El Presidio de Santa Bárbara State Historic Park

 The Presidio, built in the 1780s, was one four Spanish military outposts the along the coast of Alta California. Its role was to protect the missions and settlers, provided a seat of government, and guarded the country against foreign invasion. The presidio was built by the local Chumash tribe - not completely willingly - of abode bricks on a sandstone foundation. 

 Mexico gained independence from Spain in 1821 and the presidio was abandoned. After the Mexican American War in the 1840s, the US took over  vast amounts of western land in what is now California, Nevada, New Mexico and Utah. In the decades that followed, the growth of Santa Barbara and earthquakes destroyed most of the presidio. By the twentieth century only two portions of the original structure remained.  

 In 1963 the Santa Barbara Trust for Historic Preservation was formed to protect what was left of the presidio. Archeologists and volunteers began excavations and reconstructions which are ongoing. The site is managed jointly by the Trust and the state. 

 We were surprised by the amount of work that appeared to be left uncompleted for months or even years. The reconstructed chapel is well done as are the commander's quarters and the exhibits in the family quarters on the east side of Santa Barbara Street. The rest is a bit of shambles.

A ramp leads the visitor center but due to construction and the unevenness of the ground, nothing is really accessible. The family quarters contain most of the artifacts and information about life in the presidio and are not accessible due to steps. 

RVs cannot be parked on the streets in Santa Barbara so we parked in the designated RV spaces in the Garden Street lot and walked/rolled to the presidio on State Street. State Street is a entertainment and retail district with 10 blocks closed to traffic. All of the curb cuts are very good and the business have accessible entrances. Once off State Street the curb cuts are steep. Since the presidio is a couple of blocks east of state street, wheelchair uses may need assistance.  Presidio   34.42248, -119.69865

Santa Barbara - Camping and City Parking

We wanted to spend a few days in Santa Barbara which is not an easy thing to do with just an RV and no tow car but the city is so pretty, the spring weather is excellent, and there are plenty of things to do. We decided it was worth the extra work and money. 

The first obstacle are the city parking regulations which rule out parking on the city streets for most vans and RVs. There are five lots in the city that allow oversized vehicles. Each of the lots has five spaces marked with yellow lines where RVs are permitted to be parked. These spaces are also used by the Safe Parking program so they may be filled. We parked in the Garden Street Lot and two of the spaces were being used for Safe Parking. Fortunately May is not busy tourist season and the other spaces were open.  Parking   34.41453, -119.68771

The next obstacle is the price for parking. We're used to free parking or paying just a few dollars so $40 for the day is high. 

         

The third obstacle is the lack of places to camp. The city has a choice of a crowded RV park next to the freeway or the RV park at the fairgrounds which is basically a parking lot with hookups.  We decided the trip up the mountain to the national forest campgrounds was a better choice. This is a 20 mile trip along good but curvy, steep, and heavily traveled roads.

There are four campgrounds along Paradise Road. We tried the first, Fremont, and found it too hilly with small, unlevel sites. We ended up at the next one, Paradise, which is flat with large oak trees. Campgrounds like everything else in southern California are expensive - $40 for a site without hookups. None of the sites are accessible but most are usable. Campground  34.54243, -119.81132

 We enjoyed visiting Santa Barbara and wouldn't hesitate to visit again even with the high prices and complicated planning that is necessary. More Santa Barbara posts coming up!

Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History

The museum, built in 1923 in the Spanish Colonial Revival style, features collections found in many older institutions such as mounted animals, birds, and pinned butterflies plus new and changing exhibits on earth, sea, and space sciences. There are also outdoor areas with live birds, a butterfly pavilion, and a native garden with very realistic animatronic dinosaurs.

The museum is accessible except for two dangerously steep ramps. The museum backyard trail was under construction during our visit and the alternate trail was not accessible so we missed that. The trail to the animatronic dinosaurs is accessible with assistance. Stay on the bricked and boardwalk paths for the most accessible routes. 

The accessible parking spaces near the entrance are too short for RVs but they can be parked across the regular spaces. There are accessible spaces at the west end of the lot where RVs can be parked without interfering with the traffic flow but it's a push uphill to the museum entrance. The dirt trails starting the west end of the lot are not accessible. Museum  34.44118, -119.71522

 

Kenney Grove Park

The large, beautiful trees have been left in place in this Ventura County park and 60 campsites are wedged in wherever they would fit. The campground doesn't have direction signs and many times it looks like the road is heading into a dead end but we eventually found the row of primitive sites and settled in for the night.

Many of the sites on the reservation page are marked as 30' and under. There are a few longer sites but it may be tricky maneuvering through  the campground and backing a long RV into a site.

The primitive sites are not accessible due to the ground cover of loose gravel. Campground   34.40749, -118.94927

 

Museum of Ventura County Agriculture Museum

Bob Pfeiler and other local residents donated the vintage farm equipment and tools that form the nucleus of this small museum. We saw little of the collection on our visit because a special exhibit of large, beautiful photos of Mexican Indigenous group who live in Ventura County filled the main gallery. The museum is only open on Sundays so a little planning is necessary. 

 

The museum is accessible. 

 

The parking lot is large enough for any vehicle. Parking is also available on the street.  Museum  34.35588, -119.06276

 

Los Alamos Campground

 Since this campground is just a few miles off of I-5 it's very easy to access but for some reason, unfathomable to us, it gets little use. There are three loops with 90 sites total. Fewer than 10 were in use over the two days that we camped. Amenities include picnic tables, fire rings, vault toilets, fresh water, and a dump station.

We camped in the second loop but we took a walk/roll through the other loops and found that the first loop has the largest and most level parking pads. All of the loops climb the slope of the hillside so the sites near the park road are the most level. 

The picnic table and fire ring at our site were not accessible due to the very uneven ground and parking blocks framing the parking pad but I think the sites in the first loop may be better. 

Pyramid Lake which is just a few miles south is managed by the California Department of Water Resources and has a separate fee.  Campground  34.7021, -118.81008

  

Jawbone Canyon OHV Area

 Hundreds of miles of OHV trails can be accessed from the camping spots along Jawbone Canyon Road. The area gets busy on the weekends but we decided to chance it for an overnight stop during the week. The spot that I scoped out on Google satellite was taken but there were still plenty to chose from. Our stay was quiet and peaceful with very little traffic on Jawbone Canyon Road and no OHV riders.

 The ground is hard packed so rolling is easy.

The spots are large enough for any vehicle. Jawbone   35.30768, -118.01047

 

Petroglyph Park

The land that is now the Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake, north of Ridgecrest, CA, was the home of the Timbisha Shoshone Tribe and the Kawaiisu people for thousands of years. The rock carvings and paintings that they made have been preserved in Coso Petroglyph National Historic Park but since the park is on the base visitors are rarely permitted. 

Olaf Dowd, an artist who specializes in replicating native rock art, created dozens of pictographs and petrogylphs for the Petroglyph Park in Ridgecrest giving people an opportunity to admire the images even though they can't view the originals. 

The park features paved trails and interpretive signs. It's nicely landscaped with native plants and palm trees.

Most of the park is accessible.

RVs will fit in the parking lot if parked across the spaces. Petroglyphs   35.62649, -117.66817