Volunteer Trail Restoration Event Marks First Step to Reopening San Ysidro Trail
The City of Santa Barbara Parks and Recreation Department is looking to recruit up to 75 volunteers to begin trail restoration efforts on the San Ysidro Trail, a U.S. Forest Service trail within the Los Padres National Forest. The trail has been closed since January 2023 due to damage from heavy winter storms that impacted many of the region’s trails.
The volunteer event is scheduled for Saturday, June 8, from 8:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. on San Ysidro Trail. Volunteers will gather at Toro Canyon County Park, picnic site #4 (568 Toro Canyon Road) for a safety orientation and instruction before heading to the trail. The event will wrap up with a group lunch for volunteers from 1:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. Volunteers of all experience levels are invited to attend to learn about trail restoration while helping reestablish the damaged trail.
“This is the first step in clearing and re-establishing this historic and busy trail for the community,” said Parks Supervisor Steve Biddle, who is coordinating the volunteer day. “We’ll focus on the first mile of the trail during this event to make way for technical crews to tackle some of the harder repairs needed to reopen this trail.”
No special experience is required to volunteer. Tools and instructions will be provided, and volunteers will be assigned to small work teams based on experience. Work will include cutting back weeds, shrubs, and trees growing into the trail corridor, clearing and maintaining water diversion features, and repairing trail tread erosion.
RSVPs are required for this volunteer event. Contact Steve Biddle at SBiddle@SantaBarbaraCA.gov or (805) 564-5439 to sign up.
The Department coordinates multiple large-scale volunteer events each year across City, County, and Forest Service properties to help maintain the community’s network of trails. The upcoming event is held in partnership with Santa Barbara County Parks, the U.S. Forest Service, Montecito Trails Foundation, Los Padres Forest Association, and SAGE Trail Alliance.
The Parks and Recreation Department will host the next large-scale trail volunteer day on Saturday, September 28.
Learn more at SantaBarbaraCA.gov/TrailWork