Back in 2013, the idea for a zip line course in Santa Barbara County led to nearly a decade of navigating the complicated permitting process to develop such a course. Santa Barbara native Jeff Hartman formally took over the project in 2020 and obtained development approval from the county in 2022, with construction starting almost immediately thereafter. Highline Adventures opened to the public last year, located in the city of Buellton 45 minutes northwest of downtown Santa Barbara.
On-site are three thrilling zip lines, a ropes course, and several specialty tours. The zip lines vary in length, height, and speed; the fastest is zip line No. 3 at 2,600 feet in length, which can have guests hitting speeds of up to 60 mph. The ropes course features 80 different elements across four routes on two levels. “It’s built in this beautiful old oak grove, so you’re up in these amazing, super old oak trees that are really unique to California,” says Hartman. Highline’s specialty tours range from walking tours of the property’s protea flower fields to its Hike & Fly, the latter of which has guests hike 2 miles and 1,100 vertical feet to the top of the zip lines—then zip line back down.
Groups can do the zip line courses eight at a time, the ropes course takes 25 people in intervals, and the various tours are a bit more flexible for group size and all run two hours. Highline also features three designated on-site event venues—one of which is new. “We just opened our big 10,000-square-foot house that’s at the very top of the property,” says Hartman. “We’re calling it the Highline House—it has an amazing view, and we can host gatherings of up to 250 people.”
When it comes to getting colleagues or attendees to connect with each other, sometimes the best solution is time spent outside, he says, adding, “I think some of the biggest bonds and relationships are built with getting outside and having fun. The property is really unique because it has so much vertical elevation to it—from the bottom to the very top is over 1,400 vertical feet, and we have got an amazing view of the Santa Ynez Valley; it’s kind of a hidden little gem in California.”
