Santa Barbara County residents flocking to see snow in the local mountains encountered road closures and traffic jams on Saturday as the effects of a powerful winter storm continued to be felt.
Despite ongoing closures for the Los Padres National Forest since the Jan. 9 storms caused significant damage, many drivers weren’t deterred.
A snowman takes shape in the mountains above Santa Barbara. Credit: Ray Ford / Noozhawk photo 
Vehicles jam up East Camino Cielo on Saturday as people flocked to visit the snow, even though the roadway is closed and blocked off. Credit: Ray Ford / Noozhawk photo 
In impromptu snowboard run in the mountains above Santa Barbara. Credit: Ray Ford / Noozhawk photo 
Snow-covered mountains behind Carpinteria on Saturday. Credit: Susie Clothier photo 
A toddler gets a ride in the snow in the Painted Cave area in the mountains above Santa Barbara. Credit: Ray Ford / Noozhawk photo 
A lone palm tree in a Santa Barbara Mesa neighborhood framed by the snow covered Santa Ynez Mountains from an overnight storm. Credit: Mike Eliason photo 
Vehicles jam East Camino Cielo in the mountains above Santa Barbara as people flock to the area to play in the snow. Several vehicles were reported getting stuck. Credit: Ray Ford / Noozhawk photo 
Snow-covered mountains behind Carpinteria on Saturday. Credit: Susie Clothier photo 
Cortez enjoying a trip to the snow Saturday in the mountains above Santa Barbara. Credit: Jeff Towery photo 
With Interstate 5 closed north of Los Angeles due to snow and ice, Highway 101 in Santa Barbara County is seeing a lot of extra traffic. Here, big-rigs crowd a truck stop in the Santa Maria Valley Credit: Janene Scully / Noozhawk photo 
An overhead view of water spilling over Bradbury Dam at Lake Cachuma on Saturday. Credit: Mike Eliason photo 
Two views of Montecito Peak and East Camino Cielo to the west, taken from Montecito on Saturday morning. The photo on the bottom was taken at 9:50 a.m. and the top photo was taken five minutes later. Credit: Bill Macfadyen / Noozhawk photo 
The ridgeline along East Camino Cielo west of Montecito Peak was covered in snow all day Saturday. Credit: Cathy Haslem photo 
Santa Barbara County’s snow-covered backcountry in a view from the Lake Cachuma lookout Saturday afternoon. Credit: Wendy Kaiser photo 
The snow-capped Santa Ynez Mountains make for a majestic background for the Santa Barbara Mission on Saturday. Credit: Peter Hartmann / Noozhawk photo 
Tourists pose for a photo opportunity as storm clouds gather off Santa Barbara’s Leadbetter Beach on Saturday. Credit: Peter Hartmann / Noozhawk photo 
Saturday’s Santa Barbara Snow Day from the back of the Riviera. Credit: Robert Welti photo 
Santa Barbara’s Milpas Street had a good view of Saturday’s snow in the mountains. Credit: Amelie Dalporto photo 
The snow-covered San Rafael Mountains behind a full Lake Cachuma. Credit: Wendy H. Kaiser photo 
The snow-covered Santa Ynez Mountains behind the Santa Barbara Mission. Credit: Peter Hartmann / Noozhawk photo
Snow proved to be the big attraction as residents couldn’t resist the lure of snow-capped mountains seen around the Central Coast, where drivers ignored road closures in search of the white stuff.
A lengthy traffic jam, many involving vehicles not suitable for snowy conditions, was reported on East Camino Cielo in the mountains above Santa Barbara at mid-day Saturday.
“It’s just unfortunate with people just insisting on going up when they know it’s closed,” U.S. Forest Service spokesman Andrew Madsen said. “We’re hoping within the next couple of weeks to reopen some areas.”
It’s not just Los Padres National Forest closed due to weather, with Yosemite National Park and the Santa Monica Mountains also prohibiting people, Madsen noted.
“Most of the places people could go to right now are closed,” Madsen said, adding that roads remain shut down due to snowy and icy conditions.
He estimated snowfall at 6-8 inches in local mountains, leading to images he likened to a Christmas postcard.
“There’s snow on just about every high point,” he said.
Both Forest Service and Santa Barbara County Public Works Department representatives stressed that drivers who bypass barricades and closure signs could receive citations from law enforcement officers.
With the heavy rainfall, excess water remains a concern.
In the Lompoc Valley and other areas near the Santa Ynez River, a flood warning will remain in effect until 11 p.m. Saturday as Cachuma continues to spill significantly, increasing the river’s flow and level, according to the National Weather Service.
An estimated 25,000 cubic feet per second was pouring over the dam into the river, said Lael Wageneck, public information officer for the county Public Works Department.
The river was expected to peak at 18.6 feet early Saturday afternoon, with flooding expected around Floradale Avenue.
Some minor flooding occurred on ag land on the western and eastern sides of the city, and water again soaked the River Bend Bike Park, which was built by volunteers and recently received repairs due to damage from the January storms.
Late Saturday afternoon, representatives from the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation and Santa Barbara County met to assess the Cachuma releases, according to Matt Young, county Water Agency manager
Federal officials plan to gradually lower releases, as required by law.
“That is good news. The inflows are receding so therefore the outflows can drop as well,” Young said.
With forecasts calling for more rain, albeit a minimal amount compared to the recent storm, county and federal officials will watch the levels very closely, Young added.
Heavy rains that fell in recent days led to several road closures, some ignored by drivers who required rescue.
Late Friday night, a driver bypassed road closure signs on Highway 135 between Bell Street and Harris Grade Road, only for the SUV to get stuck in flood waters, requiring rescue by the Santa Barbara County Fire Department.
For now, Highway 101 drivers on the Central Coast will see more truck and other traffic due to the closure of Interstate 5 at the Grapevine north of Los Angeles.
Since snow continued falling Saturday, Caltrans officials said they expected the closure to continue overnight, with a reopening decision depending on conditions.
The National Weather Service released four-day rainfall totals on Saturday, with Gibraltar Dam seeing 10.36 inches, 3 inches in Santa Barbara, 3.70 in Goleta, 5.52 in Lompoc, 2.20 in Santa Maria and 6.13 on the San Marco Pass.
“Quite a remarkable storm the last few days with historic amounts of precip and snow down to elevations that rarely see snow,” said David Gomberg from the National Weather Service office in Oxnard.
Following lingering showers Saturday, the weather should be clear on Sunday, but more rain returns to the forecast Monday through Wednesday.
The next system will arrive in multiple impulses hitting the Central Coast, with totals expected to amount to one-half to 1 inch.
“It will be milder, that’s for sure,” Gomberg said.
Snow levels will continue to be somewhat low, at the 3000 to 4000 foot range for interior mountains, but likely won’t include the Santa Ynez Mountains.
Daily highs will be in the 50s with lows in the upper 30s to lower 40s, according to forecasters.
Click here for the latest forecast from the National Weather Service.
