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The #AlisalFire continues to get under control, as it is now 78 percent contained and at 17,253 acres, according to fire officials.

Unfortunately four families have lost their homes in the Gaviota area due to the fire and friends have set up GoFundMe accounts to help them recover.

One of the families that lost their homes were Landon and Mariah Smith. When the fire came through Refugio Canyon, Mariah escaped with their three-year-old daughter and her windshield cracked from the heat that was on both sides of Highway 101. Her husband Landon was hosing down his mother’s house in Arroyo Quemada Canyon and wasn’t able to save any of their belongings. Fire crews also weren’t able to get to their house in time so they lost their house along with their 30’ yurt, water tanks, solar panels, and everything else on the property. As with most mountain properties in Santa Barbara County, the fire insurance policy dropped them after Thomas Fire.

They are staying with friends and family until they can rebuild their home.

The Circle Bar B Guest Ranch also sustained damage in the fire, but thankfully they reported their main lodge, guest accommodations and horse stables are standing. They are assessing their needs and we will update when/if they are requesting help.

“A huge thank you to the firefighters and first responders who have risked their lives and are working around the clock to fight the fire,” Circle Bar B posted on their social media.

IF there are more GoFundMe’s for people who have lost their homes, let us know at news@santaynezvalleystar.com and we will update our story.

On Sunday, onshore flows will strengthen across the area, bringing cooler temperatures (10-15 degrees cooler than Saturday) and higher relative humidity.

Southerly and upvalley winds will prevail through the day on Sunday with gusts around 20 miles per hour, according to InciWeb. Late Sunday night and Monday morning, there will be a dry cold front will sweep across the area. This front will bring even cooler temperatures on Monday as well as higher relative humidity. However, it will also bring strong northwest to north winds to the fire with gusts 25-35 miles per hour likely throughout the day and evening on Monday.

Some areas of the fire are transitioning from suppression to repair, fire officials said. Resources that can be transitioned from suppression to repair will be utilized in those areas. Excess equipment will be reassigned or released.

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Evacuation updates 5 p.m. – The SB Sheriff’s office has sent an evacuation warning to the areas east of Calle Mariposa Reina, west of Arroyo Hondo and south of West Camino Cielo. Be prepared to leave.

The #AlisalFire incident is well over 8,000 acres and growing as the gusty winds are pushing this erratic fire along the south slope of the Santa Ynez Mountains. It is still at zero percent containment as of Tuesday afternoon.

“We are bringing in Type 1 Incident Management to take over command hopefully they’ll be ready by tomorrow afternoon. This speaks to the seriousness of the potential for this fire to grow as there are many unburned areas,” said Andrew Madsen, public information officer with the U.S. Forest Service.

This particular section of the mountain range hasn’t burned since the 1955 Refugio Fire.

“I’ve been at El Capitan all day and see the white smoke which usually indicates grasses and then we see big black plumes, which is old growth and denser brush burning,” Madsen said.

Madsen said the Type 1 command is highly skilled at these types of wildland fires and will be beneficial into getting the upper hand on the fire.

“Fire in Santa Barbara County is tricky, especially on the mountains where the terrain is steep. The Type 1 command will being an emphasis to logistics, supply and strategies for tightening containment,” Madsen added.

He did say there has been one firefighter injured on this incident with a wrist issue and they self reported to Cottage Hospital for treatment.

“This is dangerous work and we want to keep injuries to a minimum. Especially working in Los Padres, it’s almost a badge of honor to get poison oak,” Madsen said.

The fire is burning in dense chaparral and is being pushed by strong winds and growing at a rapid rate of speed. Smoke is visible throughout southern Santa Barbara County including the Santa Ynez Valley and along the Gaviota coastline. Much of Santa Barbara County is under a high wind warning, according to the National Weather Service.

Air support units were called in to respond to the fire on Monday but were grounded due to severe winds. Helicopters joined the fire fight Tuesday morning, particularly to keep the flames away from the Reagan Ranch and surrounding properties, Madsen said.

“Ironically we had a demonstration of self applicable phos check at the Reagan Ranch this past July, with the demonstrators saying it could last through several inches of rain, which we haven’t had yet, so that could be a blessing if it comes closer to the property,” Madsen added.

Several tankers were cleared for fighting the fire Tuesday afternoon, according to scanner traffic.

Highway 101 is closed from Highway 1 at Las Cruces and Winchester Canyon/Cathedral Oaks Road in Goleta. Evacuation orders are in effect for residents in the Refugio Canyon, including Arroyo Hondo, Tajiguas and Arroyo Quemada. The evacuation order has expanded to include El Capitan State Park and the El Capitan Campground. An evacuation warning was put in place for the area north of El Capitan Campground and east to Dos Pueblos Canyon. A temporary evacuation center was set up at the parking lot of Dos Pueblos High School at 7266 Alameda Avenue in Goleta. As many as 100 structures, including ranches and homes, are threatened. More information at: https://readysbc.org/2021/10/11/evacuation-warning-alisal-fire-oct-11/.

Santa Barbara County Animal Services has been activated to assist with animal evacuations. Livestock can be taken to the Earl Warren Showgrounds. Animal owners should call 805-681-4332 if assistance is needed to evacuate animals.

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A vegetation fire broke out just after 8 p.m. on Thursday, May 21, according to Santa Barbara County Fire officials. 

The fire is on the southbound side of Highway 101, just south of the Mariposa Reina offramp. Engines, dozers and hand crews are responding to the incident. The size of the fire is reportedly at 1/4 acre in size which is impacting the train tracks and closing the Highway 1010 #2 lane in the southbound side.

Communication lines are being impacted as well, according to Cpt. Daniel Bertucelli of SBC Fire. 

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The northbound lanes of US Highway 101 north of the Gaviota Tunnel will be closed on an intermittent basis from 9 a.m. t0 3 p.m. on Wednesday, May 6, to allow Caltrans to perform a rock scaling operation to enhance public safety.

The California Highway Patrol (CHP) will lead motorists to a full stop during these intermittent rolling highway/lane closures. These temporary full closures will allow Caltrans to clear rocks from the highway.

Electronic message boards will be activated informing everyone to be prepared to stop as they approach this work zone.  Motorists can expect delays not to exceed 10 minutes.

This work will be performed by the Caltrans Maintenance team of Buellton and Caltrans Engineers from San Luis Obispo, CA.

Caltrans reminds motorists to move over and slow down when driving through highway construction zones.

For more information on this project and for traffic updates on other Caltrans projects in Santa Barbara County, residents may call the District 5 toll free number at 805-568-0858 or visit our website at: https://dot.ca.gov/caltrans-near-me/district-5 

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This lane closure is part of an emergency contract so that Caltrans can repair a drainage system and perform erosion control near an embankment.

The US 101 Gaviota Roadside Rest Areas will be closed 24/7.

The contractor for this $1 million project is Souza Construction of Santa Barbara, CA.

Caltrans reminds motorists to move over and slow down when driving through highway construction zones.

For traffic updates in Santa Barbara County, motorists may call Caltrans District 5 Public Affairs at:  805-549-3318 or can visit our website at: https://dot.ca.gov/caltrans-near-me/district-5 

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Update as of 7:45 p.m. – the #1 lane northbound is open and both southbound lanes are open along Highway 101.

Update as of 6:30 p.m. – The Real Fire is at 50 acres and 0% containment. Crews are working on structure defense and will be on scene all night, according to SBC Fire.

Staff Report

Santa Barbara County Fire officials report a vegetation fire started around 4:46 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 17. The fire is wind driven and there is no information how many acres have burned so far or the potential to spread. Also no word of any structures threatened, but fire officials have called a second alarm and air tankers are en route to the scene. 

There are evacuations going into effect for El Capitan Canyon and the beach campground as well as Dos Pueblos Canyon, according to the Santa Barbara County Office of Emergency Management. 

The winds are roughly 40 – 50 miles per hour blowing towards the ocean, according to weather reports. Highway 101 is closed near the fire. The northbound lanes are closed at Las Varas and the southbound lanes are closed at Refugio. The California Highway Patrol is asking people to steer clear from the area.

We have a photographer headed to the scene check back for updates to this story. 

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Photos Contributed 

Helping people in impoverished areas create agricultural opportunities is the top mission for Ed Seaman of the Wild Farmlands Foundation, based in Gaviota.

Ed Seaman
Photo by Daniel Dreifuss

Through a family friend years ago, Seaman and his father-in-law were connected with Barnabas Mwesiga, who has that same passion to bring better agriculture to his home country of Uganda.

“Barnabas is teaching people about farming and ecosystems in Uganda, similar to what we’re teaching people here in California. The difference is, Barnabas is doing it to keep people from starvation. Here, it’s a lifestyle,” Seaman said.

Seaman’s efforts for Uganda are called the Barnabas Project, and he’ll host a fund-raising dinner for Mwesiga on Sept. 15.

Mwesiga is a famous former player for the Ugandan national soccer team. He also was a coach for the Sports Outreach Institute founded by Russell Carr, who graduated from Westmont College in 1956. Carr and Seaman’s father-in-law, Rolland Jacks, were longtime friends who helped make the connection, Seaman said.

“Barnabas is teaching people about farming and ecosystems in Uganda … to keep people from starvation,” said Ed Seaman of the Wild Farmlands Foundation.

Mwesiga and the Migisha Farm are in the rural Mbarara District of Uganda. Mwesiga uses his 90-acre farm to teach local people how to raise food and cash crops and get them to market. His effort is giving people hope and building local economies.

“He has the same passion we have and is able to do things that are extraordinary and make a difference in people’s lives,” Seaman said.

Migisha means “blessings.” The farm has a producing half-acre banana grove and two tilapia-stocked fish ponds along with 200 mature eucalyptus trees used for construction. Chicken and pig-raising projects are in various stages of development. There are some cattle on the land. Other crops include garlic, onions and Irish potatoes.

Annually, Seaman hosts a dinner at his family’s Restoration Oaks Ranch in Gaviota to raise money to help Mwesiga and his nonprofit organization.

Local people know the property as Santa Barbara Blueberries, where they can pick their own blueberries, raspberries and blackberries from late spring to fall.

Seaman created the nonprofit Wild Farmlands Foundation. His background was in technology and marketing, but he had a passion for agriculture and an appreciation of how hard farmers work to provide food. He also saw a problem of people not understanding the importance of small farms, not only in the United States but all around the world.

With funds raised by the Wild Farmlands Foundation in Gaviota, Barnabas Mwesiga has been able to obtain a loan, train workers, build a reservoir, fence his fish ponds, and complete other repairs and projects.

The Wild Farmlands Foundation has set out on a mission to educate and inform everyone, especially youth, about the value of small, independently owned farms and ranches to food systems and their importance to a healthy earth.

In the past the event has typically been a dinner, which features a meal made with recipes from Uganda and surrounding African countries. The entertainment has been music in the style of African songs and instruments.

This year’s event will be a little different, without a seated dinner. Instead, food will be served but people will be encouraged to get moving and dance to the music.

Seaman wants people to experience the tastes and sounds of the part of the world they are helping.

“We feel like we have an impact, even as a small foundation, in a part of the world few of us can imagine. It gets us outside of ourselves to think about agriculture in a new way,” Seaman said.

The dinner will take place on Sept. 15 and the tickets are $75 per person. The evening will include drinks, heavy hors d’oeuvres and a presentation on the projects happening in Uganda.

With the funds Wild Farmlands raised in 2017, Mwesiga was able to obtain a loan, train workers, construct a reservoir, fence the fish ponds, and complete other repairs and projects around the farm.

In 2018, Mwesiga continued to expand the work on his farm and in the community by focusing on garlic as a cash crop, the tilapia ponds, and raising then selling or trading cows, pigs, goats and chickens.

“My hope is that we can raise funds to bring Mwesiga here next year and give him more education that he can take home and apply to his country. It’s people like him that are really changing their community,” Seaman said.

Farming is more than just growing food for Seaman. He believes it saves the planet because, as farmers rotate their crops and disc their fields, they help lessen the impacts of carbon dioxide and climate change.

“What better way to save the planet than by farming it and growing good-quality food and providing for the local economy?” Seaman exclaimed.

For more information on Wild Farmlands Foundation or the Barnabas Project, log onto www.wildfarmlands.org.

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The hillside can clearly be seen moving as trees and brush are snapping were coming down along Old Coast Highway in Gaviota on Thursday afternoon.

Longtime resident Gail Giorgi of Nojoqui Falls Ranch captured the video of the slide, which is located between the top of Nojoqui Grade on the northbound side of Highway 101, and the Alisal Road turnoff to go to Nojoqui Falls Park. 

Giorgi can be heard talking with her husband Bill just before the tree starts to slide. 

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Noozhawk Columnist

Andrew “Andy” Busch, the scion of one of America’s great brewing families, Anheuser-Busch, relocated his family to Santa Barbara after first visiting the region for a match as captain of the United States Polo Team in 1998.

Today, after a severe leg injury, Busch has (mostly) shed his professional polo jersey and spurs for jeans and a Folded Hills logo baseball cap.

His family keeps several riding horses on their ranch, and on the June day we met, Busch was looking forward to a competitive polo match that afternoon.

But since buying a historic 600-acre ranch in Gaviota, he and his wife, Kim, and four children are more focused on viticulture and winemaking, from ground to glass, as the owners of Folded Hills Winery. It’s clearly a family business.

“Kim handles the marketing on a day-to-day basis,” Busch explained. “And our four kids, Lacey, Andy, Will and Nick (ages 20s to mid-30s) love it.”

With Angela Osborne and Tymari LoRe on board as Folded Hills’ winemaker and general manager, respectively, the Busch family has the team to bring it home. Osborne is owner/winemaker of the label A Tribute to Grace, and LoRe brings years of winemaking experience, most recently as assistant winemaker at Kita Wines in Lompoc.

The vineyard manager at Folded Hills is Ruben Solórzano of Coastal Vineyard Care.

Two estate vineyards comprise 15 acres of organically farmed grapes, with all vines visible from Highway 101 just north of the Nojoqui Grade. One plot, adjacent to the northbound lanes, includes three acres of head-trained white Rhone varietals (grenache blanc, marsanne and claret blanc). Atop a hillside across Old Coast Highway from 101 stretches a 12-acre site devoted to grenache and syrah, LoRe noted.

Below the hilltop vineyard is a historic barn on property once owned by the Giorgi family, longtime area ranchers and farmers, LoRe told me.

After the Busch family purchased the barn and adjacent acreage on both sides of Old Coast Highway in 2011, it opted to continue the tradition of selling freshly grown produce.

The barn houses the “Farmstead,” where organically grown fruits and vegetables are sold on weekends. Early next year, a winery will be erected across the road from the Farmstead, and eventually, so will a tasting room, LoRe noted.

Folded Hills ranch itself is tucked away more than a mile east of the vineyards, off Alisal Road and just across the road from Nojoqui Falls Park. Only a fence line separates the Busch’s ranch from the Alisal Guest Ranch & Resort.

The main home on Folded Hills was built by the Morton Salt family in the 1920s, Busch said.

Folded Hills’ private driveway meanders across a bridge over Nojoqui Creek and winds around fenced pastures, one of which contains a groomed polo field, a nod to Busch’s longtime passion.

Grazing throughout the ranch are 300 head of cattle, and donkeys, llamas, one cow, goats, chickens and peacocks, LoRe said. Like the grapes, the row crops grown on the property — blueberries, strawberries, apples and peaches — are organically farmed.

Of the nine wines Folded Hills produces, five are from estate-grown grapes: the “Cluster” grenache, the Lilly Rosé, a sparkling rosé, the grenache, and the August Red blend of syrah and grenache.

A gentleman named Eberhard Anheuser was the father-in-law of Adolphus Busch, founder of Anheuser-Busch. Eberhard’s daughter, Lilly, was Andy Busch’s great-grandmother, and it’s in her honor, and that of Andy Busch’s granddaughter, Lilly Peterson, that Folded Hills’ Lilly Rosé is named.

Wine & Spirits magazine awarded the 2016 Lilly Rosé “Year’s Best Rosé” and 90 points, LoRe noted.

Today, Anheuser-Busch owns more than 50 beer labels, but in the days when Andy Busch’s father and grandfather, August Busch Jr. and Sr., respectively, worked the family business, their families were priority.

The famed Budweiser Clydesdale horses, the beer label’s icon and the staple of modern Super Bowl commercials, originated as a “gift from August Junior to August Senior to celebrate the repeal of prohibition,” Andy Busch said.

Two “retired” Clydesdales reside on the ranch and tower over the Busch family’s other horses.

Folded Hills’ white Rhone blend, August White, honors those two men, Andy Busch told me.

“It’s family history, and a tribute,” he said. “We’re all about celebrating friends and family.”

In the years before Busch delved into competitive polo, he managed a family property built in 1848 by Ulysses S. Grant.

“Grant’s Farm” is a landmark property in Grantwood Village, Missouri, that opened to the public in 1954. The homestead is a popular tourist attraction with bison, elk and elephants on display, Busch said.

In keeping it open for viewing, “our goal is to give back to the St. Louis and Midwest community,” he said.

Another of Folded Hills’ wines also celebrates history, albeit that of France: “Cluster” is estate grenache, crafted in the Beaujolais Nouveau style of carbonic fermentation — a shorter term, whole-cluster effort that yields a bright, drinkable red.

“Ours was released in November and gone the following January,” LoRe said.

Folded Hills’ production of the Lilly Rosé jumped from 600 cases in 2016 to 1,300 for the 2017 vintage, LoRe said, and the rosé will continue to be the label’s highest production.

Wine tasting is available by appointment at the ranch, she said.

Total case production will remain around 3,200 annually, Busch said. “We will always be a boutique winery.”

Laurie Jervis blogs about wine at www.centralcoastwinepress.com and can be reached by email at winecountrywriter@gmail.com. The opinions expressed are her own.

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