Carpinteria Salt Marsh Herb Walk with Lanny Kaufer

I’m celebrating 50 years of Herb Walks this year! Come join me on Sunday, July 26, from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. for an herb walk at the Carpinteria Salt Marsh Nature Park, also known as El Estero, a rare salt wetland in Southern California. Nearly destroyed by development, the remaining estuary was restored in the late 1990s by a group of concerned citizens along with the City of Carpinteria, UCSB, and the Land Trust for Santa Barbara County. Completed in 1997, the 8-acre portion of the marsh owned by the City of Carpinteria was renamed the Carpinteria Salt Marsh Nature Park.

The park includes walking trails and interpretive signage. It is home to hundreds of migrating birds and other wildlife, including exotic sharks, rays and native fish when conditions are right. Depending on the tide level we may be able to see marine wildlife like the Shovelnose Guitarfish, Round Stingrays, Smoothhound Sharks or the Leopard Shark shown in Malia Smith’s video from our walk there in 2023.

There is a great variety of edible and medicinal plants of the Coastal Strand and Coastal Sage Scrub plant communities for us to see and learn from. Useful native plants there include Blue Elderberry, California Blackberry, Grindelia, Lemonade Berry, Mugwort, Pickleweed, Wild Rose, and Coastal Sagebrush.

Due to the sensitivity of the habitat, dogs are prohibited. No smoking, please.

Adult tickets are $35, tickets for students 13-17 or adult full-time students are $25. Children 12-and-under may attend for free, with advance notice and approval. One supervising adult must accompany each child 12 years old or younger. Senior discount is available by request.

Copies of my book, Medicinal Herbs of California, along with the rest of my mobile bookshop, will be on hand for sale and signing before and after the walk.

Visit HerbWalks.com to learn more and register.