Sad news for me but a nice cancellation notice:

Dear Mr. and Mrs. Lewark,

I regret to inform you that we have to close the Ranch after mandatory evacuation in Santa Barbara due to the Thomas Fire.

The firefighters made held their ground at the Ranch and while our cottages were protected many were sprayed with thermal gel when the fire came down the hillside. This will require a much longer process to clean and repair thus we will likely be closed through the end of January.

I hope this email finds you well and you are able to change your plans accordingly. We will of course be returning your deposit to you.

At this time we have had many days with bad air quality and I would suggest looking outside of Santa Barbara county until our air quality is repaired.

Perhaps north above Solvang or south below Malibu would have better atmosphere and be out of the direct smoke and wind blown ash areas.

Please take care and we hope to welcome you to the Ranch in the future.

Thank you and best regards,
Vanessa Kolk Guest Services Manager
San Ysidro Ranch

Repairing to the Peninsula Beverly Hills instead -- a villa jacuzzi suite. Museums and music, assuming something fetching at the Philharmonic.

In fact!