“Tell the story of the mountain you climbed. Your words could be a page in someone else’s survival guide.” – Morgan Harper Nichols
I’ve always had Gaviota Wind Caves on my list. This trail is located in Goleta, CA right before you enter Gaviota State Park there’s a road (on your right) leading up to the trail with a few parking spots. This is a popular hike and the reason why my friend and I decided to go really early. You know by now that I tend to avoid crowds.
Contrary to popular belief, I’m not as adventurous as you probably think I am. Before going on a hike, I do an extensive research on the place I would like to visit. I often check how long the hike will take especially if it’s going to be quite a drive for me to get there.
This is a short 2-mile hike with an elevation gain of around 500 feet. I made the mistake of thinking this was easy. It wasn’t. It gave me a decent workout. It also gave my friend and I a little bit of a scare. Call me a coward but I hate when the plants on both sides of the trail are too high for me to see what lurks in there. There were literally deers crossing out of nowhere. Yes, we were so startled that we didn’t get to take pictures and thankfully didn’t get accidentally knocked over by them. So just a heads up if you ever do this hike. They should put “Deer Crossing” signs.
The next part of the hike was all uphill which was a bit strenuous. It was also quite foggy that day which prevented us from seeing the amazing view from the top. Below are a couple more pictures before we reached the wind caves.
Finally, we reached the Gaviota Wind Caves. The first picture below shows the side of the cave as we started to approach it.
The inside of the cave is pretty cool.
On a clear day you would see the freeway from here. I obviously picked the wrong day. However, it is a change of scenery for me and I found myself liking it.
You can also climb on top of the cave. Please be careful as you can see it is quite steep and dangerous.
Bel’s tip for this hike:
1. Bring water.
2. Don’t do this hike alone. I figured if we were a bigger group the crossing animals would hear us from a mile away and not suddenly appear out of nowhere.
3. It’s a short hike but I would not rate it as a beginner hike. Bring hiking/trekking poles. It will help.
4. Bring food. We had a sandwich once we got there and you can sit inside the cave which is pretty cool. Leave no trace and take the trash with you.
5. Lastly, I know some of you asked me to write what I would recommend for first-time hikers. Please check out my website – I wrote all the basic necessities for a first time hiker there.
Here’s the link:
https://nothingbutgears.com/hiking-essentials-for-a-hiker-newbie
What do you think of this hike? Please feel free to comment or ask any questions. I would love to hear from you.
Just did this one two weekends ago. Short, but sweet.
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Yeah it’s definitely a decent hike! You probably had a better view than I did when I was there!
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Definitely.
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Your pictures are just plain amazing. someplace out there, you’ve got a good wilderness landscapes book waiting to be published.
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Thank you! The kind words are appreciated. I hope my pictures get published someday but that’s
more wishful thinking on my end…😊
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I am glad to see another avid hockey who actually cares about not leaving a trace too many time on our hikes have we found so much trash and traces left behind I would like to check this one out can you tell more details of it location and a good time to go thank you for your great blogs
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Yes, it annoys me when people leave their trash and vandalize the place. Do you have alltrails app? It’s amazing because it gives you the exact coordinates to the area. You exit from 101 at the Gaviota Campground but do not enter the paid parking campground you veer to the right (uphill) and just follow it until you see the trailhead on one side with the mountain lion warning sign. You can enter Gaviota State Park on your GPS or the coordinates found in alltrails map. Gaviota State Park’s address is US 101 Goleta, CA 93117. It’s literally by the ocean so when I went there during the summer it wasn’t too hot. I think around 70s to 80s? But I was also early. There are a lot of people that visit during the weekend. You should arrive around 7 am or earlier if you don’t like crowds.
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I’ll try the app sounds great thank you for the info and I’m definitely not a fan of crowds a lot of the reason for hiking and getting to enjoy the beauty and outdoors thanks again for for the tip
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You’re welcome 😊 By the way the app has the paid and free version. I use the free version and it’s good enough for me 😊
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If I can go all day on the trail without seeing another person it is a good day.
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If I go real early, I rarely see people on the trail. 😊
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Hardly a coward. Quite prudent, I’d say to know what’s lurking in the bushes. And was it really so bad you couldn’t see “the freeway” while you were amidst such spectacular natural beauty? Sounds like a perfect day. Thanks for sharing your incredible photos!
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Lol! True! The fog gave it quite a great and peaceful atmosphere. It was a perfect day 😊 Thank you!
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Looks quite eerie, but an amazing experience and beautiful photos, happy & safe travels always.
🐝xx
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It does look eerie! Haha! especially during our hike to get there…😊
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As long as you enjoyed it and had a fantastic time, that’s all that matters.
🐝xx
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It always is an adventure 😊
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Beautiful views and rock formations.
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Thank you 😊
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Very beautiful. I like the practical pointers and the quote at the beginning: “Tell the story of the mountain you climbed. Your words could be a page in someone else’s survival guide.” – Morgan Harper Nichols
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Thank you, Stacey. I’m glad you liked it. 😊
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Wow nice place and pictures.. 📸
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Thank you 😊
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Neat description. Lovely pics. Felt like I also hiked along.
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Thank you. It was quite an experience 😊
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I admire your tenacity and will to explore different places and spaces. I personally would have worried about snakes or some other wild animal. I enjoy seeing through your eyes and blog post. Great photos too.
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Thank you Dr. Mary Ann. I appreciate the thoughtful and nice comment. Yeah, I do worry about wild animals – but the need to explore overcomes that fear and I try to stay away from them when I see one…😊
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Well, I would probably wear my cowboy boots to protect myself from snakes. You are very brave! But I understand it’s fun to explore new vistas. Happy hiking!
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You’ll never go wrong with cowboy boots 😊
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True. And I am the one who wears Birkenstock sandals everywhere! 🙂
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They are definitely comfy!
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Good support too. Enjoy the weekend.
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Have an awesome weekend 😊
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You as well! Take a peek in a little while to see my new blog post and latest music adventure!
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Will do!
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hi! i love your blog and i just nominated you for the liebster award! it’d be really nice if you could
check it out and follow the proceedings:-
https://stillherestillgrowing.wordpress.com/2018/06/05/the-liebster-award-2018/
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Thank you 😊
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This was super cool ! Very nice pics …I like hiking and your tips, I know, are very handy 🙂
Love the name of your blog. Hope to see more of you here 🙂
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Thank you. I appreciate the kind words and I’m happy you like it 😊
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You’re welcome 🙂
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Great content Bel. Good going. 😊
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Thank you 😊
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I had been to Goleta once for cheese & ice cream. Thank you for info about the cave.
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You’re welcome. Cheese and ice cream sounds awesome as well 😊
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I wonder why such places are not inhabited with people these day.
Such a great place to meditate.
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It is a great place to meditate 😊
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I am sure it must be!
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Nice one
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Thank you!
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so beautiful your photos…congratulations!
have a nice day
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Thank you 😊
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What an adventure! Thanks for taking us along with you. This magical place just went on my travel wish list. Lovely pics as well. 🙂
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Glad you liked it Beth! It’s really nice and not a lot of people if you go early in the morning. 😊
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That is quite a hike! Beautiful pictures.
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It surely was a great hike with amazing views. Thank you 😊
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Hey nice blog. you have your own site..do you use the premium plan
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Thanks! Yes I do 😊
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Can you explain me how does it actually help..And can you actually earn with it?
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I just need it for the memory since I post pictures. You can earn with wordads and wordpress customer support can explain it in detail – earn with it? To be honest, not much unless you have hundreds of thousands or at least a million followers.
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Thanks for the information.just one last question.you have so many followers and still you don’t consider it as a full time earning option?
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I hope that it will be a full time earning option one day…that is my goal 😊
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I am sure you will..keep writing and helping people like us.thank you
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By the way – check out being an affiliate blogger on google- that’s also one way of earning income using your blog.
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I really thought you must be definitely doing it.i was actually keen on knowing about that only as must bloggers affiliate with google
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Yeah do some research especially on being an amazon affiliate 😊
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Sure.. thanks for all the information
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Reblogged this on davidbruceblog #2.
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Thanks for the reblog 😊
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Thank you for your always very thorough lists and your candid personal experience and photos! These are very helpful, instructive and well, fun.
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You’re welcome. I’m happy that you liked it and hopefully learn from my mistakes 😊
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Almost on your post the pictures is taken beautiful
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Thank you 😊
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I wonder what the history of those caves is
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I was actually curious about it and couldn’t find anything on the history of the caves. I’ll keep you posted once I find something 😊
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Beautiful!
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Thank you 😊
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You’re welcome 🌞
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That is beautiful! I’ve been to the Gaviota SP are a number of times and never heard of it. There’s also a hot spring and a nude beach nearby. The winds going thru the SP can get pretty intense. Had to forget about the tent and sleep in the car a couple times.
Having the fog is nice. I’d prefer to pretend the freeway wasn’t there. On the north side, on the road to Buelton, Daughter and I saw the clouds pile up on the mountains and then start pouring over the passes between. Cloud falls of water vapor tumbling down the side of the hill like slow motion water falls.
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I didn’t know about the hot springs and nude beach nearby. I saw some RVs camped out on the Gaviota SP. I guess they stayed inside when it got pretty windy as well. I love the wind caves – you should check it out when you get a chance. 😊
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Sometimes the wind thru that pass hit hurricane speed by the time it gets to the park.
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Love the mountains. Hope to get there soon
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I hope you get to visit it soon too 😊 Thanks for your comment!
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Thanks. 🙂
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what a cool place! I kinda like it when you can’t see the freeway…puts you in the environment as if you were the 1st discoverer.
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It’s kind of dreamy in a sense that you can just use your imagination freely with the foggy atmosphere 😊 I agree that it is definitely a cool place 😊
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What a cool place, Bel, and the fog made it kind of eerie with all those deer popping out of nowhere. the cave is awesome. Thanks for the photos. I’m so glad you gave it a go!
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Lol eerie was the word I was looking for! I hesitated for a quick second and I was like what the heck – just go for it 😂 It will always be worth it.
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Great information and liked your view of the hike. Wish I lived closer.
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Hi Cindy! Thanks and I’m glad you liked it 😊
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Love reading your adventures Bel, happy trails!
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Thanks Abby! You know I live vicariously through you – the real deal adventure gal 😊 Miss you!
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A beautiful, and as the Celts would say, thin place ❤️ We had one of those surprising hikes in the Rocky Mountain National Park shortly after we returned from two weeks at sea level… I suppose the elevation gain and 10,050 summit should have been a warning to us? 🙄🤣
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Wow that’s a tough hike! I usually prepare myself before hiking serious elevation gains. This one is way easier than that – and the weather was perfect it was just the first part of the trail with animal crossing out of nowhere that made me a little edgy…😊😂
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We live up in Estes and had only been on the coast for 2 weeks on a break… we aren’t as in shape as we thought I guess… but at least we didn’t have the critter issue 😉
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It must have been quite an experience and I’m pretty sure the views made up for it! 😊
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Oh they did!!
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I actually like the fog. It adds a little mystic element to the place. Bravo!
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Lol thanks! It does in a way..😊
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It’s a beautiful place 😍
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It truly is! 😊
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Amazing pictures!! It sounds like you had a wonderful time!🙂
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It was a good time! After the first part of the hike…😊
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🙂
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No matter if reaching the top by vehicle or foot, it’s always disappointing when the clouds/weather hamper the view. Meanwhile, cheers to the hike! Good find … well, for those in that area. 😉
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Right? I would prefer it to be on top of the clouds kind of view – which would be amazing too! Thanks for the comment 😊
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