Despite official talk to extend trail closures within the Thomas Fire burn area for the next year, it appears that pressure is building to reopen one or more of the popular front country trails reasonably soon.
In an exclusive interview with me on April 21, Los Padres National Forest Ranger Pancho Smith of the Santa Barbara/Ojai District said he would be announcing four new closure orders that will affect public access. One of the orders would have declared the front country trails within the burn area off limits for at least another year.
That has not gone over well with locals. One Facebook posting worried that the public may “stand a chance of losing the trails in this political/economic environment, if we do not use the trails. I feel that if a warning sign is put up, those that cannot handle it will not risk it.”
Another post wondered, “is there a reason we should be made criminals just by visiting these areas?”
Misplaced Frustration?
Others seem more concerned that little is being done to repair trail damage from the winter wildfire, flash flooding and debris flows — other than closing the trails to the public.
“We’re definitely missing our trails,” one poster noted. “The ones that are open and accessible are so crowded.”
“How about at least the Edison catwalks?” another added. “There is a lot of ground we can cover if we can use those.”
Still others urged action now.
“The Bucket Brigade is ready to help!” one post declared.
Jill Zachary, director of the Santa Barbara Parks & Recreation Department, acknowledged the frustration.
“It may not seem like a lot is happening right now other than the trail closure,” she said, “but there is a lot going on that will be very helpful in the long run.
“We’ve been actively involved with FEMA in pursuit of funding for our trails in the Cold Spring Canyon area, as has the county.”
Zachary explained that the costs in the Cold Spring Canyon area alone could run into the millions of dollars given the damage to the trailhead, washed out trails and creek crossings, and other damage there hasn’t been time to analyze.
“Assuming FEMA will approve our requests, at that point we can begin strategizing on the restoration process, develop plans of work and authorize approval of contracts,” she said. “Hopefully, we’ll know soon.”
Developing Public Awareness
Zachary added that she agreed more needed to be done to provide the public with an awareness of why the trails must be closed now and an understanding of the issues that have to be resolved before trail reconstruction can begin.
Challenges include obtaining FEMA funding, completing engineering and design work, getting required environmental permits and working with private landowners who have trail easements on their property.
It should also be noted that only Santa Barbara County and the City of Santa Barbara are eligible for FEMA funding in the burn areas. As a federal agency, Los Padres National Forest, which either owns or holds easements for the majority of the trails in the closed area, is exempt.
Much of the cost of rebuilding the burn area trails may need to come from other grant opportunities, fundraising efforts and donations.
Cold Spring Example
At the Cold Spring trailhead, currently those who are ignoring the trail closure are simply walking straight up the canyon; others have made improvements to a narrow trail along the west side of Cold Spring Creek to provide better access.
Some are coming by bike; others by parking along Mountain Drive and walking in. All are violating the closure. A majority of those I’ve talked to think the area should be reopened soon and aren’t sure why it can’t.
“First,” Zachary noted, “the creek crossing was destroyed by the debris flow. We need to understand what the county plans are for restoring the crossing before we begin to rebuild the trailhead.”
Current county long-range plans call for a bridge to be constructed as a replacement for the current “Arizona-style” culvert that crosses the roadway. Should the county go ahead with that plan, it could be months or more before the trail could be reopened.
For those who say it would be easy to shift the trailhead to the other side of the creek, Zachary noted that the creek itself and the west side are both on private property so those who are ignoring the closure area are trespassing. Indeed, most of the lower part of the Cold Spring Trail and the lower half of the West Fork Trail are on private land.
Another complicating factor are three major creek crossings in Cold Spring Canyon that will require extensive work to restore them. State creek alteration permits will most likely be required before that work can be done.
Illegal Trail Access
Complicating the matter even further, a large section of the popular canyon and ridge loop trail is not a legal trail. Known as the Ridge Trail, the lower trailhead switches back and forth up the east side of the canyon and then traverses uphill for a half-mile to its intersection with the canyon trail near the Edison power lines.
The trail crosses several private parcels and part of Santa Barbara’s Gould Park property. Approximately halfway up are a few scattered remains from an old hippie house, which may have been the initial reason for a trail being developed to it.
That trail has been extended, improved and — until the Thomas Fire and debris flows — likely served thousands of trail users for the past 15 years of so.
Despite this, the trail is illegal and most likely will require easements across the private holdings and detailed environmental reviews before the ridge section can be repaired.
Limiting Factors
Almost all of the trails within the burn area have similar issues that must be resolved before trail work can commence.
These include the environmental and permitting issues noted above; engineering or design work to rebuild sections of trail totally destroyed by the debris flows; easement issues; parking limitations; and, in a number of cases, lack of access to the trailheads.
Trail Partnerships Developing
Last week, members of a number of the local trail organizations, including Los Padres Forest Association (LPFA), Montecito Trails Foundation (MTF), Santa Barbara County Trails Council (SBCTC) and Santa Barbara Mountain Bike Trail Volunteers (SBMTV) were invited to meet with Smith, Zachary and Brian Yanez, deputy director of Santa Barbara County Parks, to discuss partnership opportunities that could lead to a more incremental way to reopen some of the trails while maintaining the overall closure.
Currently the four volunteer organizations are in the process of developing an informal coalition whose initial goal is to expedite the reopening process by providing trail condition assessments, maps, surveys and environmental reports as needed for restoration approval. They also expect to provide crews for the reconstruction work when feasible.
The coalition position is similar to that of Rep. Salud Carbajal, D-Santa Barbara, who has made it clear that public safety is the U.S. Forest Service’s top priority when determining trail openings. Congressman Carbajal continues to encourage all stakeholders to work together to reopen these trails as soon they are safe for the public to use. His office is also working to ensure that the County’s request for FEMA resources to reopen trails is met.
May 23 Meeting
The coalition partners will be hosting a third in a series of Trail Talks at 6:30 p.m. May 23 at the Santa Barbara Central Library’s Faulkner Gallery. The free event is titled “Restoring Our Trails: A Community Update Post Thomas Fire and Debris Flows.”
The talks are intended to outline efforts to survey the trails, develop plans of work and cost estimates for repairing the immediate wildfire and storm damage, and improving the the trails to more sustainable conditions that will make them safer and minimize future damage.
As an interim step, the coalition is recommending that the lower part of the Romero Canyon single track trail and the historic Romero jeepway be considered initially for repair work, given that both are outside the disaster exclusion zone, have existing roadside parking, and by connecting with the jeepway makes a popular loop trail that could reduce pressure on other crowded trails.
Also noted was the fact that approval can be granted by a single agency (Los Padres National Forest) and changes requiring environmental approval can be completed after the trail is open.
Trail Restoration Forum
The Wednesday meeting will also serve as a public forum for the public to discuss its concerns, share ideas and provide feedback on any topic relating to the trail closures, restoration priorities or other aspects of the process.
A Final Thought From Daniela
Not all of the Facebook posts were critical of the trail closures. Perhaps a better approach might be to allow time for the Montecito community to heal, the hillsides to restore themselves a bit, for the loose rock and rubble to settle in, and when we rebuild, to do it well.
“I’m cautious by nature, but I hate the thought of someone needing help, because of the unknown hidden dangers,” wrote Daniela.
“You have to think of the public as a whole. Stability, slides, passable trails all have to be considered.
“Again, I haven’t been up there, but I can’t imagine the powers that be wanting us to stay out, unless there is just cause … On the contrary side, I wouldn’t consider someone a criminal for ignoring the closure. What would the consequence be if you were caught?
“I have friends that have taken some of these closed trails, and the reports I’ve heard, make me want to let our mountains heal before I venture on them again …”
— Noozhawk outdoors writer Ray Ford can be reached at rford@noozhawk.com. Click here for his website, SBoutdoors.com. Follow him on Twitter: @riveray. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.