Santa Barbara County has installed new signs for the Hot Springs Trail in Montecito that ban overnight parking.
The signs were installed on March 4, according to Jeff Lindgren, the deputy director of the Parks Division of Community Services.
The new signs replace three old, brown, non-reflective signs that also listed parking hours for the spots.
The signs officially limit parking hours at the lot from 8 a.m. to sunset. The hours were decided because of county code, which says 8 a.m. is the latest time county parks can open.
“We use that in a lot of our parks, and that seems to work fine. We don’t ordinarily rely on any opening hours because people might want to go walk on the beach or access a trail early in the morning when it’s cool,” Lindgren said.
He said the Parks Division may replace the signs because of reports of confusion about the hours.
According to Santa Barbara County First District Supervisor Roy Lee, the county is working to determine what the future signs will say.
“We are working closely with members of the hiking community as well as multiple working groups being run by our office to come up with solutions that make sense for the area. We don’t know yet what the final signage will look like, but we’re confident that it will prevent fire danger and allow space for local hikers,” Lee said.
The current signs were installed at the behest of the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office and California Highway Patrol so they could enforce parking at the location, according to Lindgren.
The Hot Springs Trail has been a source of controversy in recent years as the popularity of the trail and human-made pools in the creek grew in popularity. The pools became internet famous during the COVID-19 pandemic through a series of TikTok videos.
Since then, the pools have attracted crowds from in and out of the Santa Barbara region.
The viral popularity has vexed local residents who live near the trails. Some have complained of trash, vandalized mailboxes, noise, and vehicles being parked for long periods.
The entrance to the trail has only eight legal parking spots, but visitors have illegally parked in front of homes and on the side of the road, according to residents and county officials.
Julia Abrams, who was hiking the trail Monday, said she is originally from the area and tries to visit the trail when she comes home. She said local residents and hikers need to make an effort to understand each other and show respect.
“Grace goes both ways,” Abrams said. “Residents own their properties, but they don’t own the street. Share the space (and) be generous. That’s my thing — as long as everyone is respectful of each other.”
In March, the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors approved $25,000 to monitor the area during red flag days. Those are days when the National Weather Service determines that conditions have a higher risk of fire, such as high winds and hot temperatures.
“We’ve been working to prevent illegal use and fire danger on front-country trails,” Lee said. “The no overnight parking signs allow law enforcement to keep the area safe while respecting our local hikers.”
