Douglas Family Preserve

Searching for Monarchs on the California Coast

https://scampgrounds.com/wp-content/themes/osmosis/images/empty/thumbnail.jpg 150 150 gavin gavin https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/99f9cd14e6ca957f921a5ace7d1dcdf0fccde566155f0e4da610ff0b7f10e2b0?s=96&d=mm&r=g January 31, 2026 February 26, 2026

By: gavin

January 31, 2026

Searching for Monarchs on the California Coast
January 18th – 26th 2026 (8 nights)

After two weeks of strong winter storms, California was finally given a reprieve. Clear blue, sunny skies and warm conditions followed. The nice weather presented an opportunity to finally visit the Monarch Butterfly Grove in Pismo Beach. We had visited the Grove many times in the past, but only during off season (Spring, Summer, and Fall) when no butterflies were around. Peak season for the migrating Monarch butterflies is during the winter (with mid-November through December presenting the highest numbers). With good weather forecast for the next ten days, we planned a last-minute trip which included a visit to Pismo.

We made our first stop on our way up the California Coast in Santa Barbara (about a three and a half hour drive from our home in Carlsbad) to visit our cousin Jon and his family. We situated the Scamp 13′ in my cousin’s driveway for an overnight stay. After setting up the Scamp, we had a great lunch at the line-out-the-door Pang Zi Noodle Shop. We then walked off lunch along the waterfront (there’s an arts and crafts show on Sundays — ) and down Santa Barbara Stearns Wharf Pier.

After walking most of the afternoon, we were ready for dinner! We met my cousin Jon and his wife Ida at the Santa Barbara Public Market and had a chance to catch up with what’s been going on in each others’ lives. There are a number of restaurant stalls inside the Public Market, offering a variety of foods. We had excellent pizza at Ca’ Dario Pizzeria followed by some of the best ice-cream we’ve ever tasted at Rori’s Artisinal Creamery.

The next morning, we went for a long hike with our cousin Jon, his wife Ida, and dog Toby (a Sheepadoodle). We hiked through the beautiful Elings Park. It’s the largest privately funded non-profit park in America, at 230 acres. Everything was so green after all the rain. During our hike, we discovered the Santa Barbara Model RC club and their small model airport within the park and enjoyed speaking to some of the members and watching them fly their models. From Elings Park, we hiked through to the Douglas Family Preserve, a smaller park but with spectacular views of the Pacific Ocean. After having a very fun visit with family, we continued our journey north to Pismo Beach to see the butterflies (and our good friend Jim)!

Pismo Beach North Beach Campground is a campground adjacent to the beach behind sand dunes in Pismo Beach. It’s a very popular campground, offering premium beach side campsites for only $25/night!!! There is good Verizon mobile phone reception here along with water spigots and a pay RV dump station (currently $10). We reserved site #83 (pull through site) at the last minute, which is one of the best sites since it is right behind the dunes with a short walk to the beach and Monarch Butterfly Grove. Sometimes great sites become available at the last minute as people often cancel for various reasons. The first thing we did after setting up our Scamp 13′, was to visit the Monarch Butterfly Grove next door. It was late afternoon and cool though, and the butterflies, we were told, were all sleeping!

The next morning we learned that the Monarch butterfly population is at historic low levels this year (down from tens of thousands a few years ago and hundreds of thousands in the 1990’s to only a hundred now). Some reasons given for the population downturn are increased pesticide / herbicide use, climate changes, and shifts in milkweed growth (the exclusive food source for Monarch caterpillars). The Monarchs seen at the Pismo Monarch Grove are the “migratory super-generation” that make their way over thousands of miles from Canada, down the coast of California, to the border of Mexico. A ranger mentioned that because of the heavy rain this past year, there’s a chance the numbers will rebound next year. There’s an app that allows tracking of some of the Monarchs (they are tracked with an extremely small and light bluetooth transmitter which is attached to their body).

We had a great lunch with our close friend Jim catching up and enjoying the excellent food at Old Juan’s Cantina in Pismo Beach. We revisited the Monarch Butterfly Grove after lunch and saw more Monarchs which were enjoying the sun and warm afternoon temperatures. We then walked from the campground down to the beach and along the boardwalk to the Pismo Beach Pier. The SLO Cal pro surf event was happening during our visit and we had fun watching the surfing from high above on the pier. Before leaving town for our next stop, we had to try the Old West Cinnamon Roll shop (established in 1972) as it is frequently mentioned as offering the best cinnamon rolls on the West Coast. It did not disappoint!

Our next stop, New Brighton Beach State Park Campground, is one of the most popular beachfront campgrounds in California. About a three hour drive north of Pismo Beach, the campground is located close to the cute beachside towns of Capitola and Santa Cruz (home to UC Santa Cruz), offering plenty to see and do. The campground is at the top of the bluffs, looking down at China Beach and the Monterey Bay Marine Sanctuary, with some premium campsites offering spectacular ocean views (a number with electric hookups). We had site #72 ($35/night) which is a good site with a partial ocean view ($50/night for premium sites). There’s a threaded water spigot nearby and we were able to connect two hoses to directly fill our fresh tank (also using a velcro strap to hold down the water valve). There is an RV dumpstation at the park exit which accomodates four RVs simultaneously (currently $10).

We had plenty of things to do during our two day stay at New Brighton Beach State Park. There’s a trail which goes down to the beach from the campground, along the water and then up a stairway back to the campground (about a mile loop). We saw sea birds and dolphins on our morning walks. We explored the little town of Capitola (with attractive beach shops, restaurants, and pier). There are some colorful photo-worthy Mediterranean townhouses (24) and a hotel (17 units) near the pier called the Venetian Court. They were built in 1924 and represent one of the first condominium style developments on the California coast! Next, we drove to the town of Santa Cruz, walking along the wharf (recognized as the longest wooden wharf/pier on the West Coast of the United States). Hundreds of sea lions hang out under the pier on the rafters. They put on a show, barking loudly and playing. The sea lions are a lot of fun to watch. At the end of our visit to Santa Cruz, we enjoyed touring the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary Exploration Center. Lastly, we hiked The Forest of Nisene Marks State Park, a nature preserve with over forty miles of hiking trails. The Marks family of Salinas, California deeded more than 9,000 acres to the State for use as a public park in 1963. It’s a forest of dense coastal redwood trees that cover most of the park which provide a peaceful experience.

Visiting family in Oakland was the final stop on our coastal adventure. Just under two hours from Santa Cruz, “The Town” offers a myriad of fun things to do. We always enjoy walking in the redwoods, visiting Alameda Island (posh eateries, architecture, and walks), playing pickleball at the local Montclair courts, riding the Bart, and enjoying celebrating birthdays with family and friends. This time we celebrated a birthday by taking some scenic walks (one through a district with historic Queen Anne style homes), going to our favorite bakery (their almond croissants are phenomenal) and playing pickleball.

On the journey home, we stayed near Bakersfield at the Buena Vista Aquatic Recreational Area campground to break up the eight hour drive from Oakland to San Diego. Our lake front site (#41) with full hookups cost $33 for the night. It’s a relaxing place which we’ve enjoyed before. Just make sure to avoid visiting in the summer as it can be very hot in the Central Valley that time of year.

We had such a great time on this trip, even though it was planned last minute and we didn’t see that many butterflies. It shows that sometimes following a goal can lead to detours that become the highlight of the journey!

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California Central Coast 2022

By: gavin

September 6, 2022

California Central Coast 2022
August 20nd – August 27^th, 2022 (7 nights)

Santa Barbara
When heading to the Central Coast, Santa Barbara is a great stop. It’s a beautiful place to visit and we have relatives there with whom we enjoy spending time. We left our home in Carlsbad early Saturday morning (a must to beat the Los Angeles traffic) and arrived in Santa Barbara in about 3 ½ hours (a quick drive). We packed breakfast so we could get right out and eat on the road.

On this trip, we visited Montecito, home to the rich and famous (including Meghan Markle and Prince Harry)! This tony city has a small downtown, called Coast Village, where there are swanky stores and tasty eateries. It takes about half an hour to walk up and down both sides of the main street. If you look closely, you may see some famous people (locals told us Ellen DeGeneres hangs out at the Starbucks)! But, we are more interested in seeing nature and animals, so we headed for the trails right up the road. One trail close to Coast Village, Hot Springs Canyon Trail, leads to natural hot springs where one can soak in multiple pools (the hottest at the top). We took the McMenemy Trail for a short hot August late afternoon hike; then dinner with relatives for some delightful paella.

Since check-in time at Islay Creek Campground in Montaña De Oro State Park, about a 45 minute drive up the coast, isn’t until 2 p.m., we had time on Sunday morning to take a hike at the Douglas Family Preserve with my cousin Jon and his wife Ida (as well as with their yellow lab, Charlie). It’s a beautiful public park high on a mesa above Arroyo Burro Beach overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Hope Ranch, another exclusive enclave, can be seen on the ridge opposite the park. Douglas Family Preserve, the largest area of coastal open space within the city limits of Santa Barbara, has over three miles of park trails (and dogs can run wild once inside the park).

We could have stayed in Santa Barbara much longer with so much to see and do, but we had reservations at Islay Creek Campground in Montaña De Oro State Park!

Montaña de Oro State Park
Montaña de Oro State Park is about two hour’s drive north of Santa Barbara and is very close to Morro Bay. With over 8,000 acres, including seven miles of shoreline, Montaña de Oro is one of the largest state parks in California. Because Islay Creek Campground within the park has no RV dump station, we dumped our tanks ($7.50) at the 76 Station on Winchester Road in Goleta on the way up the 101. We also filled our Fresh tank in Santa Barbara, which was good because the water spigots at the park are gravity fed from large drums and, thus, are very slow to fill water jugs. We arrived at Islay Creek Campground at around 3 p.m. We had site #16 ($25/night + $7.99 reservation fee). The spacing between sites is good and each site can accommodate RV lengths of up to 27’ (and tow vehicles can generally park side by side with the trailer). There is no cell phone reception within the park, but cell phones will work just a short five minute walk up the road to the beach. The beach is easily accessible and wide, but the surf can be rough with rip tides. At the water’s edge, there’s a large rock some like to climb onto (it can be more tricky than it looks because of slick sand) — great for photos above the rocks and sea. One of the first things we explored upon arrival was the Visitor’s Center, housed in the historic Spooner home. The home was owned a rancher family and has beach views and great docents anxious to tell the history of the place.

Being right inside the park, Islay Creek Campground is the perfect base to explore the many trails that Montaña De Oro State Park has to offer. The most popular trail, the Bluff Trail, is high up on the bluff and goes on for a couple of miles (about two hours round trip from the campground). There are spectacular ocean views on the Bluff Trail, featuring dramatic rocks towering high above the rough ocean below as well as pelicans and gulls constantly flying by. We also had a chance to go into PG&E property (sign in required at entry) and explore the Point Buchon Trail (open 8AM – 5PM, Closed Tuesdays & Wednesdays). Similar to the Bluff Trail, the Point Buchon Trail has other unique aspects, such as a large sink hole which features an ocean cave and beach! Security inside the PG&E property is high as the Diablo Canyon (Nuclear) Power Plant is just miles down the road. We were advised that if we didn’t check out by 4:45 p.m. that a security detail would be sent to get us. We made sure we were back in time!

There are also some great back country trail hikes right above and behind the campground. We hiked the Oat Peak Trail, Beebee Trail, and took the Badger Trail through Rattlesnake Flats back down to the Bluff Trail. Some of the trails go on for over 30 miles. There are certainly plenty of trail hikes to keep an avid hiker busy for days!

Pismo Beach
Just about forty five minutes south of Montana De Oro State Park (or an hour and a half north of Santa Barbara) is Pismo Beach. Our favorite campground here is Pismo State Beach North Beach Campground. We reserved site #29 for four nights – it’s a premium site directly in front of the beach. To get this type of site, one usually needs to reserve it right when the reservation window opens six months in advance. This stretch of beach also has a number of private campgrounds, but the campsites at the private campgrounds are generally very tightly spaced together (but many have full hookups). There are also two fully equipped RV supply stores right across the street from the campground, so if you need any parts for your RV, this location has you covered!

Pismo State Beach North Beach Campground is fantastic. The campsites are very spread out and the beach is just over a little sandy hill adjacent to the campground. There are no hookups, but there are water spigots and a central dump ($10 at this time). We set up our solar panel briefcase to recharge our batteries during the day and used our “Holy Grail Portable Grey Water Tank Solution” to drain our Grey water tank after a couple of days. The beach in front of the campground is very wide and beautiful with a great view to the north of the Pismo pier. There are some nice walking paths that are on the perimeter of the campground. One goes south on a wooden boardwalk above the beach toward Oceano. We saw many whales feeding close to shore while walking along this path (look for a “feeding frenzy” – this is when there are swarms of birds low over the water and indicates a run of sardines or anchovies)! We could see whales popping their heads out of the water as well as blow spouts. Don’t ever paddle into a feeding frenzy or this could happen! Another trail from the campground goes into the Pismo Beach Monarch Butterfly Grove. This site hosts over 10,000 butterflies annually. The Monarch Butterflies flock to Pismo Beach from late October through February, seeking shelter from freezing northern winters. The butterflies cluster in the limbs of the large Eucalyptus trees that tower over the grove.

Walking over the sand dunes from the campground onto the beach and taking long walks is a favorite activity for many campers here. We enjoyed walking the sand from the campground to the pier and strolling out to the end of the pier. Exploring the town of Pismo Beach is also entertaining. There are a lot of shops and restaurants and plenty to see. For example, we enjoyed perusing the toys and kites at “The Sky’s The Limit” on Dolliver Street.

We met with my brother-in-law Bob for a couple of days during the trip, and then we needed to replenish our food supplies. San Luis Obispo County has a number of farmer’s markets and we went to a couple on a Wednesday (Arroyo Grande & Pismo Beach). We were able to buy farm fresh fruits and vegetables from various farmers. There are also popular food stores close by, such as Trader Joes and Sprouts markets.

Other notable places within a short drive (or bike ride) of the campground which we enjoyed are Margo Dodd Park and Eldwayen Ocean Park. Both are ocean front bluff parks which offer great sea life watching, including birds and sometimes whales. There are giant rocks that rise high out of the ocean which the gulls and pelicans roost on. We also drove over to Harford Pier, a commercial pier which also has some recommended restaurants on it, and enjoyed walking down the pier. We saw a playful sea otter diving and surfacing and swimming on his back right below us! Here’s some video we took from Pismo Beach.

We didn’t stay long enough to explore everything this area has to offer and we definitely would like to come back sometime in the Fall to see the Monarch Butterfly migration. Our friend Jim who lives in Avila Beach gave us some additional places to visit for next time, like exploring the Architectural Graveyard on the Cal Poly San Luis Obispo campus, taking a walking tour of the old Victorian houses in San Luis Obispo, enjoying a docent led tour of the Mission of San Luis Obispo, going to the Mission Plaza, visiting Cave Landing, and having lunch at Fat Cats or Mersea restaurants. Until next time!

Exploring Remote Jalama Beach and Lake Cachuma (Santa Barbara County)

By: gavin

March 24, 2022

Exploring Remote Jalama Beach and Lake Cachuma (Santa Barbara County)
March 6^th – 13^th, 2022 (7 nights)

The California coast is beautiful in late winter / early Spring and provides the perfect transition from winter desert camping. On this trip, we were accompanied by a number of friends:

one family of three and a friend plus their Great Pyrenees dog in a rented 27’ motorhome
neighbor friends couple in their RPOD trailer
friend couple from Oxnard in their Class A Southwind 32’ motorhome

For this adventure, we chose two beautiful campgrounds in Santa Barbara County. The first campground we visited was Jalama Beach, a remote beach location about an hour north of downtown Santa Barbara and close to Vandenberg Air Force Base. Since the drive from San Diego to Jalama Beach is a long one (about 5 hours), we decided to break up the trip by stopping for lunch in the small beach town of Carpinteria along the way. We discovered, by chance, a park above the beach called Viola Fields (which happens to be a sanctioned model aircraft field!). There’s a nice bluff trail here which looks down over the sea and the Carpinteria Seal Sanctuary. There were lots of seals to view during our visit!

After a nice lunch in our Scamp, some drone flying and Frisbee games over Viola Fields, and a leisurely hike along the railroad tracks to the Seal Sanctuary overlook, we headed back onto the 101 North toward Santa Barbara. Following an hour and a half drive and the 14.5 mile curvy road from the freeway to the coast, we arrived at the remote Jalama Beach Campground at around 4 p.m. We chose a no-hookup site (#72, $30/night) close to the sand (2^nd row) with some ocean views. The wind was howling (Jalama Beach is known for being very windy) and we spent the evening in our friends’ rented motorhome playing the game Sequence for the first time (which we really enjoyed). The location is very isolated and there wasn’t any cellphone service or HDTV signals. However, we were able to log onto the free campground WiFi and use the internet and make phone calls (using WiFi calling). The internet speed was decent for simple browsing, internet, and phone calls (at least for my phone).

Jalama Beach is located on a beautiful wide sandy beach and the campground has around 107 campsites (with 31 sites having electrical hookups). There are water spigots throughout the campground and a free central dump station. The beach is great for all sorts of activities, including walking, surfing, kite flying, surf fishing, fat tire e-bike riding, rock collecting, and more! Jalama Beach has a grill restaurant that serves their “world famous” Jalama Burger. We tried the burger and it is very good and juicy! We road bikes, flew kites (including my new Scuba Diver kite!), explored during the day and played games and watched movies at night (and had a campfire and made s’mores one night)! I flew my radio-controlled CR Climax sailplane over the bluffs one afternoon. Riding bikes on the sand is super fun, especially since the beach goes on for over a mile! One thing to be careful of though is tar on the sand. As we discovered, it is very difficult to remove tar from shoes (our friend recommends rubbing olive oil and leaving on the tar for several minutes and then rubbing off). The best defense though is to take a pair of beach shoes or flip flops that you just use when on the sand.

Following a couple of relaxing days and nights at Jalama Beach (and some beautiful sunsets), we packed up and headed to Cachuma Lake (around a one hour drive). Cachuma Lake campground is very large and is located on one side of the lake. Our site, #106 ($45/night), has full hookups and a partial lake view. We walked the campground with our friends and identified some nice looking dry camping sites with beautiful lake views for possible future visits (#315, #313, #455, #453, #289, #288, #230, #231). We arrived in the afternoon and had a nice lunch at the HOOK’d Bar and Grill (with outdoor seating overlooking Lake Cachuma). There is a tackle shop (sells fishing licenses too) and a boat ramp near the restaurant to accommodate fishermen. Lake Cachuma is a big fishing destination featuring trout, bass, and crappie. Our friend rented a pontoon boat and caught a rainbow trout during our stay. There are plenty of trails for hiking and biking around the campground. Our friends told us they took a fantastic nature walk with a park host on Saturday after we left (sign up in person at the Nature Center). Additionally, there are guided lake cruises by Lake Cachuma park naturalists on Saturdays and Sundays (Adults $15, Kids $10). Reservations should be made as early as possible as these tours sell out. Lastly, there is a world class Frisbee golf course that is very expansive. Frisbee rentals can be obtained at the Lake Cachuma store (which also has a gas station and propane refill station). Overall, we had a relaxing stay for a few days and nights at Lake Cachuma. The campground was pretty quiet and it seemed there were a number of snowbirds camped out here for several months.

The last stop on our trip was at my cousin’s house in Santa Barbara, located only about 30 minutes down the CA-154 from Lake Cachuma. We had fun walking within the Douglas Family Preserve, strolling Shoreline Park, having lunch at our favorite Mexican restaurant in Santa Barbara (Taco Pipeye), and exploring the Ellwood Monarch Sanctuary. The highlight of our trip to Santa Barbara was seeing my cousins and having a nice dinner with them in downtown Santa Barbara.

On this trip we learned that one doesn’t have to travel very far to have a fulfilling getaway if the holiday is combined with beautiful locations, close friends and family, and fun things to do together (like games, hikes/bikes, kites, and meals). So, don’t hesitate to book a quick trip close by and make sure to pull the above elements together to ensure a happy adventure! RV there yet?