The phrase "Humboldt Grown Cannabis" has a potential marketing value of billions of dollars, kinda like "Napa Valley Wine". As am I'm here in Eureka, I can watch the government tv channel for County meetings, the City of Eureka, and the City of Arcata. Jurisdictions that are serious about getting this stuff right work pretty much all the time on cannabis, mainly because they see it as an existential issue. There are about 5000 farmers in...

California's new legal system seems to be working, though it's impossibly early to tell for sure. I'll be talking about that more, but there is one place where it didn't work. Calaveras County is in the Sierras, and was once a logging place until the mill shut down. The county went ahead and authorized many cannabis farmers in 2016. Once they had their permits they could build out, grow a crop, and pay the taxes. In January 2018, the county...

It took almost a week for the rain to let up enough so I could travel. I'm now in Fortuna, about 20 miles south of Eureka. There will be two nice days, then a new rain thing will come in. At least I'm on the coast now so there's something to see.

I'm heading to Eureka tomorrow, and this article came out today. It's by far the most comprehensive and accurate description of the cannabis scene here right now. Recommended.

I've written about this place many times. It's a must-stop when I'm in Ukiah. I was surprised to find one of the very first legal pot shops in California on the grounds. It had just opened, there were two people plus a security guard, they had product, prices were low enough to make me think they've made an error. Their claim to fame is that they are totally solar-powered. What was striking is the setting: the center is a collection of...

I am at the fairgrounds in Ukiah, a place I've stayed in many times. Like Sonoma County, it has trailers for the fire victims, about half the capacity of the park, leaving the good middles spaces for us travelers. FEMA arranged for rv's on dealer's lots to put into whatever parking spaces, public or privately run, were available. Last fall they occupied everything. Now they are down to 50%. So I'm in a regular routine rv park surrounded by model...

The forecast called for a storm to come in today, and stick around for "several" days. It was a beautiful morning so I packed up and left for Ukiah, about an hour's drive north. If I'm going to be stuck waiting out bad weather, I'd rather be in Ukiah than Santa Rosa. I got a small look at the fire damage in Santa Rosa. What happened last fall was a typical wildfire: high winds pushed a grass fire around, perhaps scorching the oaks and conifers....

SR is about 175,000 population, in a tight place so it's dense. Streets are narrow and short-lived, making navigating by dead reckoning quite difficult. My gps does what the locals do: get on 101 or CA-12 to go to the next exit to avoid winding around on the surface. I haven't seen the burned area yet, but will tomorrow. Today, KQED released the first of what they found investigating the fire. It's a compelling story, worth hearing if you're...

I took a drive to Napa and environs. This is outstandingly beautiful country, with just 2 problems: Too many people, and too many cars. And, while I only want take a drive on country roads, I can't reach them without using a freeway of some sorts. I'm hoping to get downtown tomorrow...

It was years ago I found Bodega Bay on a birding excursion. It is one of the most beautiful places on the coast. The weather was great, and I touched the Pacific and saw the surf. The county operates an outrageously nice rv park on the jetty that protects the bay, $32 a night for dry camping. Conditions permitting, I'm looking ahead to trying out some places that might be better. When I reached Bodega Head, a school bus of middle schoolers...

I survived the CA freeway system and made to Santa Rosa on US-101. I asked for a week's stay without expecting to get it, but was surprised when they managed to invent several spots they apparently don't use. I'm at the Sonoma County Fairgrounds. Santa Rosa, of course, is where the fires did so much damage last fall. The rv park is filled with displaced people and workers involved in recovery operations. FEMA provided trailers. I was annoyed...

I was in Lancaster, CA last night. Lancaster seems to be a very far-flung suburb (exburb?) from LA. Nothing special but the drive westward from there through the Antelope Valley was fascinating. I personally haven't seen so many large solar farms anywhere. What that means is the normally empty fairgrounds rv park was half-full of workers on the farms. Reminded me of the time in Texas when the oil fraccers were going at it, and I had to hunt for...