If you’re looking for a quiet place to go for a walk then the Carpinteria Bluffs Nature Preserve may be the answer, and because the preserve is surprising close to a number of interesting sites that one can reach by foot it also makes a good starting point for several nice hikes. From the bluffs along the ocean one can view the Carpinteria Harbor Seal Rookery, as well as visit the area where the Chumash village of Mishopshno was located and where the Chumash made their plank canoes or tomols. And then from the beach one can hike to either Rincon or the Carpinteria Salt Marsh. A view toward the Santa Ynez Mountains from the Carpinteria Bluffs
The Carpinteria Bluffs Nature Preserve is the result of a long and successful campaign to purchase the property and make it a public preserve. Through the combined efforts of activists, local merchants and residents of Santa Barbara country nearly $4 million was raised to preserve this 52 acre property for future generations.
At about the half mile mark the trail crosses the railroad tracks and reaches the coast. From here the trail branches, to the left there is access down to the beach, and to the right along the bluffs the trail continues a short way to an overlook where one can view the harbors seals.
From the beach one can hike along the coast to Rincon. The beach gently curves from the beach access to Rincon Point and it’s through this section that you’ll likely see the fewest people. As one nears Rincon Point you’ll find access up to Rincon Beach Park where there are restrooms, picnic tables and even a soda machine. Continuing along the beach towards Rincon Point you’ll have an opportunity on a good day to see why Rincon is synonymous with surfing as the curvature of the coast makes for a natural cove, which lends itself towards long, peeling waves that break to the right. Surfers at Rincon
To see the harbor seals, from that first coastal access at the Carpinteria Bluffs Nature Preserve continue west along the bluffs toward Casitas Pier. Just before the pier there is an overlook from which one can see the seals resting and sunning themselves on the beach below. And while there are other haul outs along the coast this is one of the few that the seals use for pupping. In fact the Carpinteria Harbor Seal Rookery is one of only four remaining rookeries or haul outs used for pupping found along the mainland of Southern California. Harbor Seal and her pup
From the Carpinteria Harbor Seal Rookery one can continue west along the bluffs, following first the bike path that skirts the edge of the Venoco parking lot and then the trail through Tar Pits Park. This 8 acre city park along the coast is neatly tucked away between the pier and Carpinteria State Beach. At the far end of the park is access back down to the beach where one can also find an active tar seep glistening in the sun on a warm day.
Plant and fossil remains from the the Carpinteria Tar Pits excavated in the 1920s are said to rival those of the more famous La Brea Tar Pits further south. The tar from this area was also used by the Chumash for both for their water tight baskets and in the construction of their wood plank canoes or tomols.
Chumash tomols were made from driftwood, preferably redwood, which most often was found washed up on Santa Rosa Island. The wood was cut into planks, and the planks were then bound together with cordage made from natural fibers or sinew and then tar mixed with pine pitch was used as a both a binding agent and a sealant. Tomols were used extensively by the Chumash to travel between the mainland and the Channel Islands and along the coast.
Continuing west past the tar pits one arrives at Carpinteria State Beach and near where the Chumash village of Mishopshno was located. When Gaspar de Portola visited the area in 1769, he saw Chumash Indians splitting wood and making planks along the beach and named the place La Carpinteria, or the carpentry shop.
The village at the time of Portola was said to be near the mouth of what is now called Carpinteria Creek. The creek has since changed its course over the years, but the village was in this general vicinity.
Mishopshno is said to mean “correspondence” and is a reference to the role the village played as a trade center amongst the Chumash. I’d read that the village of Xaxas on Santa Cruz Island, where Prisoner’s Harbor is now, was also a major “port of call”, and it was interesting standing there, where Mishopshno might’ve been, and gaze out at Santa Cruz Island directly across the channel. Carpinteria Beach
The Carpinteria Salt Marsh is one of the last remaining coastal estuaries in California and represents a rare opportunity to visit this ecosystem up close. Restoration completed in 2008 by the Land Trust for Santa Barbara County has helped return the 230 acre reserve to its natural state. A trail runs along the northeast corner of the estuary and includes a series of interpretative signs. The hike from the Carpinteria Bluffs Nature Preserve to the Carpinteria Salt Marsh is also about 5 miles roundtrip.
Regardless how far you go you will get see a little corner of California tucked between the mountains and the sea and may even be inspired to come back for another visit.
This article originally appeared in Section A of the February 11th, 2012 edition of the Santa Barbara News-Press. Harbor Seals Lounging
Songs of the Wilderness 
Must I subscribe to that paper in order to see this piece?
By: James Scolari on February 18, 2012
at 11:13 am
I generally post these articles on my blog 30-45 days after they run in the News-Press. The articles are also viewable on the News-Press website, however you are correct it does require a subscription of some kind. Back issues of the News-Press are available from the De La Guerra office for up to two months.
By: James Wapotich on February 18, 2012
at 5:57 pm
The lounging seal pups are SO CUTE!!
By: Seraphima on September 6, 2012
at 10:24 pm
More seals and seal lions will be featured in an upcoming article on San Miguel Island in the next few weeks.
By: James Wapotich on September 7, 2012
at 2:30 pm
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By: Carpinteria Bluffs Trail | Carpinteria | Hikespeak on December 13, 2012
at 5:18 pm
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By: Trail Quest: More Mesa Open Space « Songs of the Wilderness on February 12, 2013
at 3:35 pm