21.8
PDI
9 mi
DISTANCE
3,426 ft
GAINED
7.2 %
AVG. GRADE
FULL CLIMB STATS
INTRO
Wow – this is a “must do” climb for anyone in the Santa Barbara area. Beginning near sea level, we climb out of the city of Goleta, California (seven miles north of Santa Barbara) into very rural and remote terrain. Almost immediately we have excellent views of the Santa Barbara Coast and Pacific Ocean.
"This is a very difficult and scenic climb up into the coast mountains north of Santa Barbara. After three stout miles on San Marcos go straight at the stop sign (intersection with busy Route 154) to Painted Cave Road. This road has big switchbacks with double digit grade, dark, single lane sections and a short stretch of 20% near the top. This is a classic west coast climb." (This quote is presented with the approval of John Summerson, from his book, The Complete Guide to Climbing (by Bike) in California, pg. 184.)
This is a brute of a climb at 7.2% for nine miles. An impressive 60% (5.3 miles) of the climb are between 5-10%, while 18% (1.6 miles) are at 18% and a sliver (0.8% / 0.1 miles) are between 15-20%. The steepest quarter-mile is 11.4% and steepest continuous mile is 10.7%.
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Roadway: The roadway surface is fantastic throughout the climb. The last six miles of the climb after crossing Highway 154 onto Painted Cave Road are very narrow with no center stripe but is just plain a real fun stretch of road.
Traffic: Mild throughout - and zero to almost none for the last couple of miles after passing through Laurel Springs at mile 5.2.
Parking: On the street just before the start of the climb - Map; Street View.
Provisions: None along the climb.
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The finish of Gibraltar Road about four miles from the finish of San Marcos-Painted Cave. A nice out and back is riding from Santa Barbara, up Gibraltar Road, along East Camino Cielo down to the start of San Marcos-Painted Cave and back - this is a 47 mile 8,500' out-and-back (Map).
Santa Barbara is a beautiful vacation destination, with amazing beachfront hotel options, or if you prefer to feel like a local, you could always stay in a gorgeous rental home.
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bjosloff
Painted Cave is a very good climb but not a pleasurable descent as has been said. The storms of January's 2023 has caused a lot of mud slides and some road collapse. The road is closed for the time being but you can still get away with cycling it, just be wary of flats. The climb kicks way harder than Gibraltar but I peffer the views, finish, and descent of Gibraltar a lot more. I would not recommend doing this climb by itself and not doing a whole loop but it really is worth doing once as the Painted Cave section is very serene and a unique climb.
Ian.O
A better climb than Gibraltar in my opinion. There are better views on Painted Caves than you get on Gibraltar and the variety of gradients and changes in scenery keep it interesting. Painted Caves is quite narrow (watch for cars) and the 154 crossing needs to be taken with caution. As the other commenter recommended, you should turn right on Camino Cielo at the top and descend Gibraltar. The pavement on Painted caves is not that bad but anything other than optimal pavement with those hairpins makes for a scary experience. The four massive hairpins on OSM are quite dangerous on the way down because cars can't see you. By comparison, Gibraltar is smoother than almost any road I've ever ridden and there are no highway crossings or blind 20% hairpins
grock333
If you do this climb continue straight past the top and descend Gibraltar Rd for an A+++ ridge ride. Spectacular views of back country mountains to your left and ocean, island views to your right. A 30 mile loop. Best in the west.
