Cancer Resource Centers has a vision that no one
in Mendocino County will face cancer alone. Support their efforts
by attending the 14th annual Pure Mendocino, a celebration of
community health and Biodynamic, locally sourced food, held in
an organic vineyard. This event sells out, so get your tickets now.
puremendocino.org

This tiny town goes all out for the annual Great
Day in Elk! Parade, music, fresh pressed cider, watermelon eating
contest and all around community celebration. Dance the summer
out with this super fun, family friendly party. www.elkweb.org

In honor of their 50 Year Anniversary, North Coast Opportunities, Inc. (NCO) is hosting a family-friendly, class-reunion style picnic from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm on August 25th, 2018. Past and present staff, board members, clients, local officials, and the broader community is encouraged to join NCO at Todd Grove Park for this free, summertime event.

A variety of local vendors will offer fresh food and children’s activities. DJ music will be provided as well as a commemorative NCO photo booth. Local officials will share their appreciation for NCO and the positive impact it’s made within our community. NCO’s History Walk will be a place of exploration to learn how NCO has impacted Lake, Mendocino, and neighboring counties over the past 50 years.

Find out more.

If you want a really good time with authentic small
town charm, you need to add the 35th Annual Blackberry Festival
in Covelo to your summer plans. Catch drips from your fresh blackberry
Sunday while you watch a blacksmith forge an iron creation.
Swim in the Eel River to cool down then return for an evening
square dance in the street. roundvalleyblackberryfestival.com

I know we have listed this event before, but only because
it is appropriately awesome. The World’s Largest Salmon BBQ held
in Noyo Harbor raises money for salmon restoration. Add on as
much fresh corn, craft beer and ice cream as you can handle, and
it makes for quite the day. You’ll have time to sleep it off before a
walk on the new coastal trail, followed by Fireworks on the Fort
Bragg headlands come dark. www.salmonrestoration.com

World-class musicians travel to our little northern
California coast to wow the locals at the Mendocino Music Festival.
Delight your senses at multiple concerts featuring symphonies,
Celtic, bluegrass, jazz music and more. Local wineries and eateries
keep you fed and watered throughout the weekend.
Mendocinomusic.org

Ever wanted to enjoy your own Sea Palm, Nori or
Kombu? Join Terry d’Selkie for a Seaweed Foraging and Identification
Class. This beginners foray will keep you safely amongst
the tide pools, no swimming required. Learn recipes, foraging
techniques and more in Mendocino.
ohveggies@pacific.net | (707) 694-9496.

The Good Farm Fund and Mendo Lake Food Hub’s
Farm-to-Table Benefit at Yokayo Ranch. A truly wonderful event,
farmers and chefs partner to create a local food extravaganza. All
this love and community raises money for grants that go directly to
farmers. goodfarmfund.org

“On the Farm” is the theme for the 22nd
Annual Fort Bragg Quilt Show. Ooh and aah over 150 quilts and try
your hand at various fabric arts demonstrations.
oceanwavequilters.com

Join the Sustainable You Summer Camp for 9-12 year olds at the Hopland Research and Extension Center! This week long camp (9am-3:30pm daily) focuses on water, land, air, food and energy. Kids learn more about our planet and its resources with fun, hands-on activities in the beautiful Shippey Hall and out on site in the cooler morning hours. Learn more.

Laytonville knows how to pull out all the stops at their
“Second Friday Art at Albert’s.” View original artwork while
sampling delicious food from around the region. Our friends at the
Draft Punk Bar will be serving up craft beer and Kombucha on tap.
No tickets needed—just show up! 44851 N. Hwy 101.

We all like good movies but the real reason to join the Mendocino Film Festival is to get invited to their annual opening night gala. Food celebrities from around the county fill the Heritage House with tables of small bites as guests float from one scrumptuous offering to the next. It's not too late to join and be included in this year's celebration! MendocinoFilmFestival.org

Fernando and Ashleigh Plazola purchased Saucy last year and have been implementing changes large and small to make this downtown Ukiah restaurant their own, transforming it from a chic, Italian restaurant into a welcoming farm-to-table eatery that embraces the best of Mendocino County. This Monday join them for their official unveiling of Cultivo, a name inspired by the act of cultivation and directly ties into our passion for farm-to-table cuisine.

Celebrate with $2 select pints, complimentary hors d’oeuvres, and a 15% off coupon for your next meal. Mingle starts at 5:00 pm and sign unveiling at 6:00 pm. Don't miss it!

Plant Sale April 28, 2017 - 9:00am to 5:00pm. Join the Mendocino College Agriculture Department & Horticulture Club for their Spring Plant Sale! Featuring heirloom vegetables, California natives, shrubs, berries, drought tolerant, and hard to find plants—a not-to-miss opportunity!

Our Spring Plant Sale is Saturday, April 21 through Monday, April 30, during the Gardens' normal operating hours, 9:00am to 5:00pm. Make your spring garden the most glorious yet! It is time to stock up on plants, gardening tools and books, and much more at Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens' annual Spring Plant Sale—at the Nursery and The Garden Store at MCBG. Gardens' Members receive 20% off; non-members receive 10% off all plants and select store items. Don't miss the Used Book Sale on April 21 and 22! Members-Only Preview Night Friday, April 20 from 5:30-7:30pm. Enjoy first choice of plants in the Nursery and a great selection of Store sale items, plus complimentary hors d'oeuvres and wine. Not a member? Join today!

At the farm, 2 blocks from downtown Boonville on all of the Sundays in April, 10 AM-4 PM. The plant starts will be on tables at the front of the farm. Our selection will increase as the month goes on, as many plants are not yet sized for sale. Directions to the farm: From 128 in downtown Boonville turn on Lambert Lane at the Boonville Hotel, proceed 2 blocks until road END, dirt begins, take the “private” bridge immediately on the right. The farm is the second driveway on the right immediately across the bridge. 18500 Lambert Lane, Boonville, 95415. Contact Tim by phone to purchase plant starts at another time: (831) 332-5131.

Locals may not need to travel 100 miles to the bay area to enjoy our fabulous wines but this is a great chance for our out-of-the-area friends to sample what many of us take for granted. Top-notch wines are poured and tasted, small batch ciders are sipped and delectable snacks are served up. Word of Mouth magazine will be there to showcase all that our county has to offer, luring visitors up north. When at Fort Mason peek into the Interval Café (two doors down from Taste of Mendocino) which serves up time-span introspection with its coffee. Home of The Long Now Foundation, whose mission is to foster long-term thinking and responsibility for the next 10,000 years. The café is filled with books, beakers, a spiral staircase and mechanical wonders including a clock engineered to last 10,000 years.

Celebrate the arrival of spring and the Easter holiday strolling the paths of our favorite coastal garden. There will be food, music and an Easter egg hunt at 1:00pm. Rhododendrons should be in their full riotous color and keen eyed attendees might spot some whales off the coast as their migration continues.

Ridgewood Ranch may be known as the retirement home of Seabiscuit the legendary racehorse or as the farmer capital of Mendocino County since Ecology Action, Grange School of Adaptive Agriculture, Tequio Farms, and the New Agrarian Collective all call Ridgewood Ranch home. The Mendocino Land Trust invites you to see another side of this stunning property on foot. You'll hike through oak woodlands and a fire scarred landscape to a viewpoint overlooking Walker Valley. This area burned during the Redwood Fire last fall and is preserved by a conservation easement with the Mendocino Land Trust. During the hike you will learn about future fire restoration plans. This will be a 5 mile hike, with 700 feet of elevation gain. RSVP required – (707) 962-0470 or admin@mendocinolandtrust.org – They will give you detailed parking directions when you secure your spot. Bring a lunch to eat when you stop at the overlook. FREE

Gualala Community Center

Monthly all-you-can-eat spaghetti dinner to benefit the South Coast Seniors. Spaghetti with meat or vegetarian sauce, meatballs and hot buttered garlic bread. Wine and beer available, $4. Adults $9, Kids under 12 $3. (707) 882-2137.

NAPA COUNTY: Culinary Institute of America at Copia, Napa
$30
Fun Fact: Louisiana is the only state in which Mardi Gras is a legal holiday. Come revel in delicious Mardi Gras fare as we celebrate a centuries-old tradition by eating like you live on Bourbon Street! Register at eventbrite.com.

Mendocino County Fairgrounds in Boonville

Buy some root stock, grab some free scions, and plant your own orchard! Workshops offered for newbies. Also free seeds to start dreaming about your spring garden. AVFoodshed.com.

LAKE COUNTY: Soper Reese Theatre, Lakeport
$15-$25
Benefit for NCO Sulphur Fire Fund. Dancing blues by The Guitarsonists: Chris Cain, Mighty Mike Schermer, Daniel Castro, Steve Evans, Mick Mesteck. Silent auction. Wine & beer, snacks sold by Soper Reese.
On Facebook: Lake County Fire Recovery Benefits

Pentecost Hall in Fort Bragg

The giant cioppino pot brims with seafood, shellfish and Dungeness crab! It’s served family style with Café Beaujolais bread, salad, dessert, Thanksgiving Coffee, bibs and plenty of napkins. A benefit for Mendocino Coast Clinic. (707) 961-3463 or events@mccinc.org.

SONOMA COUNTY: The Shed, Healdsburg
$15
This workshop is suitable for beginners, Biodynamic practitioners, and anyone interested in the study and practice of Biodynamic agriculture. Thea Carlson will cover the deep principles and innovative practices of biodynamic agriculture that can enhance the health and vitality of soil and food. healdsburgshed.com

HUMBOLDT COUNTY: Arcata Community Center, Arcata
$6
Celebrate Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day with your community. Enjoy a beans
and rice dinner with performances to follow. (707) 822-7091

UC Hopland Research and Extension Center

Bring your family to enjoy a very short hike (1 mile—strollers and toddlers welcome) to visit our newborn lambs. Enjoy sheep-related activities suitable for children after the hike. $5. (707) 744-1424 ext 105.

LAKE COUNTY: Blue Wing Saloon, Upper Lake
no cover charge

Enjoy relaxing dinner music with Paul Kemp at the piano and the vocal stylings of Machiko Shimada. Songs for the season and more. Family friendly. Phone for reservations.
(707) 275-2233 tallmanhotel.com