58 PUNCHMAGAZINE.COM PHOTOGRAPHY: COURTESY OF TEAL THOMPSEN / BAER FAMILY the pool, played countless board games and ran around after dinner on the property’s grassy oval. And, as they got older, they each took their inaugural trail ride through Alisal Ranch’s rolling hills. WHOOSH! (That’s the passage of time.) Today, our three-generation family (ranging from 23 to an active 85) is spread across NorCal, {due west} courtesy bike rentals, as well as guided mountain e-bike excursions. And who doesn’t want to be a kid again? We reprised the hay wagon ride up to Alisal’s historic Adobe Camp for a Westernstyle “flapjack flipping” breakfast. Spending time in the barnyard with goats, pigs, chickens, rabbits and miniature horses felt just as magical. (Our 26-yearold waited patiently for her turn to hold Eddie the rooster.) During our stay, we chatted with a couple from San Diego, accompanied by cowboy hat-wearing eight- and ten-year-old boys. “I was told I was conceived here,” the now-grandmother laughed. “I came as a kid and then we brought our own kids and now we’re bringing our grandkids.” “We see roughly 50 percent repeat guests,” confirms Lia later, when the property’s enduring appeal comes up. “So many people tell us the ranch is their happy place, and seeing families choosing to come back year after year for sometimes 40+ years is such a testament to how special this place is to them.” SoCal and out to Cincinnati. In search of a gathering place to mark another milestone event, we wondered, “What would it be like to revisit Alisal?” The prospect enticed full attendance, and although the familiar setting triggered some nostalgia (and classic photo re-enactments), we experienced Alisal Ranch as an adult playland nirvana. Every morning, our entire group hit the pickleball courts (including Grams!) and evenings found us meeting up in the Oak Room Lounge for live music and cocktails followed by after-dinner billiards and ping-pong games. While some opted for the fitness center or spa time, others ascended the Alisal Hiking Trail for panoramic views of the Santa Ynez Mountains. Breaking away from hotly-contested cornhole matches and mega games of chess, we took the shuttle to Alisal’s spring-fed 100-acre lake, where we gravitated to fishing, canoeing and dockside reading. With over 50 miles of trails, group and private horseback rides remain a ranch visit mainstay. Further promoting the no work-all play mentality: golf, tennis, sand court volleyball, basketball, axe-throwing, archery and air rifle, ropes courses, ABOVE (right): Baer cousins Olivia, Bailey, Naomi, Dylan and Ilana re-enact a classic 2002 Alisal Ranch photo in 2023.
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