I will be in the area Saturday evening Sunday morning.. then heading back up Hwy 1... Home is Chico, Ca... so anything between would be good also...
Thanks, Steve

Yosemite?

No.... that is hours the other direction.... How could you only spend a day in the Valley?

Where the courthouse is on Anacanda Street, you can go up the elevator to the top of the tower and great shots of over the city and all, maybe even the sunset, not sure when they close it, it is open on weekends as well.
There is the Santa Barbara Mission also up at the back of town with a nice old cemetery if you are into infrared there is great shooting there.
Also a zoo in SB but I have never been so cannot tell you what it is like.
The Pier, you can always get good shots of pelicans out there, skate park at the base of it. Also on the pier usually the huge harbor seals are sunning themselves on the lower decks under the pier, there is one set of steps to the right about 3/4 way down to end of pier, white gate but ok to open it and go down, you can get really close to them there for good shots. If you are lucky there might be an otter under the pier as well, they clam there and eat them under the pier, floating on their backs.

With all the recent fires our coastal mountains aren't as photogenic as usual. For landscapes I'd recommend either the beaches or heading over to the Santa Ynez valley and either exploring the vineyards or up Figueroa Mountain Rd. The view at sunset is amazing and there are often mule deer roaming around that time of day. For other local wildlife I'd aim for either Lake Los Carneros or Ellwood Mesa, both in Goleta. Both have quite a bit of bird activity right now. I'd also recommend hitting Morro Bay on the way back north. Sea otters are generally found very close to shore along the rocks on the harbor side of the gravel parking lot.

The Santa Ynez Valley is pretty, but that means going over 154 and missing a stretch of the ocean up to Gaviota. North of Gaviota, after 1 heads off to the west, 101 climbs up over the pass. There's a truck parking area on the right side which overlooks the valley. At the bottom of ther hill there is Nojoqui Road which turns into El Alisal Road as it works it's way back to Solvang. Some rural farm scenery and some massive oaks and spanish moss, then also darker denser forest areas with some potential for color change from some of the shrubs and big leaf maple (and poison oak).

From there though, unless interested in some of the dunes like at Guadalupe or Oceana/Pismo (?), I'd suggest just getting to San Luis Obispo and then west to Moro Bay and north through Big Sur. I'd think from the area of the pier at Santa Barbara, the sun is still setting behind the hills to the west but there are some parks on the bluffs that I think would offer a view of the sunset as you go west from the marina area.

Thanks for these ideas... I am printing them and taking them with me... leaving at 4 am....
Thanks, Steve