Help us permanently protect 68 acres of forest habitat in the San Emigdio Mountains today.
The Place
Tecuya Ridge is a special place, nestled amongst the San Emigdio Mountains in the Los Padres National Forest near where the county lines of Kern, Ventura, and Los Angeles converge. It’s a place where endangered California condors soar overhead, where black bears and mountain lions and deer roam, and where breathtaking views stretch from the snow-capped Sierra Nevada to Mt. Pinos and the Sespe backcountry. It’s also a place called Tacuy^ that is culturally and spiritually important to Chumash and Yokuts people.
California condors regularly use the ridgeline as a flyway and roost overnight in its tall trees, resting between long flights across the landscape. Given this exceptional amount of condor activity, these mountains are recognized as a Globally Important Bird Area—the only such area in the southern Los Padres National Forest.
Tecuya’s terrain is rugged, and its forests are diverse, reaching elevations of more than 7,000 feet with a healthy mix of Ponderosa, Jeffrey, and pinyon pines as well as white fir and bigcone Douglas-fir. This unique diversity of conifer forests and sagebrush supports other rare and endangered wildlife like California spotted owls, northern goshawks, San Emigdio blue butterflies, and yellow-blotched salamanders. It is also within the historic range of Tule elk and pronghorn.
The Opportunity
Much of this mountain range remains protected as part of the Antimony Roadless Area, where road building, logging, and other development is limited. However, a 68-acre parcel atop Tecuya Ridge is privately owned and threatened by a planned logging operation. The parcel’s zoning also allows for communication and radio towers, mining, and other development. The parcel was part of a 1948 mining patent that removed the property from the public domain and placed it into private ownership.
After learning that long-time owners of the parcel were interested in selling, we knew we had to act quickly. For a variety of reasons, the parcel was not a good fit for any of our land trust partners, but we couldn’t let this opportunity slip away. We quickly assembled a team of land acquisition experts, independent appraisers, and real estate agents to secure the best price, and by some stroke of magic, a purchase agreement was signed. Hurray!
By purchasing this land, we can immediately remove the risk posed by logging, mining, and other development. Our long-term plan is to hold the property in a conservation easement to ensure that it will never again come under threat of development. This living, thriving forest will be used for ecological study, education, traditional indigenous gathering and ceremony, and left to do what forests do best—provide wildlife habitat, regulate our climate, replenish the soil, and serve as an inspiration for us all.
How You Can Help
Our Tecuya Forever campaign seeks to raise $300,000 to cover the property’s appraised purchase price, closing costs, and completion of a long-term management plan and conservation easement for the land. Your donation in any amount—big or small—will help protect this forest in perpetuity, for generations to come. Here are three easy ways you can help today:
- Complete the donation form below, or
- Send a check payable to Los Padres ForestWatch with “Tecuya” written in the memo line, and mail to ForestWatch at P.O. Box 831, Santa Barbara CA 93102, or
- Contact our Director of Development, Jessica Dias, at (805) 617-4610 x 2 to process your donation over the phone or discuss other ways you may wish to contribute, including stocks or charitable IRA distributions.
