page_title: Santa Ynez Mountains
section_title: Inhabitants
hierarchical_section_title: Santa Ynez Mountains / Inhabitants
caption_attribution_description: English: This is the view from the very top of Santa Ynez Peak looking West.
context_page_description: The Santa Ynez Mountains are a portion of the Transverse Ranges, part of the Pacific Coast Ranges of the west coast of North America. It is the westernmost range in the Transverse Ranges.
  The range is a large fault block of Cenozoic age created by the movements of the Santa Ynez Fault. A very narrow range, the Santa Ynez Mountains rise quickly on its north side and drops off equally dramatically along the range's south face. The Santa Ynez Mountains begin as a series of volcanic hills near Point Arguello, and gradually transitions eastward into a single, well-defined ridge extending from Gaviota Peak to Matilija Creek. The range is approximately contiguous with the Topatopa Mountains beyond to the east, which terminates abruptly at Sespe Creek.
  The climate of the range is Mediterranean with most of the precipitation falling between November and March. Most of the range lies in the California chaparral and woodlands ecoregion. At the crest and on the north slope, the rainier regions support extensive oak woodlands, mixed with other broadleafed species such as madrone, sycamore and bay laurel, along with some
  conifers, primarily Coulter pines.
context_section_description: Early inhabitants included the Chumash people who left behind many examples of rock art including those at Painted Cave SHP. Large portions of the mountain range are now in the Los Padres National Forest, although there are private inholdings, including some substantial communities, such as the Painted Cave community where Jane Fonda owned the ridgetop Laurel Springs Ranch into the late 1990s. Other famous residents have included Ronald Reagan, whose Rancho del Cielo is at the top of the range west of Santa Barbara. The Cold Spring Tavern is a popular local gathering place beneath the Cold Spring Bridge.
caption: View from the very top of Santa Ynez Peak looking west
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