By Linda Ballou, NABBW’s Adventure Travel Associate

Readers, I am working on a new book, which is very close to publication, to be called Lost Angel Unleashed: Stories From the Heart, as well as my Lost Angel Adventure Series. Today I’d like to share some of my very favorite places to visit in one of my favorite cities, Santa Barbara. I hope you will enjoy my list and will consider visiting this charming city soon. Please check out the links for more information…

State Street Promenade — A Taste of Europe

Santa Barbara’s State Street

The heart of Downtown Santa Barbara’s entertainment and retail district has transformed into an expansive 10-block pedestrian walkway between Sola and Gutierrez Street.

It is lovely to be able to stroll safely day, or night through the charming paseos festooned with magenta bougainvillea where wonderful eateries and trendy shops are tucked away.

Stop at the Courthouse for rooftop views of the city and the art museum for recent exhibits. Alice Peck Park, one block south of State Street is a pleasant place to take a rest among the flowers that are so happy in the Mediterranean climate.

Santa Barbara Botanic Garden

Stroll miles of garden paths that meander through meadows of wildflowers, otherworldly succulents, and deep into a shady redwood glade at the Santa Barbara Botanic Garden. Share a picnic lunch with butterflies and bluebirds flitting among the aromatic sage. Want to take a piece of the garden home with you; stop at the Garden Store where indigenous plants and more are for sale. On the way out of the garden don’t miss the Porter Path through the Ceanothus section that affords views of the Channel Islands.

Santa Barbara Museum

Rose Garden in front of the Santa Barbara Mission.

Stop at the Old Mission Santa Barbara museum and garden just down the hill from the Santa Barbara Botanic Gardens.

The Mission, founded in 1784, forms a courtyard around the Sacred Garden graced with a lovely fountain.

The original purpose of the mission was the conversion of the Chumash Indians to Christianity. Today it is a gentle reminder of days gone by.

 Brophy Brothers in the Yacht Harbor

 Enjoy casual seafood dining overlooking the harbor where yachties from all over the world tie up. Sit at the bar and watch your servers prepare oysters, clams, cioppino to die for and all manner of seafood dishes. Be prepared to wait for seating. There is often a lineup at this reasonably priced, friendly diner with seating indoors, on the outdoor balcony and at the bar. Take a stroll around the harbor after your seafood feast, or take passage on a Sunset Sailing.

 Arroyo Burro — Sweetest Spot in Santa Barbara

Arroyo Burro Beach

Arroyo Burro Beach a wide strip of powdery sand, the locals call Hendry’s, is my favorite stop in Santa Barbara. The trailhead at the southern tip of the parking lot leads to More Mesa, a bluff walk with stunning views of the coast.

Para-sailors glide overhead beneath flashy canopies, pelicans patrol the bluffs in v-shaped formations while far below the aquamarine Pacific purls into billows of foaming white.

The ocean is relatively calm here and safe to swim. You can walk for miles up the long strand of sand beneath the cliffs. Dine at the Boat House Hendry’s Beach overlooking the beach.  Locals with blankets and lawn chairs gather here to watch the sun slip into the Pacific in a fiery crescendo to cap off a perfect Santa Barbara Day.

Arroyo Burro Beach County Park, is located five miles west of Santa Barbara’s city center on Cliff Drive near Hope Ranch. From Highway 101 take Las Positas Road south to Cliff Drive. Turn right and travel 1/2 mile to the park entrance.

Books in Linda Ballou’s Lost Angel Series

Adventure travel writer, Linda Ballou, is the author of three novels and numerous travel articles appearing in national publications. Linda’s  Lost Angel Walkabout–One Traveler’s Tales is the first installment in her Lost Angel Adventure trilogy. It is an armchair traveler’s delight filled with adventure to whet your wanderlust. Linda loves living on the coast of California and has created a collection of her favorite day trips for you in Lost Angel in Paradise. Lost Angel Unleashed the third book in her travel series is travel memoir that takes you on her most meaningful journeys and some destinations to die for.. Learn more at www.LostAngelAdventures.com

 You can learn more about her works of fiction at www.LindaBallouAuthor.com

Linda Ballou Freelance Writer

Linda's mission is to experience as many beautiful places on our planet as she can before they are no more. Travel tales relating her experiences while kayaking, horseback riding, sailing, birding and hiking about the globe have appeared in numerous national magazines. She had great fun collecting travel stories, and profiles of people she met in “naturally high places” for her book, Lost Angel Walkabout-One Traveler’s Tales. Her latest book Lost Angel Unleashed is the third book in her Lost Angel Trilogy

Go to LostAngelAdventures.com for more adventures.

For more about Linda’s novels and media offerings go to. www.LindaBallouAuthor.com