Gaviota Wind Tunnels

My last stop on my most recent expedition to the Central Valley of California led me to the Gaviota Wind Tunnels. I had been contemplating this minor hike for a few weeks previous and made it my goal to attempt it when I was driving back.

The trail head for this hike is right off the 101 as it turns down towards Santa Barbara. You just exit the freeway at Gaviota Beach Rd and stay right while you go up the hill. Then its the first parking area you cross on the right hand side. you can check out all of the details on the Hike's Peak.

a recurring theme that day. I wanted to show the elevation of the hike.

Gas lines like these are littered throughout. I saw at least 3 vents including one in the middle of nothing.

I'm going to have to travel up this route sometime. Looks like more fun than driving for sure!

Here is the final view from the top..... Or at least as high I was willing to go. My camera ended up out of battery right after that, so I was lucky.

I just want to throw a couple of cautions out to anybody looking to do this hike. It really isn't as long as it seems, so you don't need a boatload of it, but make sure to bring water. I was a real idiot for not doing that. Next. watch the ledges inside the caves. Where I shot #20, the hole is on an underside and didn't have any real place to stand. Just play it safe and have fun out there.

I only used about half of the images I took on this post. If you would like to see the entire set, check out the gallery on my Smugmug page