A hiker makes a leap across Cold Spring Creek, which is swelled with runoff from the recent storms. 
Hikers clamor across logs to cross rain-swollen Cold Spring Creek. 
A group of intrepid hikers braves high creek flows on the Cold Spring Trail. 
A swallow-tail butterfly along the trail. 
Robert Bermstein, right, with Tom Powers, who reopened the Hippie House Trail in the 1990s.
On Sunday, we ventured out with several of my co-workers on the Cold Spring Trail in Montecito.
I have done that hike probably hundreds of times in the past 34 years. This is the first time the stream crossings were nearly impassable!
Here are my photos and some video clips!
It was one of the few times I have ever seen Mountain Drive closed near the trailhead where the stream crosses the road.
We had arrived on the west side of that crossing, which meant that we had one extra crossing to make right at the start. Many people turned back after seeing the roaring creek there.
But cars were parked everywhere there was space, so there were still plenty of daring adventurers on the trail.
We had to make two more very scary crossings further up the creek. We were fortunate to have each other to hold on to during the crossings.
I would not recommend people try to make the crossings alone.
I also would not recommend trying to wade across. The current is powerful and it is easy to get swept away.
Another factor to consider: The rains have washed poison oak oils into the water. It is not wise to go into the water under such conditions.
That said, we very much enjoyed the gushing water and rapids and the lush vegetation.
We returned from the overlook at the top via the “Hippie House Trail.”
That trail is a high trail on the opposite side of the canyon from the original trail, so it has no stream crossings. The “Hippie House” was a commune back in the 1960s, long since abandoned, along with the trail it was on.
But that trail was re-opened by Tom Powers in the 1990s. I had not seen Tom Powers for several years.
Just as we started down the trail, I started to explain to my friends about him and his trail building. And, just as I started to speak, there was Tom Powers in person! How amazing!
He said he is slow now with hip and knee replacements, but I was happy to see that he is still able to climb the trail that he re-built so many years ago.
After descending the Hippie House trail, we had just that one more crossing to get back to our car. Crossing on those big logs was a lot easier than the rock crossings we had made upstream!
After visiting Tangerine Falls and San Ysidro Falls recently, I did not expect Cold Spring Trail to be so exciting.
I am glad I was wrong and also glad we made it back with nothing worse than some of us getting our boots wet!
Robert Bernstein regularly leads hikes on local trails for the Sierra Club.
