Santa Barbara City College bike ride

The Pro Bike/Pro Walk 98 Conference took place in Santa Barbara on September 8-11, 1998. There were several bike rides for the 520 conference participants led by members of the Santa Barbara Bicycle Coalition, the local advocacy group that helped host the international event. This is one of those rides that anybody can enjoy. They all start and end at the DoubleTree Pro Bike/Pro Walk Conference hotel, but you can pick them up anywhere along the route.

Santa Babara City College Bike Ride

This spectacular view looks northeast from the City College bluffs toward Santa Barbara Harbor, after a short but steep bike climb. Photo by Ralph Fertig.

Highlights of the Ride

1. Cabrillo Boulevard. This ride leads from the DoubleTree resort along the beach. On Cabrillo Boulevard, note the vast public beach and absence of high-ride hotels or exclusive residences. At an early date, the City of Santa Barbara decided to dedicate its miles of waterfront land for public use instead of private development. Oceanfront Cabrillo Boulevard, named for Spanish explorer Juan Cabrillo, provides a scenic drive and access to ocean activities.

2. Pershing Park. Turning off Cabrillo Boulevard, go past the band shell in Pershing Park. At the turn of the century, Cabrillo Boulevard ended here with a famous bathing area, hence nearby Bath Street.

3. Santa Barbara Carriage & Western Arts Museum. This museum houses historic carriages, stagecoaches, and saddles from the 1700s and 1800s.

4. Santa Barbara City College. Perched on a spectacular blufftop above the City and Harbor, the Santa Barbara City College is one of 107 California two-year institutions. Its 12,000 students study liberal arts, career-oriented, and transfer education programs. The panoramic view at the top of the winding bikepath is especially striking.

5. Santa Cruz traffic circle. Before modern traffic-calming roundabouts, larger traffic circles existed. This is one of two historic circles in the City, both of them on the "Mesa," the residential area south of the Downtown city.

6. Shoreline Drive. Again, the City of Santa Barbara preserved an oceanfront area for the public, here site of popular Shoreline Park. Bikelanes were striped only after vigouous opposition from residents who didn't want to lose convenient parking. The compromise was that westbound parking would be allowed only at night, freeing the space for bicyclists during the daytime.

7. Santa Barbara Harbor. This harbor is home to hundreds of fishing and pleasure boats, plus 25 shops and restaurants. Rent boats, take cruises to the Channel Islands, go whale watching, or para-sail nearby.

8. Stearns Wharf. Built by John Peck Stearns in 1872, Stearns Wharf is the oldest operating wharf on the West Coast. Originally a Y-shaped wharf with railroad tracks, storms have swept one leg away, leaving a truncated spur section.

Route sheet

At Mile Distance	Bicycle Direction	Name of Street or Path	Distance on Street
	START	DoubleTree Resort entrance
0.0	East	DoubleTree entry drive	0.1
0.1	R	Calle Puerto Vallerta	0.1
0.2	R	Cabrillo Boulevard	1.3
1.4	S	becomes Shoreline Drive	0.1
1.5	R	onto path at yellow bollards	0.3
1.7	S	College parking drive	0.3
2.0	L	enter bridge, continue on sidewalk	0.1
2.1	L	enter gravel path	0.2
2.3	S	enter service drive	0.1
2.4	L	enter connecting sidewalk	0.0
2.4	S	Del Mar Avenue	0.3
2.8	R	Los Ondas	0.2
2.9	L	San Miguel Avenue	0.5
3.4	L	Santa Cruz Boulevard	0.1
3.5	circle	go half-way around traffic circle	0.1
3.6	L	Shoreline Drive	1.3
5.0	R	Harbor Way	0.0
5.0	L	enter "Bike Lane"	1.6
6.5	L	Calle Puerto Vallerta	0.1
6.6	L	DoubleTree entry drive	0.1
6.7	END	DoubleTree Resort entrance

R=right L=left S=straight

Map

For a large printable version of this map, click here.

Select another Pro Bike ride:

Channel Drive
Casa de la Guerra
Eastside Santa Barbara
Santa Barbara Mission
Montecito Village
El Presidio
City College
Westside Santa Barbara
Stearns Wharf
Eastern Montecito
South Coast Tour