Mule Ride Along Ellwood and Deveraux

This mule rider should get off his/her nostalgia trip and google "NCOS" (North Campus Open Space): the former golf course is being restored as a wetland. This is the first pre-rainy season that the acreage has been planted, thus the barren look.
Local residents know that despite some new housing development (not "clapboard" but lots of stone) much of this area is regaining its past glory within a vastly more urbanized setting.

Was this article written by an idiot, or just somebody impersonating one? They ought to do a little research as to why things are being done there the way they are, before casting a wide wet blanket over the whole endeavor.

@KANE KENA
Mebbe you shud right an artcle, an wee can chuckle at u.

Nice pictures and perspective from a stubborn old mule, who knows these trails as well as any person, yet doesn't seem to have the tools required to comprehend or research what is really going on. I expect that Tobe had a better sense of the positive changes taking place without just whinnying on about them.

I think Tobe's rider did a creditable job simply mentioning what they noticed. Merely described/explained what was seen and didn't need all the critical judgement. Thanks for the pictures. As usual, wish I'd been out there riding with you (whoever you are).

Walk out there and you can see why the rider thought things weren't progressing all that well. I walk those bluffs and am amazed that, in this time of drought, anyone thought it was a good idea to start any kind of "restoration" project. A lot of the planting done appears to have been "done in" by lack of rain. That said, I would like to take this opportunity to help divest the writer of his notion that trees on the property, especially trees anywhere near the Butterfly area, are in need of "selective" thinning or pruning: That area is attractive to Monarch butterflies because of the tall Eucalyptus trees and the small creek, a combination which creates a desirable overwintering site for Monarchs. From "Death of a Million Trees" (milliontrees.me) read the following and learn why those Eucalyptus trees need to be left alone as much as possible:------------------------- "Most of the approximately 250 roosting sites (for CA Monarch butterflies) are within 2.4 kilometers of the ocean, so wind protection is important for them while they are roosting. All of these factors predict the ideal conditions provided by eucalyptus trees:

Monarchs need tall trees (of at least 60 feet) because they roost in the intermediate level of the canopy where wind protection is greatest (3)
The forest must be dense enough to provide wind protection,
The tree canopy must be open so that the roosting monarchs receive filtered sunlight to keep their bodies warm enough.
The monarchs need enough moisture for hydration, but not so much that they are soaked and lose their body heat. So, dew and/or fog provide the ideal amount of moisture."----------- Add to this the fact that the Eucalyptus at the Coronado Preserve are in bloom in December, providing nectar for the butterflies------and you can see why anyone who enjoys and respects Monarch butterflies would object to Goleta officials removing or cutting back of any of the Eucalyptus at that site.

While the lush green golf course, locally referred to as "Ocean Ghettos" due to the weeds, marsh land grass and pooping ducks and geese has been recently restored into the upper Devereaux slough, this area is hardly the devastated over developed mess the mule observed. The "clapboard" structures which is now on or contiguous to the former golf course driving range is UCSB student and faculty housing, and not clapboard. The "distressing loss of open space" is now the largest openly contiguous area of public trails and beach access on the South Coast, 800 acres of UCSB preserves and Ellwood bluffs, trails open space and public beaches. The warning signs for falling trees reflect a concern for public safety, not some errant bureaucrat. A tree fell over an Ellwood trail just this weekend. Venoco tank removal? The company went bankrupt, leaving the removal to taxpayers via the local government and State lands to clean up, extending but not eliminating removal. "Piles of rubbish" by the UCSB landcape yard are sand bags and tarps for "solar composting" when tarps are placed on weedy areas to kill weed seedlings and seeds without using chemicals or manual labor. The "desolate wasteland" is the first year (last weekend) that the new North Campus Open Space could open due to the fragility of recently planted seedlings for the $23 million dollar wetland restoration. In a few years a wetland will emerge with native trees and plants. The signs at Coal Oil Point Reserve entrance off of Venoco Road describe the pond trail which goes through to the beach and indicate that dogs are now allowed, but do not forbid or limit entry. BTW, one of the reasons that dogs are not allowed in the area is the effort to protect native wildlife. This has resulted in 82 snowy plover hatchlings this year, as astounding success considering that the birds were not even nesting there a new years ago .
Truly, beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

I stated the Tobe's rider did a credible job of describing what she saw and got downvoted for it? Only critics allowed here? Really!!