Behind this wealthy SoCal neighborhood, you can soak in a rustic hot spring oasis

"The water bubbles up hot from the earth and sunlight filters down through the branches of mighty oaks. But before you can soak in Santa Barbara County's highly popular Montecito Hot Springs, you'll need to hike a little over a mile uphill, threading your way among boulders, oaks and a meandering creek. And before the hike, there are two other crucial steps: getting to the trailhead and knowing what to expect."

"Though the trail and hot springs are part of Los Padres National Forest, the trailhead is in a residential neighborhood of gated mansions. Beyond the trailhead parking area (which has room for eight or nine cars), the neighborhood includes very little curbside parking. After visitation surged during the pandemic, some neighbors were accused by county officials of placing boulders to obstruct public parking. Parking options were reduced further when county officials added parking restrictions earlier this year."

"Bottom line: Unless you can arrive on a weekday between 8 and 10 a.m., you're probably better off taking a rideshare service to get there. Whenever you arrive, you're likely to have company. And you might want to wait until the landscape dries out a bit from the rains of recent weeks. As Los Padres National Forest spokesman Andrew Madsen warned, "the foothills of Santa Barbara are especially fragile and hiking is especially precarious in the aftermath of heavy rains.""

Montecito Hot Springs lies about 95 miles northwest of Los Angeles, upslope from Montecito, and features rustic spring pools beneath oak canopies. The trailhead sits in a residential area of gated mansions with very limited parking (room for eight or nine cars), and recent neighborhood actions and county restrictions have further reduced parking options. The hike is a roughly 2.5-mile out-and-back route with about 800 feet of elevation gain. The trail is often crowded and becomes fragile and precarious after heavy rains, so weekday mornings or rideshare access are recommended.

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