Romero Canyon
Montecito / Santa Barbara front country · near Montecito / Santa Barbara · Central Coast
Mountain Biking
At a glance
- Skill level
- advanced
- Trail miles
- ~6 mi lower loop; ~10 mi with the upper loop
- Elevation
- Fire-road climb with ~1,077ft of singletrack descent; ~1,500-2,000ft total on the full loop
- Best season
- Oct-May; brutally hot and exposed in summer; do not ride wet (rutting damage and access politics)
Worth knowing
- Good for a first timer
- No
Mountain Biking detail
- Ride types
- all-mountain · xc · enduro
- Signature trails
- Romero Canyon Road (fire road) · Lower Romero Singletrack
- Ebike
- No
- Ebike note
- Class 1 e-MTBs are commonly ridden but Forest Service singletrack rules vary - treat as a gray area and defer to posted signage.
- Intl tip
- Fit a bell and use it - the descent is shared with hikers on blind corners and local etiquette is strict. Verify current status; this storm-prone canyon has washed out before.
The guide
Romero Canyon is the definitive Santa Barbara front-country mountain-bike loop and the one locals name first - a manageable fir…
In the Guidebook
Everything above is yours for free. The written guide to Romero Canyon — what it is actually like, and what we would tell a friend before they went — comes with the Guidebook.
Getting there
- Coordinates
- 34.4588, -119.594