I’m not super Hope Ranch savvy. I’ve been there a handful of times over the years — attending events on the Laguna Blanca campus, visiting a few friends’ homes — and was once lucky enough to enjoy a day-long party at the private Hope Ranch beach. But on most days, all the streets look and sound the same to me, and the dearth of distinctive landmarks means that I’m at the mercy of my iPhone to get me where I need to go.
So I trusted my phone on a recent Saturday as I drove into Hope Ranch through the familiar wrought-iron entrance gates, past the lake and golf course in search of 4480 Via Esperanza. I felt like I was driving into another land as I wound along the curving lanes farther into the ranch. I passed a picturesque wooden barn with two horses looking my way, turned onto the appointed street, and passed through the gates onto the grounds of the estate that I soon learned was aptly named Shangri-La.
I was smitten before I even saw the house. The lush landscaping was a verdant tropical oasis. Olive trees arched across the drive as I got deeper onto the grounds, and parked under a trellis. A landscaped path directed me through a garden lined with manicured hedges. It didn’t quite qualify as a maze, but it added to my sense of passing into a secret fairy-tale world.