Ellwood Beach
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About Ellwood Beach in Goleta, California
Ellwood Beach at Santa Barbara Shores Park and Ellwood Mesa Open Space is surrounded by open spaces that invite exploration. Ellwood Mesa is also home to the Goleta Monarch Butterfly Preserve.
The county purchased this land on the mesa to protect it from ever encroaching development. This ensures that the public has access to the mesa, the beach, and the butterfly grove.
There are trails for hiking and mountain biking all over Ellwood Mesa which fills the gap between the Sandpiper Golf Club to the north and Coal Oil Point Natural Reserve to the south. Bikes and horses are allowed on the open mesa trails but not in the wooded area signed for the butterfly grove.
Access to Ellwood Beach requires quite a walk from the parking lot. Look for the parking lot entrance off Hollister Avenue across from Ellwood Elementary School (lot is signed for the butterfly grove).
To find the beach, walk on the trails due south all the way to the bluff’s edge and then turn left until you find a route down. Due to this remote beach access, it won’t be packed like better-known beaches in the area.
If you walk south on the beach you will eventually get to Sands Beach at the Devereux Slough Lagoon entrance and if you walk north it leads to Haskell’s Beach at the Barcara Resort.
To see the Goleta Butterfly Preserve, just follow signage that starts at the parking lot. These beautiful butterflies spend winter here between November and February so that is the best time to visit. The preserve is actually closer to an alternate Ellwood entrance at the end of Santa Barbara Shores Drive, but the parking in that area is limited.
Dogs are allowed on leash west of the Santa Barbara Shores Drive access, however new rules prohibit dogs on the mesa during snowy plover nesting from March to August.
- Address
- 7686 Hollister Ave
Goleta, CA 93117 - Phone
- 805-961-7578
- Park Name
- Santa Barbara Shores County Park, Ellwood Mesa Open Space, Goleta Monarch Butterfly Preserve, Sperling Preserve
- Other Names
- Santa Barbara Shores Beach
- Owner
- City Open Space
- Fees
- Free parking
- Activities
- Hiking, Walking, Mountain Biking, Horseback Riding, Beachcombing, Tidepooling
- Amenities
- Trails, Tide Pools, Butterfly Grove, No Facilities
- Links
- Water Temps Tide Chart
Nearby Beaches
Sands Beach
0.9 miles away
Sands Beach is located on the west side of Coal Oil Point in Isla Vista, California. This beach lies...
Devereux Beach
1.1 miles away
Devereux Beach is on the east side of Coal Oil Point in Isla Vista, CA. Behind the beach is...
Haskell’s Beach at Bacara Resort
1.3 miles away
Haskell’s Beach is right below the huge Bacara Resort and Spa west of Goleta and Santa Barbara. The resort...
Nearby Attractions
Goleta Monarch Butterfly Grove
0.6 miles away
The Goleta Monarch Butterfly Grove goes by several names including Ellwood Main Monarch Butterfly Grove as it is signed...
Nearby Lodging
Bacara Resort & Spa
1.4 miles away
If you are looking for that “WOW” factor, Bacara has it. It doesn’t come cheap and you wouldn’t want...
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