Santa Barbara: Along the Cliffs
Retracing my childhood along the cliffs of Santa Barbara…
The bluffs of Santa Barbara
This trip up the California coast was important and sentimental for a number of reasons. It had been years since I had visited Santa Barbara, the last time being when I was still living in Southern California. As a child I spent a great deal of time around this scenery. My grandparents lived only a few blocks away and not only I visit them often as a young child, I also went to first and second grade at the nearby elementary school some 25 years ago or so.
I remember spending time with my siblings and my cousins on this beach among the cliffs and the park right above on the Mesa. Although it might not have been sunny beach weather, it felt like the perfect weather for a walk through the past. Staring out into the Pacific Ocean, being greeted by birds and signs of life on the shore, with few fellow beach-goers. I didn’t have any plans, I just figured I would keep walking and take it all in. There’s something to not always being on a certain schedule, just being as fully present as possible.
Throughout the journey, I took a number of photos of everything around me. Everything seemed to have a story of its own. Tide pools full of microscopic life, vegetation hanging from the cliffs, and water carving pathways down the rock over time. I see the lone tree, high above, perched at it’s station. I wonder and admire at the thought of simply standing watch, gazing into the horizon, and wish I could freeze for a moment in time.
The gateway arch to the stairs leading to the beach below.
The strangest "human" footprint I've ever seen.
Couple walks along with their dog.
Lone bird.
