The trail connecting Tunnel Road to Santa Barbara’s popular Inspiration Point is set to close next Monday as Southern California Edison resumes environmental restoration work in Mission Canyon.

The closure is expected to last for up to four months.

“It could take less time than that,” SCE spokeswoman Gabriela Ornelas said. “It just depends on how our construction work goes and taking into account the weather conditions.”

The closure will affect only the lower portion of Tunnel Trail near the Inspiration Point trailhead and will not impact nearby residents or other front-country trails, including alternate routes to Inspiration Point via Jesusita and Rattlesnake Canyon, Ornelas said.

“There will be signage there letting folks know about the closure so that they can be aware and plan their hikes on other available trails,” she said.

The work is a continuation of SCE’s Mission Canyon Stream Restoration Project to repair environmental damage caused in 2019, when crews unintentionally dumped debris into Mission Creek and its tributaries during road grading and vegetation management.

There have been multiple road and trail closures in the area for this work, including a four-month closure last year.

“We are focused on restoration and remediating the area so that it is restored to as it was before the incident in 2019,” Ornelas said.

Crews plan to address long-standing issues along the creek and surrounding terrain.

“A lot of it is also removing rocks and debris and stabilizing some of the creek banks and slopes there,” Ornelas said. “But we are focused on restoration and remediating the area.”

Once the construction phase is complete, additional restoration work such as habitat planting, maintenance and environmental monitoring will continue. However, no further trail closures are planned, according to Ornelas.