Tag Archives: Santa Barbara

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 →

Posted in Santa Barbara | Tagged Backpacking, Hiking, Hiking (2), Los Padres National Forest, News, Parks Management Company, Red Rock, Santa Barbara, Santa Ynez River, Swimming Holes, Wilderness | 6 Comments

Long Lost Trail Discovered, Hiking In A Time Of Lockdown And Distancing

Posted on April 14, 2020 by Jack Elliott

Jack-in-a-crack doing what he does. Wandering. Searching. Hunting. Looking. Seeing. Sometimes discovering. Looking to get my hike on, and so surveying various trailheads through my car window during the COVID-19 governor’s lockdown order, I saw more cars parked than expected, … Continue reading →

Posted in Santa Barbara | Tagged Adventure, Archaeology, Artifacts, Hiking, Hiking (2), History, Los Padres National Forest, Nature, Santa Barbara, Santa Ynez Mountains, Wilderness | 19 Comments

Baby Blue Eyes Wildflower

Posted on April 12, 2020 by Jack Elliott

A single baby blue eyes now blooming in the folds of the Santa Ynez Mountains, standing tall and strong though alone, maintaining proper social distancing from family and friends in the background, beneath a blue spot of sky above. Happy … Continue reading →

Posted in Santa Barbara | Tagged Hiking, Hiking (2), Los Padres National Forest, Nature, Outdoors, Pics, Santa Barbara, Santa Ynez Mountains, Wilderness, wildflowers, Wildlife | 4 Comments

The Sign

Posted on April 9, 2020 by Jack Elliott

Santa Barbara backcountry The men emerged at dawn from the confine of darkness with strained faces wet and ruddy as writhing newborns and the forested land materialized before their bloodshot eyes by the minute in the lightening day, ever larger, … Continue reading →

Posted in Santa Barbara | Tagged Adventure, backcountry, Backpacking, Fiction, Hiking, Nature, Non-fiction, Outdoors, Santa Barbara, Wilderness, Writing | 12 Comments

Farewell To The Rock, Gibraltar Party Place

Posted on April 7, 2020 by Jack Elliott

El Roca Grande circa 1909 overlooking the Santa Barbara littoral, Pacific Ocean and Santa Cruz Island in the distance. Note the metal poles and cable handrail. “In the 1970s this was The Place. Well, if you were a teenager on … Continue reading →