El Capitan State Beach upgrade delayed due to COVID. When will campground close?

An upgrade project at El Capitan State Beach off Highway 101 in Santa Barbara County has experienced delays until at least next year, according to the California Department of Parks and Recreation.

El Capitan State Beach was initially slated to shut down for about one year starting in September.

The park now is expected to be closed for camping for about nine months starting in August 2022.

“The planning and permitting for this project has been very delayed,” Dena Bellman, district planning chief and public information officer for the state parks’ Channel Coast District, wrote in an email. “Much to do with COVID and associated challenges.”

The location of the project and associated impacts requires adherence to particular time frames, so park officials are hoping to have the project ready to begin in June 2022, and the camping closure effective Aug. 1, 2022, Bellman said.

“We hope that it will take the planned nine months to complete; however, any number of issues could cause that to be longer,” Bellman said.

The project calls for the construction of a new entrance road, kiosk, bridge and trail, according to the state Department of Parks and Recreation website.

It also includes several other improvements, such as the creation of an off-pavement ADA accessibility trail from the park entry down to the kiosk to facilitate safer pedestrian and nonvehicular access to the growing number of park visitors accessing El Capitan State Beach from neighboring parks.

“We will endeavor to have pedestrian access to the beach during construction. This may vary in location slightly throughout the different phases of the project,” Bellman said. “We will update the website, Facebook and Instagram accounts with current access information during the project.”

State park officials developed a project link on the El Capitan State Beach website, where information can be reviewed at parks.ca.gov/elcapitan. The website informs people about what is open and closed, as well as current park restrictions.

The site will be updated with project documents as they become available, Bellman said.

People with questions about the project at El Capitan State Beach can contact state park officials by email at channelcoastinfo@parks.ca.gov or by phone at 805-585-1869.