Not Strictly for Tourists

A good farm-to-table tour is a great way to spend a summer day and the Emerald Triangle provides. For a tour with a THC twist, Humboldt Cannabis Tours begin and end in Eureka with a fully vaccinated driver who can answer all your burning questions. The Half Day Farm Tour begins at a dispensary before heading to the fields. The budtenders of Northern California are the cannabis equivalents of French sommeliers. Seeking enlightenment about edibles beyond the gummi spectrum? The budtender knows all. Two terroirs combine in the Weed and Wine Tour. Start with a tasting and charcuterie board at Briceland Vineyards. After lunch, meet cannabis at its most beautiful: swaying gently in the breeze. You can even pick the brain of a ganga master. Legend Johnny Casali and his award-winning Huckleberry Hill Farm hold the key to many of marijuana’s mysteries. Ask questions, feel the sun on your face (or the rain — this is Humboldt) and enjoy. Half day tours are $95 per person; full day $195. Due to COVID-19, tours are limited to 10 people. Check www.humcannabis.com for additional options and call (707) 839-4640 (9 aM-6 pM) to reserve a tour.

You’ve got the time and the Clarke Historical Museum is the place to go back in time. Schoolteacher Cecile Clarke founded the Museum for Humboldt to explore its history. What are you waiting for? Contemplate the luxe life of the lumber kings in the Victorian Room that boasts the influencer swag of its day. Become entranced by the virtuosity of Karuk, Hupa and Yurok master basket weavers. Find out what it took to mine gold (and why no gym memberships were needed during the Gold Rush). Appreciate the courage necessary to use the gear in the Firefighting exhibit (closes Sept. 21), some of which saw local action. Admire the beloved 14-foot-tall Lentell Map, fresh from the careful touch of a papier mâché conservator. Examine the early roots of anti-Asian prejudice through the online exhibit Immigration, Expulsion, Homecoming: The Legacy of the Chinese Expulsion in Humboldt County (www.clarkemuseum.org). Reconnoiter your way to 240 E St., Eureka (10 aM-4 pM. Wednesday-Sunday, suggested donation $5, $10 per family).

On a misty day, the Sumêg Village at Patrick’s Point State Park is dreamlike. The traditional houses materialize out of the fog. You run your fingertips over a fallen redwood and contemplate the Yurok who split boards, built homes and dug out canoes by hand. The woodworking skills of the Yurok are awesome: artistry mixed with a deep understanding of the environment and its resources. The architecture of family and changing houses speaks directly to the realities of living on a heavily wooded, wet coast. The ultimate in green construction. The village is aptly named Sumêg, Yurok for ”forever,” a place created to heal and teach. Summer will see the end of a restoration project that is passing techniques from elders to the next generation, led by 86-year-old Yurok master builder Walt Lara. Call (707) 677-3570 to schedule a guided tour with Yurok site interpreters to learn more. Day-use fee per vehicle is $8, $7 for seniors 62+, sunrise to sunset at Patrick’s Point State Park, Trinidad, U.S. Highway 101.

Sumêg Village. Mark Larson