How to Adventure in the Cuyama Valley
Los Padres ForestWatch and Cuyama Buckhorn
Collaborate on Region’s First-Ever Outdoors Guide
By Matt Kettmann | Photos by Bryant Baker/Los Padres ForestWatch
June 8, 2023
Read more of our Blue & Green 2023 stories here.
When I first drove through the Cuyama Valley in 1999, I was instantly transfixed by the mix of hard-scrabble moonscapes, arduous agriculture, and pine-pocked mountaintops, even envious of the brave souls who traded modern niceties for solitude and stargazing. Somehow, this confluence of dusty desolation and ferocious freedom existed in the northeastern corner of Santa Barbara County, so I’ve returned many times over the years to explore the place and meet its people.
But I barely know where to start if someone asks what they should do when they visit, and that question is increasingly common thanks to the Cuyama Buckhorn, the stylish hotel, restaurant, and community hub that opened in 2019. Now, thanks to a collaboration between the Buckhorn and the nonprofit Los Padres ForestWatch (LPFW), there’s a one-stop shop answer: A Guide to the Outdoors in Cuyama Valley, a 55-page, full-color pamphlet featuring everything visitors need to experience the valley, from trail details to packing tips.
“I’ve been exploring the Cuyama’s foothills, canyons, and ridgelines for nearly two decades and have come to know the area well, “ said LPFW’s executive director Jeff Kuyper, who met the Buckhorn’s owners during a wine tasting in 2021. “But condensing it all into a guidebook was something new altogether. We had to put ourselves into the mindset of someone who has never been here before, and quickly rediscovered how difficult it is to navigate the landscape. Signage is lacking, so there is a good amount of storytelling required just to explain to readers how to find a spot on the map. But that’s what’s fascinating about this region: So much of the adventure here is just trying to find your way around.”
He tells us more below.
Which adventures do you recommend for total Cuyama newbies? New visitors will find that feeling you get when you’re literally out in the middle of nowhere. The Cuyama is a remote place, with few services, yet the opportunities here are boundless. You can find trails with no one else on them, wildlife (like California condors) you probably won’t see anywhere else, and a wide variety of ecosystems. It’s a place where we can go back in time to another era, but also find quaint destinations with modern amenities like the Buckhorn, small shops, wine tasting, and more — all on a very remote scale. The Cuyama Valley has something for everyone, and we tried to cover it all in the guide.
How about for those with more experience already under their belts? I enjoyed finding the oft-forgotten Caliente Mountain Trail, which provides the only public access from Highway 166 into the Carrizo Plain National Monument. Is there a sign announcing the trailhead? No. Is there an official parking area? No. Is there still a trail? Well, sometimes. The trail is no longer shown on maps, but it’s an official trail, and it was thrilling to rediscover the trailhead and explore this little-known landscape.
Seasons matter a lot in the high desert. When’s the best time to visit, and why? My favorite time of year is late fall, when the air turns crisp and the leaves begin to turn. The most popular time to visit, of course, is the springtime, when wildflowers abound. The summer brings triple-digit temperatures, making an excellent opportunity for sunrise or twilight hikes to beat the heat. It’s an unforgiving landscape, so you need to come prepared whatever the season.
Are there any efforts underway to develop any new trails or campsites, or improve any of the ones that do exist in Cuyama? The Cuyama Valley has so much potential as a recreation destination, but it’s also woefully ignored or overlooked. As a result, trails aren’t properly maintained, trailheads aren’t properly signed, and campsites fall into disrepair. This guide will hopefully bring renewed attention to the area so that everyone — agencies, organizations, elected officials, and other stakeholders — can more fully realize all that the Cuyama Valley has to offer and to devote resources to it accordingly.
What is the overall hope for this publication? We want folks from throughout the region to discover (or rediscover) their relationship with the Cuyama Valley, to understand the fragile nature of the landscape and why the area is important to protect. And we want folks to explore the area safely, in a way that honors the area’s rich history and its spiritual, cultural, and ecological values. By buying this guide, our hope is that people will come away with a more profound appreciation of this hidden corner of Santa Barbara County.
See cuyamabuckhorn.com and forestwatch.org.
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