California · Rock climbing · Santa Barbara

Painted Cave

Painted Cave is a bouldering area in California with 1 route.

1 route
V4
Bouldering

Is Painted Cave open right now?

Alert in the area

The Forest Service lists 2 alerts for Los Padres National Forest.

As of · Source: USFS · Los Padres National Forest. Agencies don't list every closure — check before you go.

Best time to visit Painted Cave

Best months: October–May. Best months have typical highs of 55–85 °F, lows of 30 °F or warmer (32 °F where the station doesn't record snow), at most one snowy day and no more than 12 wet days.

  1. Jan

    66° / 36°

    8 wet

  2. Feb

    67° / 36°

    9 wet

  3. Mar

    70° / 38°

    7 wet

  4. Apr

    76° / 41°

    4 wet

  5. May

    80° / 46°

    2 wet

  6. Jun

    88° / 49°

    0 wet

  7. Jul

    94° / 55°

    0 wet

  8. Aug

    96° / 54°

    0 wet

  9. Sep

    91° / 51°

    1 wet

  10. Oct

    83° / 45°

    2 wet

  11. Nov

    73° / 40°

    3 wet

  12. Dec

    64° / 34°

    6 wet

Typical high / low (°F) and days with rain or snow, 1991–2020. Measured at Gibraltar Dam #2, CA, 6.3 mi away at 1,558 ft. The station sits about 600 ft lower than this place, so expect it a little cooler here. This station doesn't record snowfall. Source: NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020.

Painted Cave is a climbing area in the Santa Barbara Ranger District of Los Padres National Forest in California, managed by the Forest Service. It sits among a cluster of bouldering spots, with Hallway Boulder and Trojan Boulder each about 0.1 mile away. Spring and fall are the most comfortable times to visit. Typical averages from a nearby weather station at Gibraltar Dam show April highs around 76°F and October highs around 83°F, while July and August average in the mid-90s. For a hike, Arroyo Burro Trail is about 2 miles away and San Antonio Creek Trail Connector about 2.4 miles. Los Prietos campground lies roughly 3 miles off, and Sage Hill offers saltwater fishing at a similar distance.

Routes (1)

Keep exploring — more climbs worth the drive

Hallway BoulderPhoto: DieselDemon, CC BY 2.0 (via Flickr)

Hallway Boulder

~0 min drive

Hallway Boulder in California has 11 bouldering routes.

Trojan BoulderPhoto: DieselDemon, CC BY 2.0 (via Flickr)

Trojan Boulder

~0 min drive

Trojan Boulder in California has 11 bouldering routes across 8 difficulty grades.

Fire CragsPhoto: DieselDemon, CC BY 2.0 (via Flickr)

Fire Crags

~1 min drive

Fire Crags in California has 12 sport climbing routes across 10 difficulty grades.

Little Lebowski Urban Achievers CragPhoto: DieselDemon, CC BY 2.0 (via Flickr)

Little Lebowski Urban Achievers Crag

~6 min drive

Little Lebowski Urban Achievers Crag in California has 14 routes across 11 grades, offering bouldering and sport climbing.

The BelafontePhoto: DieselDemon, CC BY 2.0 (via Flickr)

The Belafonte

~7 min drive

Belafonte, The is a 7-route bouldering crag in California with 6 distinct difficulty grades.

Bob's Ground Up BoulderPhoto: DieselDemon, CC BY 2.0 (via Flickr)

Bob's Ground Up Boulder

~7 min drive

Bob's Ground Up Boulder is a 6-route bouldering crag in California with 5 difficulty grades.

The BrickyardPhoto: Doc Searls from Santa Barbara, CA,USA, CC BY-SA 2.0 (via Wikimedia Commons)

The Brickyard

~7 min drive

Brickyard in California has 10 bouldering routes across 7 grades.

The Owl FarmPhoto: DieselDemon, CC BY 2.0 (via Flickr)

The Owl Farm

~7 min drive

Owl Farm, California has 7 climbing routes with bouldering pads.

Rat BoulderPhoto: DieselDemon, CC BY 2.0 (via Flickr)

Rat Boulder

~7 min drive

Rat Boulder in California has 5 bouldering routes with pads.

Dancing Outlaw BoulderPhoto: DieselDemon, CC BY 2.0 (via Flickr)

Dancing Outlaw Boulder

~7 min drive

Dancing Outlaw Boulder in California has 9 bouldering routes across 7 grades.