Santa Barbara Climbing

Santa Barbara has a large number of short cliffs scattered about the ridgeline north of town. The rock is variable quality Matilija sandstone. Like San Luis Obispo, it's not a destination area, but good routes exist.

The rock is soft, and softer when wet, so please do not climb for a minimum of 24 hours following a rainstorm.

Guidebooks currently available in local stores:

* Rock Climbing Santa Barbara & Ventura by Steve Edwards (well put together and still quite complete, covers roped routes as well as the major bouldering areas)

* Ocean's Eleven - Bouldering around Santa Barbara by Bob Banks (brand spankin' new!)

And a guidebook not currently available in stores, but obtainable on Ebay, Amazon, etc:

* "Climbing! Santa Barbara, Ventura, San Luis Obispo" by Steve Tucker and Kevin Steele. A fabulous text that pays ample homage to Santa Barbara's traditional roots. A little outdated in some areas, but a gem of adventurous and off-the-beaten-track routes nonetheless. It's out of print, so happy searching!

Here's some additional climbing related links with a local flair:

* www.king-dino.com: catalog of climbing and assorted adventure from guidebook author Bob Banks.

* www.crankenstein.com: let burly sport climber and Owl Tor aficionado Elijah Ball show you what's rad, and what's not. Topics range from climbing to freediving to weightlifting.