Indigenous Land: Chumash
High up in the Santa Ynez mountains, above the haze and fog that locks in the coastal town below, is a small cave. While it’s somewhat hidden amongst the shady trees and hillside shrubbery, it holds some of the most spectacular Chumash cave art on public display. The smooth sandstone walls provide the perfect canvas for these mysterious drawings. While little is known about the meaning behind these images, we know the land was home to the Chumash Native American tribe. The Chumash people lived in the central and southern coastal regions of California, inhabiting land near the coast from Morro Bay in the north to Malibu in the south. Their territory also included three of the Channel Islands: Santa Cruz, Santa Rose, and San Miguel. Before California’s Mission era, the Chumash people inhabited over 150 towns and villages with a population of around 25,000 people.
As one walks to the entrance of the cave, you can not help but notice the honeycombed pattern in the sandstone above the site. In order to protect the cave and it’s paintings, an iron gate was installed and allows two holes large enough for viewing and photographing the artwork. While the exact age of the works are unknown, archaeologists suggest the paintings are around 200 to 1000 years old.
One of the biggest secrets the cave withholds are the meanings behind the various images painted on it’s walls. The various paintings are consist of three colors: red, black, and white. According to the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History, these colors came mostly from minerals. Red was made from an iron oxide called hematite, or red ochre. White came from gypsum or diatomaceous earth. Black was made from charcoal or from manganese oxide. These ground-up pigments were mixed with a binder — water, animal fat, or plant juices — to make them into paint, which was applied to the rock with the fingers or with brushes made from animal tails. As for what the paintings depict? Those stories are lost to time. Historians and anthropologists theorize the paintings were drawn by Chumash shamans, likely in attempt to influence supernatural beings and forces over human behavior. One of the figures, a solid black disk outlined in white, is thought to represent a solar eclipse that occurred on November 24, 1677.
As visitors drive to the Painted Cave, they are treated to spectacular views of Santa Barbara and the Santa Ynez Valley down below. On clear days, all eight of the Channel Islands can even be seen. The Chumash Painted Cave is a rare opportunity to be able to take a visit back in time and to appreciate and respect the indigenous land it lies upon.
If You’re Visiting
Painted Cave State Historic Park is located in the Santa Ynez Mountains. Take Highway 154 out of Santa Barbara and turn right on Painted Caves Road. The cave is located on the left, about two miles up a steep, narrow road. The pullout at the site will only accommodate one or two cars at the most.
Accessibility: the site is not handicap accessible. Access requires a short walk among dirt and rocks. There is railing assistance.
Along the Golden Trail 
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