| Los Padres National Forest | |
|---|---|
 Jameson Reservoir (center), Santa Ynez Mountains (right), Los Padres back country and Old Man Mountain (left), Reyes Peak (background). | |
 Interactive map of Los Padres National Forest | |
| Location | California |
| Nearest city | Santa Barbara,Big Sur,Ojai,San Luis Obispo,Solvang andSanta Ynez[1] |
| Coordinates | 34°40′N119°45′W / 34.667°N 119.750°W /34.667; -119.750 |
| Area | 2,970 sq mi (7,700 km2) |
| Established | December 1936 |
| Governing body | U.S. Forest Service |
| Website | Los Padres National Forest |
Los Padres National Forest is aUnited States national forest insouthern andcentral California. Administered by theUnited States Forest Service, Los Padres includes most of the mountainous land along the California coast fromVentura toMonterey, extending inland. Elevations range from sea level to 8,847 feet (2,697 m).[2]
The forest is approximately 3,050 square miles (7,900 km2) in area, of which 2,750 square miles (7,100 km2) or about 88% are public lands; the rest are privately ownedinholdings.[3]
The forest is divided into two non-contiguous areas separated approximately 40 to 50 miles (64 to 80 km) from one another. The northern division lies withinMonterey County and includes theBig Sur Coast and its scenic interior areas. This is a very popular area for hiking, with 323 miles (520 km) ofhikingtrails and 11campgrounds (ranging from very rugged to suitable forrecreational vehicles).[4]
The larger, so called main section of Los Padres lies further south, withinSan Luis Obispo,Santa Barbara,Ventura andKern Counties, with a small extension intoLos Angeles County in thePyramid Lake area, betweenCastaic andGorman. TheSanta Ynez Mountains, which are within the Los Padres, rise above theGaviota Coast, a series ofalluvial plains along the last undeveloped stretch of the Southern California coastline. Other mountain ranges within the Los Padres include theSanta Lucia Mountains,La Panza Range,Caliente Range (a small part),Sierra Madre Mountains,San Rafael Mountains,Topatopa Mountains, and a tiny section of theSierra Pelona Mountains; the highest parts of the forest are not within named mountain ranges, but are adjacent to the westernSan Emigdio Mountains and includeMount Pinos,Cerro Noroeste, andReyes Peak. The forest is also adjacent to theAngeles National Forest, which is in Los Angeles County in Southern California and is nearbyCarrizo Plain National Monument in eastern San Luis Obispo County. Forest headquarters are located inGoleta, California. There are localranger district offices inFrazier Park,King City,Ojai, Santa Barbara, andSanta Maria.[5]
Many rivers in Southern and Central California have their points of origin within the Los Padres National Forest, including theCarmel,Salinas,Cuyama,Sisquoc,Santa Ynez,Coyote Creek,Sespe,Ventura, andPiru.
Several wilderness areas have been set aside within the Los Padres National Forest, including theSan Rafael Wilderness, the first primitive area to be included in the U.S. wilderness system after the passage of theWilderness Act in 1964. Another large wilderness created in the 1970s was theVentana Wilderness in the Santa Lucia Mountains. TheLos Padres Condor Range and River Protection Act of 1992 expanded existing wilderness by 132 sq mi (340 km2) and designated 494 sq mi (1,280 km2) of new wilderness that provides habitat for the condor. A total of 48% of the total area within the forest has a wilderness designation.[1]
Parts of the National Forest are designated as recreation areas. There are three recreation areas,[6]
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Many threatened and endangered species live within the forest. Among them is theCalifornia condor (Gymnogyps californianus), for whom theUnited States Forest Service manages theSespe Condor Sanctuary and the Sisquoc Condor Sanctuary.[7] Also present is theCalifornia mountain kingsnake, a California species of special concern. The Americanperegrine falcon is also entirely dependent on the forest for its survival. Themountain lion andCalifornia mule deer may be the most common large mammals.Bighorn sheep inhabit theSespe Creek region of the forest.[8]American black bears browse on grasses,berries, and carrion.[9]Coyotes thrive everywhere in this forest.Bobcats can occasionally be seen in the more remote mountainous areas of the forest. Other animals found in this forest areraccoons,bluebirds,barn owls,red-tailed hawks,cottontail rabbits,bald eagles,jack rabbits,California quail,California scrub jays, andgreat horned owls.[10]
Many vegetation types are represented in the Los Padres, includingchaparral, the common ground cover of most coastal ranges in California below about 5,000 feet (1,500 m), and coniferous forests, which can be found in abundance in the Ventana Wilderness as well as the region around Mount Pinos in northern Ventura County.
Researchers estimate the extent ofold growth in the forest is 18,900 acres (76 km2). It consists largely ofJeffrey pine (Pinus jeffreyi) forests, although old-growthcoast redwood (Sequoia Sempervirens),coast Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii var. menziesii), andwhite fir (Abies concolor) are also found there.[11] In 2008, scientistJ. Michael Fay published a map of old growth redwoods in and around Big Sur as a result of histransect of the entire redwood range.[12]
The Forest Service conducts prescribed burns when favorable weather conditions are present; temperatures must be below 80 degrees, winds lower than 15 miles per hour and relative humidity needs to be above 20 percent.[13]
The U.S. Forest Service decided in May 2020 to thin 755 acres (306 ha) of land to reduce wildfire risk, most of which is within the national forest. The decision memo states the project aims to "to improve forest health by reducing mortality risk, provide safe and effective locations from which to perform fire suppression operations, to slow the spread of a wildland fire".[14] The Reyes Peak Forest Health and Fuels Reduction Project is roughly 30 miles (48 km) north of Ojai in the Reyes Peak area onPine Mountain in Ventura County. Seven environmental groups, the city of Ojai and Ventura County filed three lawsuits in federal court in April 2022 to stop the brush clearance and logging operation.[15][16] The suit wasdismissed with prejudice on July 19, 2023 by a federal judge.[17]
Due to the fire risk, there are seasonal restrictions on building fires. Some portions of the forest are closed entirely to public entry during the peak fire season, which usually extends from around June 1 to mid-November.
ANational Forest Adventure Pass is required for parking in most locations of the Los Padres National Forest, as well as other National Forests inSouthern California. The pass is not required in the Monterey Ranger District including Ventana Wilderness andSilver Peak Wilderness.
Restrictions were put in place at times during theCOVID-19 pandemic due to crowded conditions in which people were unable tosocial distance and also the resulting litter andhuman waste that was left behind.[18]
Los Padres was namedSanta Barbara National Forest until December 3, 1936, and was assembled from a number of smaller National Forests, including:[19]
After the consolidation of the forests, the nameSanta Barbara Forest was resented by residents of the other counties for being too closely identified with just the one county. Amidst public pressure, administrators therefore changed the name toLos Padres to be more representative of the regional history.[20]Los Padres means "theFathers", referring to the Catholic missionary priests of theSpanish missions who proselytized in and around the area in the 18th and 19th centuries.[20]
Due to the very dry summers, forest fires in Los Padres National Forest are always a risk. In 1965, a truck driven by country singerJohnny Cash caught fire, and burned several hundred acres in Ventura County.[21] In August 1977, theMarble Cone Fire burned 178,000 acres (720 km2)[22] within theVentana Wilderness and other portions of the Los Padres Forest. In June and July, 2008, theBasin Complex Fire torched 162,818 acres (658.90 km2)[23] in the same region.
TheThomas Fire was a massivewildfire that traversed the forest withinVentura andSanta Barbara Counties. It was one ofmultiple wildfires that ignited insouthern California in December 2017. The unusually strong and persistentSanta Ana winds were the largest factor in the spread of the fire. The region experienced an on-and-off Santa Ana wind event for a little over two weeks, which contributed to the Thomas Fire's persistent growths in size.[24] At its height, the wildfire was powerful enough to generate its own weather, qualifying it as afirestorm.
In August 2025, multiple small blazes along a stretch ofHighway 166 combined into theGifford Fire.[25] Located east of Santa Maria in San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara Counties, the fire grew to be thelargest of the season so far.[26] The fire burned mainly within the national forest with much of the hilly area being inaccessible to bulldozers.[27]
Illegal farming of cannabis in secluded areas has been a problem for a long time in the forest. The practice continues under legalization as the crops are produced for the unregulated market without testing for theillegal pesticides they may becontaminated with. These operations often use pesticides and leave piles of trash such asdrip irrigation tubing.[28][29][30][31]
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