The town of Santa Ynez is one of the communities of the Santa Ynez Valley. It features the Santa Ynez Airport for general aviation, with a paved 2,804 by 75 feet (855 m × 23 m) runway. The population was 4,505 at the 2020 census, up from 4,418 at the 2010 census. Santa Ynez is the archaic spelling of Santa Inés in the Spanish, meaning Saint Agnes.

Set in the heart of the Santa Ynez Valley, the Sedgwick Reserve stands not only as a historical tribute to the Valley’s agricultural heritage, but offers a breathtaking picture of what California was like for centuries before Western man brought “progress” to this part of the globe.