The Ellwood Grove Is Being Rebuilt for Monarchs That Arrive in Bursts

Two winters ago, the busiest day at Ellwood Mesa's butterfly grove topped out at 34 monarchs. The winter before that, the peak was 26,383. That gap matters when you decide whether to walk the grove this fall. Over the same stretch, the City of Goleta and a lot of volunteers have been replanting, regrading and clearing the grove. That work happens on a schedule. The butterflies don't keep one.

What the counts have actually done

Monarchs reach the California coast in October. In November they settle into the groves with the best wind protection, and at Ellwood the population usually peaks in mid-December. By mid-March they're gone. Here's how the highest single-day count has moved over the last six winters, as reported by Noozhawk and the City's Monarch Press.

Last winter was quiet even by recent standards. According to the Santa Barbara Independent, the 2025–26 high of 20 came in October, and the January count found two butterflies across the Ellwood sites. Noozhawk reported a single monarch at the final count in early March 2026.

Different counts can give slightly different numbers for the same season. The Xerces Society's 2025 mid-season survey, taken from late November through early December, found 29 monarchs spread across nine Ellwood Mesa sites. The City's biweekly counts topped out at 20 as of December 1. The two surveys use different methods and cover different areas. Both describe a very quiet grove.

A ten-butterfly winter came right before the big ones

The first row of that table is the one to keep in mind. In 2020–21, the most monarchs seen at Ellwood on any one day was 10. Then the City counted tens of thousands in each of the next three seasons, from October 2021 through March 2024. The City's own year-end update says that history "gives us hope."

None of that predicts a good year. The City notes that the migratory western monarch population has fallen about 95% since the 1980s, which goes far beyond normal year-to-year swings. It points to heat, wildfire, drought, severe storms, development and pesticide use, and notes that the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service has proposed Endangered Species Act protection for the monarch. Statewide, Xerces volunteers counted 9,119 monarchs in the 2024 mid-season survey and 12,260 across 249 sites in 2025. For comparison, the Ellwood sites together held more than 26,000 on their best day in 2023–24. The tiny Ellwood counts are part of a range-wide low, and they don't mean something has gone wrong with the grove in particular.

So the City's plan doesn't depend on a good year. Its goal is to have the grove ready whenever the butterflies return in numbers.

What changed on the ground in 2025

If you haven't walked the grove in a year or two, you'll notice the 2025 work as soon as you leave the parking lot.

The trails and drainage. Rebuilt trails and new drainage pools below the main viewing area had their first real test in November 2025, when about nine inches of rain fell over seven days. According to the City's update, the Santa Barbara Shores culvert came through undamaged and the new trails cut down on erosion. They're also safer than the old paths when muddy, and the pools below the viewing area slowed and held water as designed.

The forest floor. From May through October 2025, fire crews worked 60 acres. They chipped dead and downed wood, removed ladder fuels and non-native shrubs and trees, and felled standing dead trees that posed a high risk. The City said this vegetation work would resume in 2026. When crews are working, the City's practice is to close trails within at least 100 feet of the active area and reopen them after the day's work.

The new trees. Volunteers did much of the replanting. In 2025, volunteer days drew more than 1,000 sign-ins over 29 workdays. Volunteers planted more than 550 trees and 2,500 plants, laid irrigation, and watered, mulched and weeded. The City says it is also tracking individual monarchs to learn where they go after they leave.

The young trees are what will matter in a future peak year. Monarchs cluster where the canopy blocks wind and cold, and the trees planted in 2025 are part of that future canopy. They'll take years to grow in, which is one reason the planting went ahead through a low season.

What's planned but not yet in place

Some items on the City's list are still plans. The Ellwood stewardship plan calls for an elevated creek crossing to replace the ground-level boardwalk. In June 2025, the Independent reported on a new signage plan. It includes entrance and parking signs, maps and rules, directional posts, and illustrated signs at the viewing areas. Overall, the City lists the habitat plan's first phase as in progress, with planting, vegetation management, monarch monitoring and visitor improvements continuing.

The docent program is also being rebuilt. The City's grove page says the program is being revitalized and lists a coordinator for anyone interested in volunteering as a docent. No fall weekend docent schedule has been posted yet.

Planning a walk this fall

Late October is early in the season, so plan the walk for the grove itself and count any butterflies as a bonus.

1. Park at 7729 Hollister Avenue. Parking is free, and the grove is free and open from sunrise to sunset.
2. Allow about 15 minutes each way between the lot and the main viewing area. It's an easy outing with visiting family, but check that everyone is comfortable on natural trails, and keep to the designated trails. The rebuilt trails are safer than the old ones when muddy, though a dry day is still the more comfortable walk.
3. Look down at the drainage pools below the main viewing area. They're the 2025 work that held up through November's storms.
4. Plan a second visit for mid-December, when Ellwood's population usually peaks. The City posts its biweekly counts for the 2026–27 season on its Goleta Butterfly Grove page, so you can check the numbers before you go.

Counting days and volunteer days

The statewide counts that put Ellwood in context run on a published schedule. The Western Monarch Count lists three survey windows this season, and volunteers have to register each year.

• Early season, October 17 through November 1, 2026, which is underway now
• Mid-season, November 14 through December 6, 2026
• Late season, December 26, 2026 through January 10, 2027

The hands-on habitat work ran through spring. In 2026, the City, Ellwood Friends and the Santa Barbara Bucket Brigade hosted Saturday volunteer days at Ellwood Mesa on February 7, March 14, April 18 and May 30, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Volunteers planted, pulled invasive plants and worked on irrigation. The City posts upcoming opportunities at CityofGoleta.org/Ellwood-now.

The trees planted at those spring volunteer days are along the trail you'll walk this fall. They're a big part of what's growing toward the next peak year at Ellwood.

A slow walk to the Ellwood viewing area can be a good way to spend unhurried time with an aging parent and talk about what the next few years might look like. If that conversation is coming up in your family, Terri Dimond and the All About Seniors team can help you prepare for it. Attend a free senior seminar to get practical, patient guidance on downsizing, staying in your home safely, and planning on your own timeline.