Several Santa Barbara County area backcountry trails and campgrounds have closed until next year to allow construction of bridges in Los Padres National Forest.

Campgrounds that are accessed via Sunset Valley Road will be closed to the public during the construction, which is expected to be finished by March 30.

Sunset Valley Road is located behind Figueroa Mountain in Santa Barbara County, according to the Los Padres Forest Association.

Closed trails and campgrounds in Los Padres National Forest include:

Trails and campgrounds that are accessed from Sunset Valley Road will be closed to the public while crews replace low-water crossings. The construction project is expected to last until March. (Los Padres Forest Association map)

» Catway off-road vehicle trail (Forest Trail No. 29W09).

» Davy Brown Campground located in the Sunset Valley along Davy Brown Creek.

» Nira Campground along the Manzana Creek, which is the main access point to the San Rafael Wilderness area of the forest.

Access to these areas is closed for all visitors, including hikers, equestrians, bicycles and vehicles, according to the Los Padres Forest Association.

Los Padres National Forest officials plan to remove and replace two concrete low-water “Arizona” road crossings on Davy Brown and Munch creeks along Sunset Valley Road (Forest Road No. 8N09) in the Manzana Creek/Sisquoc River watershed.

Sunset Valley Road, which provides access to the Nira Campground and trailhead, above, will be closed until next spring while two bridges are constructed to replace low-water crossings that have deteriorated. (Giana Magnoli / Noozhawk photo)

“The crossings are in poor condition and are not functioning as intended due to high water-flow events, which have carried sediment and debris that have weakened these structures over the years,” U.S. Forest Service spokesman Andrew Madsen said in a statement.

The existing concrete crossings will be replaced with channel spanning bridges, he said.

The removal of two creek crossings on Sunset Valley Road will require a complete road closure to excavate the concrete low-water crossings and import construction materials for the two new bridges, Madsen said.

Last week, crews were mobilizing equipment and prepping, according to Tony Martinez, the Santa Lucia District Ranger.

The main trailhead that provides access to the historic Manzana Schoolhouse in Los Padres National Forest will be inaccessible until next spring due to a bridge construction project on Sunset Valley Road. (Giana Magnoli / Noozhawk photo)

The closure went into effect on July 30.

Sunset Valley Road is the main access into the Manzana River area, and would have an impact on camping upstream toward the Manzana Narrows or downstream to the historic Manzana Schoolhouse Campground and the Sisquoc River, according to Ray Ford, Noozhawk’s outdoors writer.

There still is access from the Figueroa Mountain area, but mostly not practical given the elevation and distance to get to the Manzana, he said.

“Given the road into the upper Santa Ynez being closed to vehicles as well — which is another of the access points to the upper parts of the San Rafael and Dick Smith — that pretty much restricts access from the south,” Ford said via email.

“I would say given the temperatures and lack or rain or water, heading into the wilderness areas right now is a bit sketchy,” he added.

— Noozhawk staff writer Brooke Holland can be reached at bholland@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.

An inviting pool on Manzana Creek in the San Rafael Wilderness area of Los Padres National Forest. The main trailhead that provides access to this area will be inaccessible until next spring due to a bridge construction project on Sunset Valley Road. (Giana Magnoli / Noozhawk photo)

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