FIN CITY
The Pacific Ocean can be seen in the distance from many spots along the Franklin Trail.
ON THE ROOF OF THE WORLD by Joe Gottwald ‘10
Over a century ago, School founder
easements issued by the Land Trust of
his kids some tough lessons. Mr. Cate was
Curtis Cate threw down $50 to see to the
Santa Barbara County freed up some of the
an advocate of cold showers and rugged
completion of Carpinteria’s Franklin Trail.
area, and in 2010, a group called Friends
outdoor experiences, and every student was
That sum, $1200 in today’s equivalent,
of the Franklin Trail was established and
required to have a horse. Small groups of
made Cate the second-biggest individual
spearheaded fundraising efforts to reopen
boys rode the local trails every weekend,
contributor to the trail. One hundred years
the historic trail. With the involvement of
either toward the Casitas, or up the
later, after the trail’s forty-year closure and
a host of governmental bodies and local
Franklin Trail and over into the Santa Ynez
recent reopening, the Cate community
organizations, construction and clearing
River area.” While horses are no longer part
continues the tradition of hiking the
began in May of 2013. The initial phase of
of the School’s program, and hot water now
meandering path into the foothills.
the trail opened in November of that year.
flows through its showerheads, outdoor
“I take pleasure hikes and cross-
experiences continue to be an important
From the trailhead near Carpinteria High School, the Franklin Trail snakes up
part of the Cate experience.
the Santa Ynez Mountains that form the
throughout the year,” said math teacher
Carpinteria Valley. A mile of chain-link
and cross country coach Tim Smith, who
accessible. A new round of fundraising has
fencing separates the path from the campus
also takes students on walks and runs there.
begun for the third and final phase, which
on one side and avocado ranches on the
Director of the Outdoor Program Paul
will restore the remaining stretch of the
other. Where the fencing ends, switchbacks
Denison said that the trail has been used as
original trail. When finished, the trail will
through dense chaparral begin, with
part of the School’s fall sports programs. He
lead hikers, bikers, and horse riders up
breathtaking views of the valley, the Pacific,
noted that several students use the trail for
seven miles to the Santa Ynez River and will
and the Channel Islands at every turn.
mountain biking and enjoy the conveniently
connect to hundreds of miles of trails in the
close access. “It’s a nice resource to have in
backcountry. Today, hikers can share the
one’s backyard,” he added.
1921 experience of two Cate boys who spent
Initially constructed in 1913 by the Forest Service, for years the trail provided access to the network of hiking, biking,
28
country training runs along the trail
As an avid outdoorsman who
As of spring 2016, 5.2 miles are
their Easter break riding the trail, and
and equestrian routes that wound through
believed in the benefits of fresh air and
who afterwards described “...the poignant
the backcountry. In the 1970s, access was
vigorous exercise, Curtis Cate supported
odor of pine needles” and wrote of being
lost when agricultural land in the valley
establishment of the trail knowing that he
“…on the roof of the world, for we could
expanded, and when owners ceased to
and his schoolboys could use the path. In
see for a hundred miles … the Coast
permit the public from passing through it,
Roxie Grant Lapidus’s essay, The Historic
Range to the southwest, the Channel
for fear of horses and hikers transmitting
Franklin Trail and Early Adventures in the
Islands, and way beyond the endless
plant diseases to their crops and orchards.
Back Country, she says, “[Mr.] Cate quickly
breast of the Pacific, glistening beneath
But in the early 2000s, conservation
discovered the trail’s potential for teaching
the sun like a sheet of gold.”
CAT E BULLET IN / S P R I N G 2016