coal oil point reserve

Took a nice long walk during low tide and they have some pretty good tide pools. Wasn't crowded but parking can be tight

Very nice place, would recommend for anyone seeking a bit of outdoor near the beach and who enjoy watching bird life.

Took my kids to coal oil point reserve. Generally not a well marked place or easy to figure out where you are going. There is a parking machine and some limited parking spaces. Once parked you then walk in the road and can follow the trail to the beach. It is a short walk through a field until you get there. I am not sure if this is typical or not, but we found some interesting sea shells once we got down and walked on the beach. We also found a whole bunch of lobsters on the beach, which my kids found fascinating. All in all we spent about an hour here from the time we parked until we returned to the car. The kids collected all sorts of things. We also, on the road back, saw a bunch of lizards on the side of the road on the telephone poles lying on the ground. My kids love to catch lizards so that added some additional fun to the trip. We spend a lot of time in Santa Barbara and this was a fun new experience for the kids

Surf can be some of the best around the area when the swells come in from the right direction. Best to park at the Southwest corner of Isla Vista and bike or walk to coal oil point.

Went to Coal Oil Point for a lab for a class. I would imagine kids would have a lot of fun looking for starfish and other sea life. The rocks are very slippery so be careful!

This is a lovely place to visit for the outdoorsy. The trails from coal oil point to the ocean are my typical running haunt: You can follow the trails to the water to view the sunset or hang out and watch the surfers. There is interesting signage about the research happening at the reserve, and opportunities to see many native birds and plants on your walk or run.