by Gordon Barbosa

We recently returned from our 5-week volunteer trip at the Neal Taylor Nature Center located in the Cachuma Lake County Park near Santa Barbara, CA. The lake serves as the reservoir that provides water to Santa Barbara County residents. This is a great park that has boating, fishing, hiking, disc golf, a swimming pool (open during the summer months), cabins, yurts, RV sites, a dog park, Hook’d Bar & Grill and, of course, the Neal Taylor Nature Center.

My wife and I were there to serve as “Nature Center Hosts.” Nancy, being a retired teacher, was of more use to them as they have students from the surrounding areas come to visit the center every week. As a retired videography, my uses were much more limited, so I was relegated to be the in-house groundskeeper and mouse trap regulator.  As volunteers, we were given a full hook up site for our travel trailer in exchange for 20 hours of volunteer service to the center. Fortunately for me because of the need for Nancy’s expertise with the kids, she filled 15 of our 20 hours per week. 😀

Our time off from our duties allowed us to visit sites around the lake and the surrounding towns. The lake is only a short  13-minute drive from Santa Ynez – home of the Chumash Casino Resort and the brand new Chumash Museum and Cultural Center. The museum opened in mid-May, 2025 so we got to visit it on its second day of opening. (See some of its highlights in the video below.)

Just west of Santa Ynez is the city of Solvang which calls itself “the Danish Capital of America.” Solvang is a sun-soaked slice of Danish culture in the Santa Ynez Valley, where California wine cellars mix with European bakeries and shops. We sampled quite a few of the towns bakery items and returned to “the Belgian Cafe” a number of times. Its outdoor seating allowed our two dogs to take in the atmosphere while we ate our breakfasts.

A few miles south of Solvang is Nojoqui Falls. We could imagine it roaring through if it were earlier in the year. In mid-May it’s more of a trickle (see below). It’s a short 10-minute hike from the parking lot with a slight incline.

Nestled between Santa Ynez and Solvang is Mission Santa Ynez, the 19th of 21 California missions established by the Franciscan Fathers. Padre Junipero Serra founded the first 8 missions beginning with Mission San Diego de Alcala in San Diego in 1769. These missions were established by the Spanish crown which controlled the secular activities of the Catholic Church in Spain and its territories. Together with the military, Spain could establish a presence in California and protect this territory from Russia and England.

The Franciscan Padres established missions to teach the native population (the Chumash at this mission) the Spanish culture, Christianity and a trade. The military viewed the missions as a source of provisions and man-power. Only the zeal and protection of the Franciscan Padres kept the military from exploiting the population. At the end of 10-15 years, the mission was to become a pueblo, the Chumash would receive lands, and the padres would become parish priests. Of course, that never happened.

Working with the other volunteers at the Neal Taylor Nature Center, along with its Executive Director, Julie McDonald, was a great experience. If you’re interested in volunteering at the center, visit its website here.

This blog entry was reposted from Gordon and Nancy’s website, RVingJourneys.us. Read the original article with videos and more pictures here.