Category Archives: Santa Barbara

The Myth Of Wilderness and Ethnocentrism: Race and Recognition In the Woods

Posted on July 2, 2020 by Jack Elliott

Los Padres National Forest, Santa Barbara County “The evidence strongly suggests that the prehistoric Indians’ effect on the environment can no longer be ignored by scientists and government agencies charged with stewardship of our natural resources.” M. Kat Anderson Tending … Continue reading →

Posted in Santa Barbara | Tagged Anthropology, backcountry, Chumash, Hiking, Los Padres National Forest, National Forest, Native Americans, Nature, Race, Wilderness, Writing | 9 Comments

Rename Los Padres National Forest? Race and Recognition In the Woods

Posted on June 29, 2020 by Jack Elliott

Should Los Padres National Forest be renamed? In the roiling social wake of the George Floyd killing, and the peaceful protests and the violence and destruction that erupted across these United States and the world, in this moment of national … Continue reading →

Posted in Santa Barbara | Tagged backcountry, Backpacking, Hiking, History, Indians, Los Padres National Forest, Native Americans, Race, Racism, Social Justice, Wilderness | 38 Comments

Petroglyph, Santa Ynez Mountains

Posted on June 21, 2020 by Jack Elliott

“The symbols of shamans were potentially dangerous because of their material spirituality connecting them to the sacred…The vulva itself was considered unusually perilous. For example, a Northern Paiute account indicates that the worst from of sorcery a man could endure … Continue reading →

Posted in Santa Barbara | Tagged Adventure, Archaeology, Hiking, Hiking (2), History, Los Padres National Forest, Native Americans, Nature, Petroglyphs, Santa Barbara, Santa Ynez Mountains | 10 Comments

Condor Cave Reference On Redwood Log, Disney California Adventure Park

Posted on June 8, 2020 by Jack Elliott

Chumash pictograph, Santa Barbara County “Native people drew spiral pictographs—sets of concentric rings radiating out from a center—on cave walls and rock shelters in locations where they are illuminated by the rising sun on the winter solstice. Solstice ceremonies, such … Continue reading →

Posted in Santa Barbara | Tagged Adventure, Archaeology, backcountry, Chumash, Hiking, History, Indians, Native Americans, Nature, Pictographs, Travel | 4 Comments

Parks Management Company’s Red Rock Racket and the Secret Green Ticket

Posted on May 28, 2020 by Jack Elliott

Kid on a rope. Parks Management Company employees will never tell you that you’re free to drive past their checkpoint at First Crossing, at the end of Paradise Road in Santa Barbara County, and park in unpaved pullouts along River … Continue reading →