Santa Ynez Valley

The Santa Ynez Valley is a valley in Santa Barbara County, California, in the United States, lying between the Santa Ynez Mountains to the south and the San Rafael Mountains to the north, with the Santa Ynez River running through it from east to west. It is separated from neighboring valleys by several hill ranges, the Purisima Hills dividing it from the Los Alamos Valley to the northwest, the Solomon Hills from the Santa Maria Valley, and the Santa Rita Hills from the Santa Rita and Lompoc Valleys to the west. About 20,000 people live in the valley across five communities, Solvang, Los Olivos, Santa Ynez, Buellton and Ballard, in an economy built on agriculture, viticulture and tourism. The valley was designated the Santa Ynez Valley American Viticultural Area in 1983 and now holds more than 70 wineries and tasting rooms alongside extensive apple orchards. This description is adapted from Wikipedia contributors under CC BY-SA 4.0; changes were made. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/