We zoomed down California's longest and fastest zip lines. Here are 6 things to know

I felt similar a hawk catching a gentle breeze arsenic I flew astir 400 feet implicit the oak woodlands and ranchland beneath me.

I was harnessed into the archetypal of 3 zip lines disposable astatine Highline Adventures adjacent Buellton, an expansive escapade parkland wherever Californians of each property tin find thing amusive to bash — including zooming down the fastest zip enactment successful the state.

Highline Adventures, which opened successful 2023, is little than a 10-minute thrust from Solvang, situated close down OstrichLand USA, meaning you tin walk your greeting scarfing down danishes, spell provender dinosaur-like birds and past scoot implicit to Highline for an day of adventure.

I spoke to proprietor and relation Jeff Hartman astir his escapade park, which makes up astir 200 acres of his family’s 1,200-acre ranch (which you tin larn astir connected your trip). Here’s what to cognize earlier you visit.

On your zip enactment tour, you volition question down 3 lines, starting with a 3,360-foot-long travel — astir 7.5 times the magnitude of the Hollywood Sign — wherever you mildly zoom 400 feet supra lush oak woodlands.

You can’t perceive my screams successful this photograph astatine Highline Adventures.

(Jaclyn Cosgrove / Los Angeles Times)

“Zip enactment No. 1 is the longest azygous span that I cognize of successful California,” Hartman said, adding there’s a backstage zip enactment successful the Central Coast that’s longer but isn’t unfastened to the public, hence the asterisk.

The 2nd enactment is 1,600 feet and offers a faster ride, but not the fastest.

That comes 3rd erstwhile you rocket 2,650 feet down a zip enactment built astatine a 26-degree angle, “which is the steepest the engineers tin physique a zip enactment with the exertion that we have,” Hartman said. “That one, I tin get you going 55 oregon 60 miles an hour.”

Or faster. Your velocity volition beryllium connected your value and upwind conditions. Riders indispensable beryllium betwixt 75 and 275 pounds. The larger the guest, the faster they volition apt go.

The zip lines instrumentality you 400 feet implicit oak woodlands.

(Highline Adventures)

To scope the archetypal zip line, the Highline unit volition instrumentality you successful 4×4 open-air Humvees connected a steep way wherever you’ll summation 1,000 feet of elevation. I recovered it thrilling (and benignant of wanted to drive)! You mightiness spot wildlife arsenic you caput up, including bobcat, deer, owls, foxes and if lucky, a upland lion, Hartman said.

Guests tin take the “hike and fly” circuit wherever they tin instrumentality either a 2-mile occurrence roadworthy oregon a 2.25-mile way up done the hillside. Either way, you volition extremity up astatine a lookout spot supra zip enactment No. 1 wherever you can, connected a wide day, spot the ocean.

Highline’s Adventure Park features a ropes people with 80 elements connected 2 abstracted levels. Guests tin take 4 routes, ranging successful trouble from casual to “very hard,” per the website. Ropes people guests indispensable beryllium astatine slightest 4 feet tall, capable to scope 70 inches consecutive up with your limb afloat extended overhead, and measurement little than 275 pounds.

The escapade parkland besides includes a ropes course.

(Highline Adventures)

But fearfulness not, wee children! (I’m going to unreal a 3-year-old mightiness work this.) Last spring, the Highline unit built Skynet Playground, an aerial netted escapade parkland featuring 10 netted zones. (Hartman has 3 children, ages 6, 3 and newborn, and wanted to physique thing his kids could bask too.) The sturdy, bouncy netting utilized successful the aerial parkland is the aforesaid utilized successful the commercialized sportfishing industry.

“What’s truly chill astir the Skynet Playground and these aerial nett parks is that, one, you don’t person to get into a harness, truthful that saves a batch of clip and energy... and (two), we tin get kids arsenic young arsenic 2 years aged successful determination with their parents holding their hands,” Hartman said.

Highline offers afloat satellite zip enactment opportunities monthly, but for January and February erstwhile it’s excessively chilly. Workers volition springiness you a headlamp and glow sticks arsenic you zip supra a moonlit ranch. Additionally, successful October, Highline hosts “fright flights” wherever guests tin besides zip enactment astatine night.

For each of the adventures, the Highline unit regularly checks the information of their equipment. Hartman said his squad performs daily, play and monthly inspections on with having a third-party shaper supply an yearly inspection of the zip enactment equipment.

Hartman was antecedently (legally) increasing cannabis connected the ranch. However, erstwhile the marketplace became oversaturated, it was nary longer profitable to beryllium a small-scale cannabis grower successful the Santa Ynez Valley, helium said.

Hartman loves increasing crops, and his parent mentioned protea, an past benignant of flowering works recovered successful South Africa and Australia. Protea are drought-tolerant and bash good successful California’s Mediterranean climate, helium said. In the summer, the unit lone has to supply a gallon of h2o to the plants.

Hartman said his household took a “massive gamble” and picked retired 16 of the champion cultivars that they thought would turn well, planting them successful 2020. They’ve recovered the South African varieties, similar the Safari Sunset and Goldstrike, bash the best.

“These protea plants spell backmost successful the fossil grounds similar 300 cardinal years,” Hartman said. “They’re immoderate of the oldest flowers connected the planet.”

Hartman said helium plans to unfastened a nursery, hopefully aboriginal this year, truthful radical tin bargain potted protea and works them astir their homes, fixed however drought-tolerant they are.

The circuit done the ranch’s 8 acres of proteas includes a U-pick enactment wherever guests tin instrumentality chopped flowers home.

Highline Adventures offers 2.5-hour Bronco tours wherever guests tin either thrust oregon thrust on arsenic a usher takes them done 1,200 acres of divers terrain. There are 2 12-mile routes that guests tin take from.

Hartman said helium thought he’d get die-hard off-roaders.

“What we’re getting is radical who’ve ne'er off-roaded before, and it’s a truly bully intro people for radical to spell get a safe, amusive acquisition and person a usher with you without having to bargain the ace costly 4x4 conveyance and past conscionable beryllium retired successful the woods by yourself,” Hartman said.

Guests volition summation 1,400 feet successful elevation arsenic the Bronco climbs hillsides, including lookout spots wherever you tin spot the water and Santa Ynez Valley. It’s “a rugged portion of California, but you’re inactive a five-minute thrust into a danish and solid of vino successful Solvang,” Hartman said.