East Camino Cielo snakes along the Santa Ynez Mountains in Santa Barbara. Up here, there are great views of the ocean and, to the north, Lake Cachuma.

Along this road lies a short trail to Knapp’s Castle, originally built as a mountain lodge in the 1900s by George Owen Knapp. In 1940, the mansion was purchased by Francis Holden to live in with opera singer Lotte Lehmann. A few weeks later, however, it burned down in a forest fire. The stone ruins remain today.

A rope swing transforms the place into a playground!

Morning rays of light hitting the Santa Ynez Mountains

This is a fairly popular place to watch sunrise/sunset, so it was a bit crowded when I arrived (despite my empty photos). Made it a little less spooky!