Similar to the ones described by Father Font, these Chumash huts,
made of willow and tule, are at Mission La Purísima.
Many of the Spanish names used by Font for Chumash villages, such
as Carpintería, San Buenaventura, and the two villages (Dos
Pueblos de San Pedro y San Pablo), are still names of nearby places.
Photo: Ron Ory
Driving Directions for Auto Route
Continuing on the route from Ventura
County, go north on US 101 to the City of Santa Barbara. Take
the Carrillo Street exit east to Cañón Perdido Street
and the El
Presidio de Santa Barbara State Historic Park. The park offers
exhibits on the history of the American Indian, Spanish,
and Mexican periods. As you continue north on US 101, stop at Goleta
Beach County Park or one of the state beach parks (El
Capitán, Refugio,
or Gaviota).
A trail connects El Capitán and Refugio State Beach Parks.
At Gaviota, the historic route continues along the coast, but the
road turns north through Gaviota Pass. The auto tour route follows
US 101 to CA 1 and the town of Guadalupe.
Continue on US 101 to CA 1. Follow CA 1 through Lompoc and turn
east on CA 249 and follow signs to La
Purísima Mission State Historic Park. This site is
not on the original Anza expedition route, which followed the coast,
but allows one to experience a Spanish Mission community. Continue
north on CA 1. Stop near Vandenberg
Air Force Base. Continue north on CA 1 towards Guadalupe.
From the area south of Guadalupe northward to Missions
San Luis Obispo and San
Antonio, the auto route closely follows Anza's.
The Pacific Coast Bicycle Route from Ventura connects with bikeways
in the City of Santa Barbara, and connects to this bike route north
through the county. A hike and bike trail, the Aniso Trail
links El
Capitán and Refugio
State Beaches. "Aniso" means seagull in Chumash. The Andree
Clark Bird Refuge (on Cabrillo Blvd. in Santa Barbara) gives
hikers opportunities to see local wildlife at the coast.
Gaviota State Park takes its name
from the Spanish word for seagull. The Chumash lived in nearby
villages they called "Khalam" (at Jalama Creek), "Onomyo" (Gaviota)
and "Quasil" (Refugio Beach).
Photo: NPS
About
Your Visit to Santa Barbara County
Many colonists on the expedition marveled at Pacific Ocean.
They saw waterspouts thrown up by whales, and passed through
land of the Chumash peoples, whose skills impressed them.
From these natives, they obtained some baskets, cups, trays,
and many varieties of fish in exchange for glass beads. Going
further, they crossed the Santa Maria River near the town
of Guadalupe at the northern boundary of Santa Barbara County.
Sites of Interest
A. La Rinconada and Expedition Camp #75
Traveling past a village they called La Carpintería,
camp was made on February
24, 1776 at La Riconada near the border with Ventura
County. Here, Font describes the Native Americans, their skills,
houses, sweathouses (temescals), money and boats (called
tomols). The site of the camp is preserved in Rincon
County Beach Park. Carpinteria State Beach is a few miles
to the west, and offers Chumash interpretive programs.
B.El
Presidio de Santa Barbara State Historic Park
Encompassing the original site of the 1782 Presidio, the park
interprets life in California under Spanish rule. Some soldiers
of the original garrison were members of the 1775-76 Anza
expedition. It offers exhibits on the history of the Spanish
and Mexican periods, and includes the Buenaventura Pico Adobe
built by Anza expedition descendants. The address is 123 East
Cañón Perdido St. in Santa Bárbara.
C. California State and County Beaches
Expedition Camp #76-78 Goleta
Beach County Park, the U.C.
Santa Barbara campus, and the Santa Barbara Airport are
the sites of the Chumash villages of Mescalitán (Camp
#76). Font
writes, "Here there are three large villages on the banks
of the estuary, the largest one being on the road which we
are traveling." Mescalitán is commemorated with
a plaque along the Coast Route Trail at South Patterson Ave.
and the Atascadero Creek Bikeway in Goleta. Along Anza's route,
El Capitán, Refugio, and Gaviota State Beach Parks
provide opportunities to interpret the natural environment
and the native cultures at the time of the Anza expedition.
Jalama County Beach offers an experience of the land and sea
as the expedition might have seen it.
D.La
Purísima Mission State Historic Park
This camp is at the mouth of today's Santa Ynez River and
is within Ocean Beach County Park. Up the river to the east
is Mission La Purísima. Although it's not on the historic
Anza route and wasn't constructed until after the expedition,
it's on the auto tour route. Visitors can see animals and
plants of the missions and exhibits on the life that the Spanish
settlers brought to the indigenous people. It is located at
2295 Purisima Road near Lompoc.
E. Vandenberg Air Force Base and Expedition
Camps #79-80
Camps #79 and #80 are on Vandenberg
Air Force Base, and access is restricted. The base offers
weekly bus tours of the facility, much of it on Anza's route.
Amtrak's
Coast Starlight route from Ventura to San Luis Obispo
is on the historic route. From Gaviota through Vandenberg
Air Force Base, the train is the only way most members of
the public can see the landscapes that Anza saw.
Learning
On The Trail in Santa Barbara
County
Questions on
the Trail
Photo: Greg Smestad
Past Gaviota (above) at Point Conception, Font describes,
"all the land is thickly covered with flowers, and green
with a variety of grasses, good pasturage, and fragrant
and useful plants." From Santa Barbara, you can explore
the Anza Trail by train. Docents from the South Coast
Railroad Museum provide onboard
interpretive programs on Amtrak's
Coast Starlight line. After visiting the museum or
taking the train, answer the following questions -
Question: Where can you see futuristic rocket launching
pads today on Anza's historic route?
Question: Are the hillsides grazed by cattle today (pasturage)
as Font predicted? What would make the land good for this
activity?
On the CD: Chumash and the Sea
Listen to Chumash descendant Mike Phillips as he describes
his people. He supplies his hand-crafted Chumash musical
instruments and artifacts to museums such as the Santa
Barbara Museum of Natural History (2559 Puesta del Sol
Road) where visitors can learn more about these peoples.
On Saturday, February
24, 1776, Father Font writes,
"...They have commerce with [the tribes] of the Colorado
River, with their cuentas or beads, consisting of flat,
round, and small shells [olivella] which they
hunt for in the sands of the beach, and of which they
have long strings hung around the neck and on the head...Once
I went near a hut which I saw open, to examine its structure,
for among all the huts which I saw in all the journey
these are the best. They are round in form, like a half
orange, very spacious, large and high...The Indians
are great fishermen and very ingenious. They make baskets
of various shapes, and other things very well formed,
such as wooden trays and boxes, and things made of stone.
Above all, they build launches with which they navigate.
They are very carefully made of several planks which
they work with no other tools than their shells and
flints. They join them at the seams by sewing them with
very strong thread which they have, and fit the joints
with pitch, by which they are made very strong and secure."
Santa Barbara County Parks - 610 Mission
Canyon Rd., Santa Barbara, CA 93105;
tel.: 568-2461,
web: countyofsb.org/parks
California State Parks Channel Coast District Headquarters
- 911 San Pedro St., Ventura, CA, 93001;
tel.: 805-585-1847,
web: parks.ca.gov
El Presidio de Santa Barbara State Historic Park - 123 E.
Cañón Perdido St., Post Office Box 388, Santa
Barbara, CA 93102;
tel.: 805-965-0093,
web: sbthp.org