The Tipton Trail, a new trail at Santa Barbara Botanic Garden officially opens Sunday, Nov. 17, coinciding with the celebration of National Hiking Day.
Tipton Trail, which is free to use with admission to the Botanic Garden, offers access to areas not previously open to the public, and features panoramic views of Mission Canyon, downtown Santa Barbara, and the Channel Islands.
The 1.3-mile round trip, out-and-back trail leads to the Botanic Garden’s highest point (873 feet) and the site of an active weather station, passing through several ecological habitats currently undergoing native plant restoration.
Reservations are required for garden admittance and can be made at SBBotanicGarden.org/visit.
The Tipton Trail begins near the Pollinator Section on the garden’s east side, (not far from the Pritzlaff Conservation Center) across Mission Canyon Road. As an advanced south-facing trail, it runs along the garden’s eastern edge with an elevation change of 329 feet and an average grade of 12.5%.
“As part of our wildland urban interface, this amazing natural habitat is full of California’s native plant species and active wildlife,” said Keith Nevison, director of horticulture and operations. “On this hike, visitors can experience what a primarily native and diverse ecosystem can look like.
“It’s an awesome spot to go birding and explore the seasonal creek, but be prepared for a workout that will reward you with some of the best views of the Channel Islands the Garden has to offer.”
The trail winds through a riparian area, crosses a bridge over a creek, passes through chaparral and coastal sage habitats to a ridgeline meadow. The area burned during the Jesusita Fire, non-native grasses moved in, and eucalyptus trees sprouted.
Native plant restoration is ongoing, with the removal of the eucalyptus and other invasive species in partnership with CalFire and the planting of native species.
Growing near the trail are several less common native plant species found infrequently in other areas of Mission Canyon, including fuchsia-flowered gooseberry (Ribes speciosum) and chaparral currant (Ribes malvaceum var. malvaceum).
“There are also wonderful, large specimen toyon (Heteromeles arbutifolia), laurel sumac (Malosma laurina), and coast live oak (Quercus agrifolia), as well as abundant patches of foothill needlegrass (Stipa lepida),” Nevison said.
The new trail is named for the J.E. and Lillian Tipton Foundation, which was run by Nancy Byrne, a former Botanic Garden trustee, who passed away in 2012. It was funded in large part by the Santa Barbara Foundation through its Conservation, Environment and Public Trails Grant.
The trail was built by the Garden and the SAGE Trail Alliance (www.sagetrail.org) a local professional and volunteer group that focuses on improving the user experience, trail sustainability, and expanding trail networks.
At the top of the trail is an onsite Remote Automatic Weather Station (RAWS) maintained by the Garden. RAWS are used throughout Santa Barbara country to monitor weather in remote locations for both fire protection and weather forecasting.
Weather data is transmitted hourly to the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise, Idaho, and used by the local National Weather Service in Oxnard for weather forecasting. Recent data can be found here: https://bit.ly/3OJJpj9. Hikers are asked to stay behind the fence surrounding the station.
“This is a perfect place to take in the beauty and tranquility of our amazing region and for us to showcase the importance of native plants in sustaining healthy habitats for all life on Earth – including our own,” Nevison said.