart enough to know how to clear away the rock fall without causing a bigger rock fall.</p>

The hot spring has suffered some minor damage from rock fall. This would be a good project for someone who is strong enough and smart enough to know how to clear away the rock fall without causing a bigger rock fall.

There's a hot waterfall.

Ahhh...

It's pretty cold out. The water is 100 degrees. It feels great.

<p>Gotta try the selfies twice just in case. I have a camera, not a phone, because the camera battery lasts for days. I've never gone on a trip long enough to run out the battery. I can take selfies with the self-timer.</p>

Gotta try the selfies twice just in case. I have a camera, not a phone, because the camera battery lasts for days. I've never gone on a trip long enough to run out the battery. I can take selfies with the self-timer.

<p>After soaking so long we turned into prunes, we headed back down the hill. There's an old chimney. There's also an old cabin but we didn't go over to see it. There were lots of people camped here. One guy soaked in the tub with us. A bunch of the people down in the campground had soaked last night.</p>

After soaking so long we turned into prunes, we headed back down the hill. There's an old chimney. There's also an old cabin but we didn't go over to see it. There were lots of people camped here. One guy soaked in the tub with us. A bunch of the people down in the campground had soaked last night.

I wonder what these used to be before they turned into some kind of sticker bush from hell.

<p>It was still windy so we decided we'd had enough of the soaking and would pack up and find a new place to camp. We considered hiking toward the Sespe Hot Springs but decided to instead just head back toward the cars and see if we could find a nice spot part way back. Not all backpacking trips have to be massive death marches.</p><p>You can see old rick-rack on the side of this hill. The trail must have been over there at some point.</p>

It was still windy so we decided we'd had enough of the soaking and would pack up and find a new place to camp. We considered hiking toward the Sespe Hot Springs but decided to instead just head back toward the cars and see if we could find a nice spot part way back. Not all backpacking trips have to be massive death marches.

You can see old rick-rack on the side of this hill. The trail must have been over there at some point.

All these bushes gone to seed seem to glow in the golden winter light. All the soft colors in this desert are really pretty.

So much golden grass.

So much of my life has been spent following these things, trying to see where they go.

There's the pointy mountain and some puffy clouds rising far away.

I knew Tony didn't want to go too far. I was stopping at every high spot to see if there was a good place to camp. At one high spot I noticed a picnic table.

<p>We followed a faint trail off the front of the hill and made our way to the picnic table. Tony loves picnic tables. This was a huge camping area with lots of fire rings everywhere. It looks like a place people take boyscouts or youth groups. We even found some kid's homemade bow for shooting bow and arrows. We were lucky enough to get the campsite with the picnic table to camp in.</p>

We followed a faint trail off the front of the hill and made our way to the picnic table. Tony loves picnic tables. This was a huge camping area with lots of fire rings everywhere. It looks like a place people take boyscouts or youth groups. We even found some kid's homemade bow for shooting bow and arrows. We were lucky enough to get the campsite with the picnic table to camp in.

One table was broken. Will these boards make their way to the hot tub eventually?

The other table still had a seat on one side.

<p>There was a box for the firewood. The official word from the Los Padres National Forest was that there were no fires allowed except in official iron fire rings. We never saw any official iron fire rings.</p>

There was a box for the firewood. The official word from the Los Padres National Forest was that there were no fires allowed except in official iron fire rings. We never saw any official iron fire rings.

Our table was shaded by a lovely large oak tree.

We put the tent up under the tree.

I couldn't get the camera straight for our selfie, but it still came out good.

We saw a deer really close to our campsite.

Looking at one of the other campsites near ours.

I walked around a bit looking at things.

There were interesting boulders in the creek.

This creek needs some ducks.

There's a perfectly round rock inside of this rock.

Winter cattails

I decided to soak in the final rays of the sun.

Tony took these pictures of me.

<p>Later we sat by our "fire". We saw dozens of campers on this trip. Really there were almost as many people camping this week between Christmas and New Years as I've seen around Memorial Day. Yet nobody had a fire. People seem to be very law-abiding. I suppose having almost every inch of your favorite places burn in the last decade, even in the dead of winter, scares a lot of people into just not bothering with campfires. Or maybe the campfires people did have were small and I never smelled the smoke.</p>

Later we sat by our "fire". We saw dozens of campers on this trip. Really there were almost as many people camping this week between Christmas and New Years as I've seen around Memorial Day. Yet nobody had a fire. People seem to be very law-abiding. I suppose having almost every inch of your favorite places burn in the last decade, even in the dead of winter, scares a lot of people into just not bothering with campfires. Or maybe the campfires people did have were small and I never smelled the smoke.

We sat at our picnic table and watched the alpen glow. Our golden mountain shrank and shrank as it got colder and colder.

It got cold quick so we got into our tent where we could layer all our puffy down stuff on top of us to stay warm.

<p>Again we slept through the entire long night without really feeling like it was too much. We must be tired. We had a hot breakfast and packed up our stuff to walk back to the cars slowly.</p>

Again we slept through the entire long night without really feeling like it was too much. We must be tired. We had a hot breakfast and packed up our stuff to walk back to the cars slowly.

My platypus had frozen overnight. I walked out of camp with the ice. It wasn't melting in my backpack.

We stopped up here in the sun to warm up and to take our time.

There's my new backpack. I have a Zpacks Arc Blast. It's got a sort of frame in it so it will stand up on its own. It's pretty good about getting all the weight on to your hips. Not that there was that much weight since I didn't haul much food or water.

My only complaint with this pack is you can feel some of the frame through the hip belt. I think there should be a layer of padding shoved between the hip belt and where the frame is attached. Also, I think I got too big of a hip belt. So maybe the problem will solve itself if I lose some weight on a long trip and have to shove something back there to take up space.

There are stairs in the forest.

The golden light on some leaves.

<p>We've made it back to Piedra Blanca and our cars. We have enough time to go have a burger at Deer Lodge and then pick up our birds at the <a href="http://sbbird.org">Menagerie</a>.</p><p>The Menagerie is the store where they sell supplies for your pet bird and they do bird boarding. In the back yard of the store is the parrot sanctuary where they have good parrots for adoption and bad ones who get a home for life. You can tour it and see all the birds for a small donation. It's a huge cacophony, especially after such a peaceful golden backpack trip.</p>

We've made it back to Piedra Blanca and our cars. We have enough time to go have a burger at Deer Lodge and then pick up our birds at the Menagerie.

The Menagerie is the store where they sell supplies for your pet bird and they do bird boarding. In the back yard of the store is the parrot sanctuary where they have good parrots for adoption and bad ones who get a home for life. You can tour it and see all the birds for a small donation. It's a huge cacophony, especially after such a peaceful golden backpack trip.