Chumash Painted Cave

The Chumash Painted Cave State Historic Park, located just north of Santa Barbara in the Santa Ynez Mountains, is a hidden gem among locals. Although its a State Park, it might be the smallest in California! The whole area is so small that only about two cars can park at any given time. But it’s still worth the drive if you’re in the area.

Getting there is not difficult, from the 101 freeway in Santa Barbara, exit Calle Real then take CA-154 also known as San Marcos Pass, head up to Painted Cave Road and turn right. Painted Cave Road is a winding and scenic drive, not many cars, but you will see some cyclists, so be on the lookout for them in the turns. Also, it’s mostly a single car width road, so watch for cars coming down in the turns, drive slowly so you can use the few wider areas to allow each other room to pass.

Once you get to the Chumash Painted Cave area, drive slow or you’ll miss it, there is an area on the left just enough for about two cars to stop and park. We were lucky when we went, there was only one other car there. Don’t block the road if you can’t find parking, keep driving up and find a clearing on the side of the road then walk back to it. Its a nice walk and area. Here’s the Google Maps Chumash Painted Cave Street view of the location and parking.

After parking, the steps leading up to the cave are easy to find. Walk up to the iron gate, and you can see inside the cave. The paintings are really cool and unique. For more of the history of the paintings and the cave itself, check out this page by CYARK.

Like I mentioned earlier, the area is not very big, so you’ll only spend about 15 minutes or so max. The Chumash Painted Cave area is a nice detour if you’re driving up over the mountains from Santa Barbara and heading to Solvang. The drive back down is very nice and scenic too. Our visit was on 5/1/2021, so just a few days ago and the photos above were all taken by us that day as well. Well worth the visit!