Sensi Magazine - Emerald Triangle (July 2019)

EMERALD TRIANGLE

THE NEW NORMAL

Tattoos that honor heritage

Fly Sky High from Humboldt to Denver Escape to Newport Ranch

{plus} FLOAT PODS FOR MIND AND BODY

7.2019

sensimag.com JULY 2019 3

4 JULY 2019 Emerald Triangle

ISSUE 6 // VOLUME 1 // 7.2019

FEATURES SP EC IAL R EP OR T

32 Sexy Yogis and Time Travel A mosaic tapestry through one rip-roaring week in Jamaica.

40 The Year of the Edible

Experts expect infused food and drinks to rule the pot market in the 2020s.

EMERALD QUEEN FARMS Skating allowed

24

every issue

18

LOCAL INK History and heritage in tattoos

7 Editor’s Note 8 The Buzz 10 NewsFeed

NOW BOARDING

12 CrossRoads

COMING ATTRACTIONS

16 TasteBuds

STAY COOL IN “HOT-KIAH”

18 AroundTown

EMERALD TRIANGLE INK

24 HighProfile

FIT FOR A QUEEN

28 TravelWell

LEGACY WITH A VIEW

50 HereWeGo

HEALTHY SILENCE

Sensi magazine is published monthly by Sensi Media Group LLC. © 2019 SENSI MEDIA GROUP LLC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

ON THE COVER Photo of Michael L’Allier’s Humboldt Tattoo by Katie Anne Photography

sensimag.com JULY 2019 5

sensi magazine ISSUE 6 / VOLUME 1 / 7.2019

EXECUTIVE FOLLOW US

Ron Kolb ron@sensimag.com CEO, SENSI MEDIA GROUP

Tae Darnell tae@sensimag.com PRESIDENT, SENSI MEDIA GROUP

Alex Martinez alex@sensimag.com CHIEF ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICER

EDITORIAL sensimediagroup

Stephanie Wilson stephanie@sensimag.com EDITOR IN CHIEF

Nora Mounce nora.mounce@sensimag.com MANAGING EDITOR, SENSI EMERALD TRIANGLE

Leland Rucker leland.rucker@sensimag.com SENIOR EDITOR

Robyn Griggs Lawrence CONTRIBUTING EDITOR Dr. Angie McCartney askangie@sensimag.com sensimagazine

COLUMNIST

A RT & D E S I G N Jamie Ezra Mark jamie@emagency.com CREATIVE DIRECTOR

Rheya Tanner, Wendy Mak, Josh Clark em@sensimag.com DESIGN & LAYOUT

sensimag

BUSINESS & A D M I N I S T R AT I V E Kristan Toth kristan.toth@sensimag.com HEAD OF PEOPLE

Lelehnia DuBois lelehnia.dubois@sensimag.com PUBLISHER

Tad Sarvinski tad.sarvinski@sensimag.com Shannon Golightly shannon.golightly@sensimag.com ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER

Amber Orvik amber.orvik@sensimag.com CHIEF ADMINISTRATOR

Andre Velez andre.velez@sensimag.com MARKETING DIRECTOR

Neil Willis neil.willis@sensimag.com PRODUCTION MANAGER

Hector Irizarry distribution@sensimag.com DISTRIBUTION

M E D I A PA RT N E R S Marijuana Business Daily Minority Cannabis Business Association National Cannabis Industry Association Students for Sensible Drug Policy 6 JULY 2019 Emerald Triangle

editor’s

HOT, HOT, HOT

ADVISORY BOARD Coldwell Banker Sellers, Sandi DeLuca // REAL ESTATE

Canna-Envy //

DIY CANNABIS

Genius Products T, Inc. //

RECREATIONAL CANNABIS PRODUCTS

Heartwood Mountain Sanctuary // ECO-RETREAT CENTER

Hendrx Farms // CANNABIS NURSERY Humboldt Patient Resource Center // DISPENSARY

Humboldt Redwood Healing // Humboldt SWAG //

COMMUNITY

BRAND MANAGEMENT

Kathleen Bryson, Attorney // KC Financial Services //

LAW OFFICE

ACCOUNTING

The Kingdom Group, Inc. // SECURITY Magna Wealth Business Services // BUSINESS MANAGMENT

Mountainwise Farms // Redwood Roots //

TOPICALS

DISTRIBUTION

SoHum Royal // MIXED LIGHT FARMING Southern Humboldt Business & Visitors Bureau // TOURISM Sunnabis //

REGENERATIVE CANNABIS FARMING

Talismans Analytics // ULEVA //

LAB TESTING

HEMP PRODUCTS

Wildseed, LLC. //

CO2 EXTRACTION

NOTE

As this issue goes to print,

the north coast of California exploded in a record-setting heat wave, announcing summer’s arrival with gusto. Think 2019 might be a hot one? It already is. From the Monterey to Crescent City, temperatures in typically foggy and mild coastal zones surged into the 80s and 90s, even hitting 100 degrees in San Francisco, smashing alltime records. Hello, summer! Hello, climate change.

Personally, as a coastal dweller raised in California’s Sierra Foothills, this weather feels like childhood. I know I’m not alone. When temps spike, posts on social media about the “scorching” heat are neck-and-neck with posts poking fun at everyone who claims to be “melting.” Landing somewhere in the middle of these two camps—I live on the coast for a reason—I make the best of a hot day, enjoying simple pleasures like hanging out laundry that actually dries and dining al fresco. If you can escape to the river’s emerald-green waters, life is pure bliss. But as temps creep up the coast and inland valleys start to roast, my mind can’t help but run circles around one smothering thought—fire, fire, fire.

Summer inevitably evokes a sense of freedom, connecting us to simpler times and inviting more playful versions of ourselves to join the party. So how can we camp, swim, and barbeque with a new appreciation for the raw power of “what’s hot,” in our changing climate? Wildfires can continue to destroy life in the blink of an eye. How can we move through daily life with this new normal?

Education. Across the Emerald Triangle, municipal agencies are collaborating to educate the public that every individual can bring risk or resilience to the threat of wildfires. Learning to live and work differently—taking every precaution and exercising every preventative measure—will require the cooperation of the entire community. Look for community workshops and education on fire preparedness, evacuation, and prevention from the Trinity, Mendocino, and Humboldt Fire Safe Councils. Tune into to KMUD, KZYX, and Jefferson Public Radio for the latest fire updates. And more than anything else—have an evacuation plan that accounts for pets, the elderly, neighbors, and everyone in your family.

Without a doubt, this summer will be H-O-T! Have fun, work hard, and enjoy that amazing Emerald Triangle sunshine—and never forget about the next fire.

Nora Mounce

M ANAG I NG E D I TO R

SENSI EMERALD TRIANGLE

sensimag.com JULY 2019 7

Savage Comedy You deserve a good laugh.

On a cold winter night in early 2011, an important first was unknowingly unleashed onto the Humboldt arts and culture scene. Savage Henry Independent Times, a monthly humor mag based in Arcata, expanded its “savage” brand of humor to the live stage. Under the guise of a bit known as “So You Think You Can Funny,” the goal was to see if anyone had the gumption to try their mouth at authentic stand-up comedy. I was there that night and drank enough beer to get up there and try out some jokes. From what I can remember, the night was truly something else. There was a specific kind of excitement in the air, and unbeknownst to everyone in attendance, the comedic ball in Humboldt had just been kicked down a steep hill.

In the early years, the Savage Henry kingpins had a vision of a true NorCal comedic institution. Following that first open mic night, a sudden influx of funny people started making stops in Humboldt while on tour. Comedic momentum kept building, leading to an annual comedy festival held at various bars, hotels, record stores, and coffee shops across the county. As the years passed, the Humboldt comedy scene became even more refined, with key players organizing regular shows and comedy nights. All this funny stuff ultimately culminated in the grand opening of our very own brick-and-mortar comedy headquarters, the Savage Henry Comedy Club at 415 5th Street in Eureka.

Entering the club, the dim atmosphere is lit by a yellow glow from vintage arcade games next to the bar. Touches from old open mic night venues decorate the space, and an array of outsider folk art lines the edges of club. At 8 JULY 2019 Emerald Triangle

the bar, patrons can choose from assorted cans of beer, movie theater-size boxes of candy, and, for the post-joint appetite, full-size packages of cookies and crackers (joints sold separately). Get your snacks, sit back on a cushy seat or couch, and get ready to chuckle.

Since Savage Henry opened last November, a vast range of shows have packed the club, from well-established touring comedians to locally produced shows by scene regulars. Locals know to show up for Jessica Grant’s exhilarating “Comedy Karaoke,” William Toblerone’s charitable yet hilarious “Bingo Eruption,” and local singer/comedienne Stephanie Knowles’ alter-ego persona, Noma Steaks. Open-mic nights are still featured, along with a live podcast marathon on Monday nights, trivia nights, burlesque, and even stand-up comedy class for anyone looking to break into the expanding local comedy scene.

In just over six months in business, the comedy club has hosted touring acts like Tahoe-based comediennes Andrea B. and Sara Rooker, who killed with their special brand of stoner-snowboarder humor. Speaking of “stoner jokes,” cannabis activist and writer Ngaoi Bealum returned last February to entertain his Humboldt following with weed. And jokes. An entirely Spanish-speaking show, “¡Noche de Comedia en Español!” featured both local and touring comedians, all repping their Latin American roots. And just this May, the club hosted Abdullah Saeed, former host of “Bong Appétit” and “Vice Does America” on Viceland, along with DJ Douggpound and comedian Johnny Pemberton as part of their “Weedies Tour.”

The opening of the Savage Henry Comedy Club will undoubtedly cement Humboldt County’s reputation on the map of West Coast comedy. Don’t take my word for it, go see it for yourself. You deserve a good laugh.

–Joel Gibson

See more at SAVAGEHENRYMAGAZINE.COM

JOEL GIBSON, writer/comic, doing stand-up at Savage Henry

sensimag.com JULY 2019 9

{newsfeed }

MONTANA

by N O R A M O U N C E

OREGON IDAHO HUMBOLDT WYOMING

NEVADA DENVER

UTAH

CALIFORNIA

ARIZONA NEW MEXICO

NOW BOARDING: FLY HUMBOLDT TO DENVER Sky high from the redwoods to the Rockies.

In 2018, travel giant Lonely Planet named Northern Cali-

the redwoods in coming years. But the miles between the

fornia’s Redwood Coast the number one travel destination

splendors of the region’s famous Redwoods National and

in America. Waxing and waning over our ancient forests

State Parks and the not-so-nearby cities of Portland and

and empty beaches, Lonely Planet invited globetrotters “to

San Francisco still pose a challenge for travelers wanting to

achieve the ultimate California mellow.” Local businesses

see the sights. Since PenAir stopped servicing the Redwood

widely shared the announcement—a long-overdue and

Coast-Humboldt County Airport (also known as the Eure-

well-deserved nod—hoping to be a little less lonely behind

ka-Arcata Airport) with direct flights to Portland in 2017,

10 JULY 2019 Emerald Triangle

San Francisco via SkyWest, a subsidiary of United, has been the only available flight until the addition of service to Los Angeles (LAX) in 2018. While renting a car and driving is a great option for families and groups, direct flights into Humboldt are cause for celebration.

This June, SkyWest/United launched a new service from the Humboldt County Airport to Denver, Colorado the flagship home of Sensi magazine. The inaugural flight departed on June 7, making the trek across the western states in less than three hours. Over the years, several new direct- flight destinations have come and gone from the Humboldt County Airport, but Denver is one of the first that gets locals off the West Coast. The launch is supported by Fly Humboldt!, founded in 2011 and supported by the Redwood Region Economic Development Commission (RREDC) with a goal of “creating better flight connections from Humboldt County to the world.”

“WE KNOW CONNECTING WITH OUTSIDE COMPANIES AND MARKETS IS KEY TO THE SUCCESS OF OUR LOCAL ECONOMY.” —Gregg Foster, Redwood Region Economic Development Commission

“I’m excited about this direct connection,” says Sensi CEO Ron Kolb, who founded Sensi Media in Denver in 2016. The cannabis-friendly publication has grown to nine markets across the country, including Las Vegas, Boston, San Diego, and most recently, the Emerald Triangle. “This market is critical to the fast-growing [cannabis] industry,” says Kolb. “A direct connection to Denver is a game-changer.”

Within the community, locals report on planning to use the direct Denver (DIA) connection for travel to Montana, Utah, New Mexico, and the Midwest. Not only will the service connect the Humboldt business community to new markets, but Denver is a major international hub for travelers from across the world. “Service to Humboldt County is a welcome addition to Denver’s growing domestic route network,” said DIA CFO Gisela Shanahan. “United’s new flights will not only provide visitors between our regions a more convenient option for travel, but Humboldt County-originating passengers will now have the opportunity to connect to more than 200 destinations worldwide through the DIA hub.”

RREDC Executive Director Gregg Foster has worked tirelessly to support Humboldt County and the entire Emerald Triangle’s growing role in the global market.

“We know connecting with outside companies and markets is key to the success of our local economy,” said Foster. “This flight will be a great link to the Rocky Mountains and beyond.” sensimag.com JULY 2019 11

{crossroads }

by RICARDO BACA

12 JULY 2019 Emerald Triangle

COMING ATTRACTIONS Predicting the future of consumption habits.

My friends who partook in the ’60s and ’70s have long waxed poetic about how things were back in the day—the awkward Pineapple Express-like encounters with dealers, the wildly varying levels of cannabis quality, the everyday objects repurposed as smoking apparati (apples, soda cans, foil-covered toilet paper tubes), the ritual sifting of seeds and stems, and the stressful searches for a safe place to burn one.

No doubt, today’s post-prohibition reality seems like the future my friends thought they would never know. But if this is our modern reality in 2019—where legal marijuana is increasingly becoming the law of the land—what unpredictable cannabis future awaits us in 2025 or 2030?

Here are a few fantasies in my crystal ball: PREDICTION 1

Legitimate, peer-reviewed cannabis research

matter of time before someone figures out that they can be individually tailored for private, on-the-go toking.

PREDICTION 3

Add-ons at the juice bar.

You want 10 milligrams of CBD in that PB Chocolate Love smoothie? No problem. How about a shot of limonene? That’s a boost we can get behind. In the Jamba Juice experience awaiting us around the corner, we see a whole roster of mind-altering options—in addition to the straightforward additions that are just as healing as the collagen, probiotics, and zinc currently on the menu.

We will have prerolls in the hotel minibar.

Sure, the mark-ups will be astronomical, but how sweet will it be to settle into your hotel room after a long flight and light up (on your room’s patio) without having to

In areas such as medicine, massage therapy, fitness, and

WeedMaps the nearest dispensary? Very. In our ideal vi-

other health-oriented realms, the lack of concrete studies

sion, booking sites would already be offering pot-smoking

on cannabis’s effects continues to stymie real progress. In

rooms as an option, so it would be a given that the goods

the fitness scene of the future, the performance-enhanc-

would be waiting for you, conveniently next to the salted

ing effects of cannabis will be well established, resulting in

almonds and Snickers bar.

customized concoctions that have been dialed in to each athlete’s needs, available right next to the water and the protein bars. Meanwhile, a day at the spa would include consultations on the specific CBD oil or THC-infused lotion that could target sore muscles or arthritic joints.

PREDICTION 2

Modular car services that serve weed

PREDICTION 4

Restaurants that cater to cannabis consumers The connection between THC (and other cannabinoids) and our taste buds is well documented; it’s all about the release of hunger hormone ghrelin and the stop-I’m-satisfied hormone leptin, combined with the lighting up of the brain’s olfactory bulb and the increase in dopamine. And so it’s not

We’ll book the modular car of the future the same way

all that far-fetched to fantasize about actual restaurants

we call a Lyft or Uber now, but there will be an option to

offering fine-tuned food-and-weed pairing menus. And

choose a 420-friendly self-driving ride, with the pod arriv-

yes, we know these experiences exist in LA pop-ups and

ing well stocked with prerolls, edibles, and other goodies,

Boulder farm-to-table one-offs, but let’s normalize this

offering yet another welcome place for legal imbibing. With

already and allow existing restaurants the ability to legally

modular cars already in testing and production, it’s only a

incorporate cannabis into their food and drink programs. sensimag.com JULY 2019 13

BooneyAcres@gmail.com www.BooneyAcres.com LCA18-0002181

14 JULY 2019 Emerald Triangle

PREDICTION 5

Vineyard-like tasting rooms

iety, low metabolic rate) and then make recommendations for the cannabis experience that would best address your

Just as we can now swing by our favorite winery’s tast-

current physical and headspace. The app would also inter-

ing room and pull up a stool at the counter to sample a few

act with your vaporizer, auto-dosing to ensure an exact

flights and nosh on a cheese board, cannabis farms one

and intentional serving size.

day will feature strain samples and snacks in the comfort and conviviality of their on-site smoking spaces. Oh, and check out the view: fields fleshed out with rotund indica shrubs and towering sativa trees as far as the eye can see.

Of course this is just a taste of what we’re dreaming about. As fast as we can picture it, cannabis entrepreneurs are looking for ways to make it happen. So here’s to a time where our high hopes meet the real weed world.

PREDICTION 6

Marijuana-specific lounges in American airports In the same way a pre-flight drink is often a good idea, who wouldn’t appreciate the sedating effects of a solid

RICARDO BACA is a veteran journalist, thought leader, and founder of The Cannabist. His content agency Grasslands works primarily with businesses and individuals in the cannabis and hemp industries on thought leadership, publicity, and marketing projects via thoughtful, personalized marketing campaigns.

indica-based edible taken just before a 14-hour flight, or a quick smoke to take the edge off before spending five hours cross-country with a screaming baby? Because we’re dreaming big: These would be dedicated spaces separate from cigarette lounges and bars, with state-of-the-art air filters, entertainment, and snacks. Imagine how much better those long layovers would suddenly be, too, especially augmented by video game consoles, constantly streaming movies, and other fun distractions, along with Coaster Calltype pagers pre-set for your flight’s boarding time.

PREDICTION 7

Expanded experiential entertainment Escape rooms are a regular go-to for folks looking to challenge their cannabis-enhanced (or -addled) brains, but

As fast as we can picture it, cannabis entrepreneurs are looking for ways to make it happen.

that’s just the beginning. Picture adult play-places packed with interactive amusements, from comfy couches sporting virtual-reality stations to sensory-enhancing rooms à la Narnia—just open a door and prepare to be blown away by the augmented-reality activities, similar to Pokémon Go, but with pot and a safe spot in which to wander.

PREDICTION 8

AI devoted to cannabis products While some progress has been made in machine-rolled joints and computer programs that suss out the best strains for specific medical conditions, the ideal AI-enhanced cannabis experience would involve smartphone software that accesses the same information you already input on your phone’s health app—age, gender, height, weight. The AI’s biometrics would read your fingerprint and also your current state (high heart rate indicating anxsensimag.com JULY 2019 15

{tastebuds }

by D R E W S T O F F L E T

STAY COOL IN “HOT-KIAH” The Ukiah Valley is a hidden gem for wine tasting and natural beauty.

Mendocino’s Ukiah Valley is home to a storied and

syrah, grenache, petite sirah, and zinfandel. Pinot noir is

thriving wine industry. The scene here is markedly differ-

in higher elevations, and the lesser-known carignane pro-

ent than the bustling Disneyland-like atmosphere of the

duces some of the region’s most interesting wines. Italian

Napa/Sonoma empire to the south. Unlike the endless

varietals have made a home here, too, from red grapes to

slew of vineyards and lines of cars and buses clogging the

white-skinned varietals like the elusive cortese.

highways, Ukiah’s wineries are dotted across a vast region

After traveling a few hours south from the Emerald Tri-

of geological wonder. Over centuries, the Eel and Russian

angle, the Ukiah Valley is a welcome retreat from the urban

Rivers carved the surrounding mountains into green val-

bustle and coastal fog. Locals affectionately refer to Ukiah

leys and rich alluvial plains.

as “Hot-kiah,” and it’s not unusual for daytime temps to hov-

In this climate, pinot gris, chardonnay, sauvignon blanc,

er around 100º F for most of the summer. For any excursion

and cabernet grow alongside Mediterranean varietals like

into Mendocino wine country, be sure to bring your hat, sun-

16 JULY 2019 Emerald Triangle

farming practices in the region has remained.

Today, visitors to Ukiah have many wineries to choose from, but a local favorite is Nelson Family Vineyards in the upper Russian River Valley. For over 50 years, the Nelsons have farmed plums, olives, and Christmas trees that grow alongside vineyards bearing pinot gris, riesling, pinot noir, chardonnay, cabernet sauvignon, and zinfandel. Owner Greg Nelson grew up on the property and today runs the ranch with his sons.

Saracina is another family-owned and certified sustainable Hopland-area winery where grapes grow alongside olives, vegetables, bees, and wildlife. Saracina’s winemaking practices were pioneered by legendary California vintner David Ramey of Chateau Petrus fame. Stopping by Saracina’s tasting room, visitors can sample a lush, silky, fruit-forward chardonnay, sauvignon blanc, zinfandel, cabernet, and malbec. Nearby neighbors with beautiful properties and friendly tasting rooms include Barra, Rivino, Simaine, and Testa.

Typically, Frey is a must-stop winery for those interested in organic and biodynamic wines, but tragically, the Redwood Valley winery was lost during the furious Redwood Valley Fire of 2017. The blazes, which also unfolded simultaneously in Sonoma and Napa, caused widespread destruction: Frey lost its winery, tasting room, and acres of estate vineyards. Two years later, Frey is busy rebuildglasses, and an ice-cold cooler for refreshments and snacks.

ing its facilities along with other area vintners affected by

You’ll also need that cooler to safeguard the bottles you pur-

the destruction.

chase along the way—just like for dogs and pints of Ben & Jerry’s, a hot car can be fatal for a nice bottle of syrah.

After a day of wine tasting, scenery, and history, it’s definitely time for dinner. Head to Ukiah’s fashionable Pa-

Over a hundred years ago, Greek immigrants Tryfon Lol-

trona to enjoy an upscale but casual selection of salads,

onis, his wife Eugenia, and his brother William came upon

oysters, burgers, steaks, and pasta served in a modern,

Ukiah and noted the similarities between the valley and

brick-wall bistro. On Tuesdays, Patrona offers a selection

their Mediterranean homeland. They planted vineyards

of gourmet tacos, including white bean and kale, carnitas,

and sold grapes to other wineries, including the founder

or fish, which pair perfectly with crafty cocktails like the

of Bonterra, one of California’s first biodynamic wineries.

Ukiah Girl, $9 (vodka, pomegranate, and lime), and the

Lolonis was also credited for discovering the beneficial use

Sage Advice, $11 (bourbon, lemon, blackberry, and sage).

of ladybugs, which he used to keep harmful pests in check

If a beer and burger are more your speed, head across

without using chemical pesticides. In 1982, Tryfon and

town to the Ukiah Brewing Company, a certified organic

Eugenia’s three sons, Petros, Ulysses, and Nick, founded

facility. All menu items are organic, including crab cakes,

their family’s namesake winery in the Redwood Valley. In

wings, burgers, and the usual pub fare.

the process, they became the first certified organic win-

One thing you won’t find in Ukiah is a crowd. Drive the

ery in California, years ahead of their time. The winery has

extra hour to sample the fruits of some of California’s old-

since been dissolved, but the commitment to sustainable

est organic vineyards and taste what’s so hot in Ukiah. sensimag.com JULY 2019 17

{aroundtown }

by N O R A M O U N C E

EMERALD TRIANGLE INK Remembering culture and identity, love and loss with tattoos.

Today, social media is the most common vehicle to perform

and Yurok tribes often tattooed women with three parallel

self-identity on the public stage. While an opportunity to dif-

stripes on their chin, a tradition that’s been revitalized in re-

ferentiate yourself from the pack, it’s the same forum where

cent years. Historically, tattoos have been far more associat-

we pledge our allegiance to a particular heritage or crew. Every

ed with inclusivity and heritage than hallmarks of rebellion.

day, people make hundreds of subconscious decisions about

Today, more than a third of Americans between 18 and 40

what to wear, eat, post, and how to express other non-verbal

have tattoos. In the Emerald Triangle, where one’s livelihood

semiotics that absorb and reflect our cultural identity.

is often a product of resistance, tattoos enjoy an even great-

Wading into this existential territory, nothing is more potent

er degree of acceptance. Our green pocket of the country has

than tattoos in their ability to represent insider and outsider

been described as rugged and independent, and Netflix has

status. As an embodied art form, tattoos hold the symbolic

sensationalized our community as a rural ghetto plagued

power to express membership (or a lack thereof), ethnicity,

by violence and crime. But like just like Anywhere, USA, our

religion, or whatever you damn well please. Not only does the

local tattoo artists grumble that tattoo parlors are more

wearer select the design permanently inked on their skin, but

frequented by soccer moms than punk musicians. Personal

the meaning as well. A heart tattoo for your college boyfriend

politics aside, how do tattoos represent the diverse cultural

can become a sweet ode to Granny, and the origin story be-

identity of the Emerald Triangle?

hind your geometric mandala is yours to share (or not).

It wasn’t always so. Tattooing dates back to prehistoric

LOCAL INK

eras; mummified examples suggest medical applications,

“Hey, do you guys do a lot of weed tattoos?” Henry Kru-

and relics from ancient Japan illustrate the prestige of the

ger yells. Across the orderly partitions of the tattoo parlor,

art form. In 1769, the famous marauder Captain James Cook

an artist quietly shakes his head while bowed over a col-

and his crew landed in Tahiti, where they were intrigued by

orful forearm.

the natives’ intricate body art. Adopting the Tahitian ta-tu or

Kruger is a fifth-generation Humboldt County resi-

tatau, Cook appropriated the word in his journal, and the term

dent and owner of the iconic Eureka tattoo parlor, Sailor’s

tattoo came to describe body art in the English language.

Grave. Kruger was an artistic child and was first fascinated

Across the world, various indigenous cultures have used

by tattoos when an artist set up a makeshift shop in the

tattoos in religious ceremonies, to signify tribe membership

small rental behind his family’s house. In 1991, he moved

or symbolize a rite of passage, such as puberty or marriage.

to Seattle to attend art school, dropping out a month be-

In ancient Maya, early “tattoo artists” painted figures of

fore graduation and landing a gig at the oldest tattoo shop

animals, serpents, and eagles on bodies before cutting the

on the West Coast. It was the mid-90s, and Seattle’s Tat-

design into the skin and packing wounds with black earth

too Emporium, established in 1941, might have been the

or charcoal. In coastal Northern California, Karuk, Hupa,

country’s unofficial capital of punk and grunge.

18 JULY 2019 Emerald Triangle

Shannon Townsend’s left sleeve of her three cats, inked by Stacey Keilitz. PHOTO BY KATIE ANNE PHOTOGRAPHY

sensimag.com JULY 2019 19

In the Emerald Triangle, where one’s livelihood is often a product of resistence, tattoos enjoy a great degree of acceptance.

Shannon Townsend’s right sleeve of her three dogs, inked

by Stacey Keilitz. PHOTO BY KATIE ANNE PHOTOGRAPHY

“I’m an old-school metalhead, and all my friends were

While Kruger hasn’t inked too many pot leaves in his ca-

punkrocker metalheads,” remembers Kruger. “Tattoos were

reer, he’s designed redwood trees for almost every body

way more rebellious back then. That’s why I got into it.”

part and frequently incorporates local plants like ferns and

Drawn home by the beauty of the “ocean and the trees,”

trillium flowers into larger bodyscape pieces. Notably, he

Kruger moved back to Humboldt County in 2003. He remem-

remembers designing a beautiful and masculine sleeve of

bers that people’s ideas of what tattoos could be was pretty

ferns, drawing lots of “little black trees,” and inking a beau-

primitive. Over the years, pop culture cast tattoos in a more

tiful mandala of waves and redwoods for client Tyler Can-

favorable light, and Kruger started seeing a variety of people

ning last winter. Canning, who now lives in San Francisco,

wanting tattoos. “TV brought all the soccer moms in,” he says.

grew up in Arcata and got the tattoo in remembrance of

After opening Sailor’s Grave in Old Town Eureka nine years

surfing College Cove with his brother.

ago, Kruger is happy to tattoo any paying client but wants

Across town, Stacey Keilitz is the owner and artist at Seven

people to understand the history behind the art form. The

Stars Tattoo, a Pepto Bismol-colored storefront in Eureka’s

name itself pays homage to Eureka’s history as a seaport:

retro Henderson Center neighborhood. Formerly an em-

A “sailor’s grave” is a classic nautical tattoo of a sinking

ployee at Sailor’s Grave, Keilitz still tattoos a wide variety of

ship, often accompanied by an eagle and an anchor, inked

clients but is often favored by women, who feel more com-

in memory of those lost at sea. Entering the shop, the public

fortable shedding layers of clothing in front of a female artist.

is welcomed into the Sailor’s Grave “museum,” a collection

Originally from New Jersey, Keilitz was introduced to

of tattoo history and relics assembled by Kruger. Black-and-

Humboldt County 10 years ago while visiting family. “It

white photos of legends like Sailor Jerry hang next to glass

seemed beautiful place to live, and people had a lot of

cases of antique tattoo guns and stick n’ poke needles.

tattoos,” says Keilitz. Now living and working in Humboldt

20 JULY 2019 Emerald Triangle

herself, Keilitz appreciates that people get more custom

men as sailors, criminals, or punks, but Cohen exam-

tattoos, which she credits to the community’s artistic

ines the divergent narrative for women using tattoos as

bones. “People want unique things rather than picking

self-expression. In her research, she was surprised to find

something off the wall,” she explains. Often, this includes

that tattooed women are hardly a new phenomenon.

Humboldt-themed tattoos, says Keilitz, who has designed

“Wealthy white women took cues from their European

artwork that incorporate “poppies, lighthouses, trillium

counterparts, and got tattoos of family crests, portraits of lov-

flowers, ferns, and other things unique to this area.”

ers, and more,” writes Cohen, noting this trend grew among

Shannon Townsend was drawn to Keilitz’s work by the

American elites before the turn of the century. But women

tattoo artist’s open-minded personality and enforcement

kept their tattoos covered by “long sleeves, high necks, long

of stringent health codes. Townsend, a committed vegan,

skirts,” staying discreet in high society. “Aimee Crocker, the

is the board president at Spay Humboldt, a nonprofit spay/

railroad heiress, was a notable exception; she had multiple

neuter clinic that serves low-income pet owners. Sporting

tattoos and loved showing them off,” explains Cohen.

two colorful tattoos by Keilitz, Townsend has helped spread

The exhibit also explores identity in female tribal tattoos

Seven Star’s reputation for realistic pet portraits and poet-

and the relationship of tattooed women exploring “outsid-

ic tattoos. Each of Townsend’s sleeves are tributes to her

er” status within mainstream society. She notes that Betty

pets, inked over a bright landscape of Emerald Triangle flora

Broadbent, a beloved Tattooed Lady, competed in the 1939

and fauna. Townsend’s left arm features her three kitties,

World’s Fair beauty pageant to share her brand of beauty

Murfy, Baley, and Luna, while her right depicts her dogs,

on the main stage. “I see that as challenging the system,

Josie and Sweetie Muffin, and (in memory) Roxy.

but also working within it and valuing its judgements on

INKED WOMEN

beauty,” writes Cohen. “Tattooed and Tenacious” will be in Ukiah through August 4th before traveling to the California

At the Grace Hudson Museum in Ukiah, a traveling ex-

Indian Museum and Cultural Center in Santa Rosa this fall.

hibit opened this June titled, “Tattooed and Tenacious:

Another Mendocino County museum has preserved the

Inked Women in California’s History.” Curated by Amy Co-

tradition of tattooing in the Emerald Triangle since 1986.

hen of Exhibit Envoy, the installation takes an in-depth

Triangle Tattoo & Museum was established by Mr. G and

look at the history of tattoos through the lenses of gender

Madame Chinchilla, as the couple is known personally and

and place. In the West, tattoos have historically signified

professionally, in a Victorian storefront in the coastal town

Various tattoos by Henry Kruger of Sailor’s Grave Tattoo.

sensimag.com JULY 2019 21

TATTOO ARTS Sailor’s Grave Tattoo & Museum 138 2nd St. Eureka, CA 95501 (707) 443-0666

Seven Stars Tattoo

514 Russ St. Eureka, CA 95501 (707) 273.5111

Triangle Tattoo & Museum

356 North B Main St. Fort Bragg, CA 95437 (707) 964.8814

Grace Hudson Museum 431 S Main St. Ukiah, CA 95482 (707) 467-2836

Shannon Townsend and Michael L’Allier. PHOTO BY KATIE ANNE PHOTOGRAPHY 22 JULY 2019 Emerald Triangle

of Fort Bragg. Running both a working tattoo studio and one the world’s few museums dedicated to tattoo history, Mr. G and Madame Chinchilla are legendary among the global tattoo scene and have been included in numerous documentaries and articles about tattoo arts. A dedicated historian, Madame Chincilla has written seven books on tattoos, including Electric Tattooing by Women: 1900-2003, and contributed the “Tattooed and Tenacious” exhibit. For many years, Triangle Tattoo was the only tattoo parlor between San Francisco and Portland, and built a reputation by tattooing Humboldt State students, fishermen, loggers, anyone looking for ink throughout Northern California.

At first glance, Emerald Triangle tattoos might sound like a tired cliché: a “grow bro” with a 7-0-7 tat in Old English on his bicep, a pot leaf tramp stamp, or all those “little black redwood trees.” But like any cultural identity, tattoos this far north are as nuanced and diverse as the community itself. At a winery in Hopland last week, a man walked by with both his calves inked proudly, vertically reading, “Gods” “Grass.” (Amen!) In Eureka, home of the rough n’ tumble

SUNNABIS FARMER’S RESERVE PREMIUM EIGHTHS AND PRE-ROLLS Collaborating with Seed2Soul distribution to bring only the best craft cannabis from our farm to you.

Humboldt Roller Derby, a woman’s ankle tat sports two roller skates with the initials TM, short for Thunder Muffin, her derby name. Finally, some tattoos aren’t symbols at all, but literal place markers to home and identity, like the ‘H-UM-B-O-L-D-T’ tattoo that Michael L’Allier has proudly inked down his spine.

Life is short, but heritage and tattoos are forever.

Maud Stevens Wagner, c. 1907. Courtesy of the Prints & Photographs Division, Library of Congress, LC-USZ6-1545.

We believe that only cannabis grown with conscious choices results in superior product. Our multi-generational small family farm cultivates energetically dynamic plants utilizing regenerative agriculture practices so the flower that comes from fl our farm is of exceptional quality as well as maintaining minimal environmental impact. (Basically we care about our planet and our product so you can feel good about loving our flower!)

www.sunnabis.com Instagram: @HumboldtsFullSunFarms sensimag.com JULY 2019 23

{highprofile }

by T H O M A S O L I V E R

FIT FOR A QUEEN A small family farm gives back through community, skateboarding, and sustainable cultivation.

For Humboldt County locals, Willow Creek—a sleepy

have to, but mainly we use integrated pest management

town of 1,700 on the edge of the Six Rivers National For-

and preventative measures like thyme oil and soap,” says

est—is little more than a stopover on the way to I-5, a good

Whyte. “We’re never going to put anything on this crop

river spot, or Bigfoot Country. But for Hannah Whyte of Em-

that I wouldn’t spray on my kids.”

erald Queen Farms, her husband, and children, it’s home.

When we meet at her farm, Whyte and her crew have just

The long route to Whyte’s farm is a familiar road for most

battened down the hatches in anticipation of a heavy rain-

folks in the industry: Wind up a few miles on an old logging

storm. Luckily, the sun decides to pop out, showing off the

road, make the right unmarked hairpin turn, crawl along a

many virtues of Willow Creek living. “We first came down

bumpy and steep dirt road, and eureka! You’re there. But

here to visit friends in the winter years ago. It was beautiful

Whyte’s farm differs from “Humboldt Grows of Old” in

70-degree weather, and we were like, ‘Whoa, four-season

several striking ways: No derelict home appliances strewn

growing!’ We got a little hoodwinked,” Whyte chuckles as

along the “driveway,” no busted refrigerators, blown-out

she squabbles with some wiggle-wire sealing the tarp door

washing machines, or random, purposeless ditches. And

to a greenhouse. “Last winter, we got five feet of snow.”

rather than scattered plots peppered amongst the trees,

With a spirit undampened by impending rain or the tur-

Emerald Queen is orderly and precise, with 12 greenhous-

bid Humboldt climate, Whyte and her husband have big

es and nearly 35 full-sun cannabis plants that look ready

plans for their farm. “We’d like to have like an educational

to grow like saguaros.

or interpretive center in the future to give people an op-

Such aesthetic differences are of bedrock importance.

portunity to come here and learn what it’s like to grow

“Changing the perspective of people in the industry is huge

good, clean cannabis,” she says as she wheels around a

in this moment,” says Whyte’s husband. “It’s really important

huge outbuilding to reveal the farm’s on-site skatepark.

for people to see how good operators look.” And he’s right. As

“This is the best part,” Whyte’s husband says as he

legalization spreads across the country, the public perception

drops into the bowl and does a series of board-stalls and

of cannabis farmers is still shadowy at best. The visage of a

reverses. Avid skaters themselves, the couple has been

“dope grower” as a seedy criminal with a flat-brim hat and a

working with the Humboldt Skatepark Collective to pro-

diesel truck is still alive and well. But standing with Hannah

mote skateboarding in the community. “We’re hoping to

Whyte amidst her endless rows of healthy, green plants, it’s

get a park here in the next three years, and we’ve got

hard to even try and paint her with that brush.

skate parks in the works in Eureka and Fortuna, too.”

“We grow all organic. I mean, we use OMRI (Organ-

Whyte and her husband met in the agriculture program

ic Materials Review Institute) listed pesticides when we

at The Evergreen State College in Washington. They start-

24 JULY 2019 Emerald Triangle

sensimag.com JULY 2019 25

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ed a farm in Olympia shortly after, growing cranberries, tobacco, and all kinds of produce before relocating to Marin and slowly working their way north to Willow Creek in Humboldt. The couple carries their small farmer mentality to cannabis cultivation. At Emerald Queen, they plant regenerative crops—carbon traps and nitrogen fixers—in the offseason to remediate the soil and keep fertilizer

HPRC

"Cultivating Well Being Since 1999"

use and amendments to a minimum. In addition to the environmental benefits, Whyte likes that using native soils helps to maintain the terroir of her product.

Terroir, a French term generally associated with viticulture, is the “taste of the land”—the idea that the sum of the environment (soil, climate, topography) in which a grape (or cannabis flower) is grown is unique and self-evident in the flavor. The concept dominates the craft cannabis industry, even though it’s only a somewhat measurable quality, and it’s what differentiates “boutique” bud from industrial, assembly-line flower.

Humboldt County's Longest Operating Cannabis Dispensary

“It’s necessary to educate consumers on why purchasing from small farms is so important,” says Whyte. “Are you spending your money on a company that supports community, or are you buying from a business who makes money off a community?” she asks.

“CHANGING THE PERSPECTIVE OF PEOPLE IN THE INDUSTRY IS HUGE IN THIS MOMENT.”

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With the looming threat of “the Phillip Morris of weed” steamrolling into the hills of the Emerald Triangle, conscientious and community-minded cultivators are struggling against falling prices, mercurial regulations, and general ignorance from lawmakers. In the face of change, the idea of “community” stands tall at Emerald Queen Farms. “Cannabis has been the bread of this community for a long time,” says Whyte. “It’s allowed people to cultivate and maintain this rural lifestyle—and that’s in peril now with the commercialization of ganja.”

As cultivators of sustainably farmed cannabis, Emerald Queen Farms “believes in producing a high-quality product that people can feel good about putting in their bodies,” says Whyte. “That’s real.”

www.HPRCHumboldt.com A12-18-000025TEMP sensimag.com JULY 2019 27

{travelwell }

by N O R A M O U N C E

The Inn at Newport Ranch

31502 N Highway 1, Fort Bragg (707) 962.4818 // $350-$2,000 nightly

LEGACY WITH A VIEW Newport Ranch in Mendocino invites guests to reimagine getting away.

The Mendocino coast is a landscape fit for dragons,

A Tale of Two Mendocino County Coastal Logging Towns in

princesses, and lords. On a sunny day, the Pacific Ocean is

Northern California, the culmination of her years of re-

an abyss of turquoise silk, adorned by a lace trim of waves

search into the colorful history of the two towns. Today,

written in cursive. For centuries, the region was inhabited

neither Newport or Kibesillah can be found on Google

by the Yuki and Pomo tribes, who lived a peaceful life on

Maps, but the stunning scenery—and a quite a few red-

an abundant diet of salmon, mushrooms, and other for-

woods—still remain. “From the late 1860s to the early

aged plans and fauna. Once European pioneers and for-

1900s, the future looked bright for the two logging towns

tune seekers made it this far west, they believed they had

and their isolated inhabitants,” writes Nevin. “But steep

discovered a new kind of gold in the thick and towering

cliffs and difficult harbors were eventually regarded as too

redwoods. Seemingly overnight, the towns of Newport

dangerous for large-scale logging operations.”

and Kibesillah set up shop, claiming the stunning vistas

In fact, several deaths were recorded along with the de-

for their precarious lumber chutes that transported logs

mise of a few ill-fated “dog-hole schooners,” the nickname

to ships waiting in the rough waters below.

for the small and maneuverable ships that hauled lumber

Writer Kathleen Nevin lived in Mendocino County for many years, and in 2015, published Newport & Kibesillah:

28 JULY 2019 Emerald Triangle

Historic Newport Chute, ca. 1870

south to San Francisco or north to Eureka. A schooner captain had to find an opening in the fog—a dog hole—big enough to penetrate the tiny harbors and be able to turn around. With no lighthouse and deadly currents, it was no easy feat. Fort Bragg, twelve miles south, ended up absorbing the boom (and eventual bust) of logging operations with the incorporation of the Union Lumber Company in 1891. Most residents of Newport, which was constructed around the present-day Inn at Newport Ranch, packed up their belongings and moved on.

After the dust settled, a quiet solemnity returned to the seascape. For the next hundred years, the only company for the few souls remaining in Newport were herds of grazing cattle and the sound of the ocean waves.

(LEFT PAGE) PHOTO BY DAVE MATTHEWS // (RIGHT PAGE) PHOTOS COURTESY OF THE INN AT NEWPORT RANCH

Nearly a century later, retired investment banker Will Jackson saw an advertisement in the Wall Street Journal for an 850-acre ranch in Mendocino. Educated at Middlebury College in Vermont, Jackson had a love for pastoral vistas and a nostalgic appreciation for the Wild West. He had visited Mendocino before,

sensimag.com JULY 2019 29

30 JULY 2019 Emerald Triangle

but at Newport Ranch, Jackson saw the potential to help

in ocean views. Guests tend to gather downstairs around

preserve and restore a wild and scenic section of California

sunset, when complimentary hors d’oeuvres, wine, and

history. “At last, I was beginning to feel like a pioneer going

cocktails are served before dinner. The Inn’s culinary team

west,” writes Jackson, who purchased the ranch in 1986.

leans on the ranch’s on-site organic garden, and nightly

Over the next 33 years, Jackson increased his holdings

meals, available to guests only ($65), are prepared in step

at Newport to 2,000 acres, anchored by the understated

with season. Jackson, who is still heavily involved in the

“coastal ranch” style of The Inn and the nearby Sea Drum

day-to-day operations at the ranch, can often be found at

house, Jackson’s private residence and a no-luxury-spared

dinner table, sharing stories and wine with his guests.

vacation rental. While the number of lodging units on the

In the morning, guests are fortified with a gourmet ranch

ranch has remained modest, Jackson has focused his efforts on unique architectural features and a commitment to stewarding the land. In the Redwood Suites, an ancillary guest house, Jackson’s architects used 24 reclaimed redwood trees—not boards, but trees—in the design, inviting the grandeur of the outdoors in.

Throughout the ranch, Jackson and his crew have plant-

On a sunny day, the Pacific Ocean is an abyss of turquoise silk, adorned by a lace trim of waves written in cursive.

PHOTO BY NORA MOUNCE

ed hundreds of redwood saplings in an effort to offset decades of destructive logging. Jackson is adamant about

breakfast before a day of Mendocino County exploration.

restoring the ranch’s acres of redwoods to pre-industri-

Over 20 miles of private hiking trails are available to guests

al levels of health and biodiversity; not a single tree has

of the ranch and nearby attractions in Fort Bragg and

fallen to the saw since Newport Ranch was established.

Mendocino include horseback riding, sea kayaking, and the

Jackson, 91, still sits on the board at Shelbourne Farms,

world-famous Skunk Train. The Inn also offers daily ATV

a 1,400-acre sustainable education farm in Vermont,

excursions that comfortably ferry guests from the sea cliffs

and has made sizeable land donations to his alma mater,

to cattle country to the redwoods and back again. More of

Middlebury College. In California, Jackson shows no sign

a lesson in local history and biodiversity than an off-road

of slowing as he continues building a legacy of hospitality

joy ride, the ATV tours are led by Jackson’s laidback ranch

and stewardship at Newport Ranch.

hands who offer a lifetime of knowledge about real life on

Arriving at The Inn, guests drive through iron gates

the Mendocino coast. Highlights of the tour include stands

across a cattle guard to park next an expansive ranch

of old-growth redwood trees spared by commercial log-

house that features three guest rooms, a common area

gers and the panoramic view from the old Newport cem-

with floor-to- ceiling ocean views, a hot tub perched atop

etery, where a few souls from the old ghost town remain

the water tower, and a glass-walled dining room wrapped

forever. Can you blame them?

sensimag.com JULY 2019 31

SPEC IAL REPORT

SEXY YOGIS, TIME TRAVEL +CANNABIS FARMS A mosaic tapestry through one rip-roaring week in Jamaica for the multicultural Tmrw.Tday festival.

by DA N Mc C A R T H Y

32 JULY 2019 Emerald Triangle

It’s an unusually cold Boston afternoon.

DEADLINE LOOMS, AND THE USUAL

WRITERLY PROCESS OF MINE HAS BEGUN. SPORADIC THOUGHTS GIVE WAY TO IMMERSIVE RECALL, A MUST FOR THE TASK AT HAND. BECAUSE IN SPITE OF A MISHMASH OF G-DOC NOTES AND WILDLY UNORGANIZED VOICE RECORDINGS ON MY PHONE, MAKING CHRONOLOGICAL OR EVEN STRUCTURAL SENSE OF WHAT HAPPENED IN THE REPORTORIAL SENSE IS A BIT OF A BLUR. CALL IT ISLAND TIME. Or just call it a week in Jamaica for a cannonball right

personal manifestos (there were more than a few of those...

into the heart of the Tmrw.Tday Festival (TMRWTDAY.COM ).

but that was the energy of the whole festival) is something of

As Tmrw.Today is a multi-focus, multicultural well-

an origin story for the Tmrw.Tday retreat. Founder Andrew

ness, music, art, and dance hootenanny, one can imag-

Christoforu and his wife Stacy Irie Soul (who led both yoga

ine the difficulty in distilling the experience, especial-

and meditation/mindfulness talks through the week) had

ly when it happens to be the first sojourn down to Irie

attended LA-based Oppermann’s five-day workshop in Oax-

country in 20 years for your humble servant here. But

aca, Mexico, during a different festival some years back. Lat-

with enough mental jujitsu, I’m able to untangle the tap-

er, they took his online Incubator, which Christoforu claimed

estry of the week, presented here in a journalistic mo-

transformed them both—so much so, that the festival com-

saic: a sort of impressionistic take on a traditional dis-

ing to life was the direct result of Christoforu and company

patch from paradise. It’s starting to come into focus...

applying what they absorbed from Oppermann’s lessons.

Scene Report

“It was life changing,” Christoforu told the packed sec-

Geographical backdrops are the first images dissolving into

ond floor of the glimmering expansion and reconstruc-

frame. Montego Bay, Orange Hill, and greater Westmoreland.

tion of the Woodstock Beach bar and resort, where the

And there was at least one minor panic attack after being

festival kept its home base for the week.

handed the keys to a new comrade’s rental car at sundown; a

“It’s a true honor for me, since I teach about living the

cheery experiment in left-side road driving to find the area’s

life of one’s future self. I feel spending time here in this

lone ATM still dispensing money to avoid a humid 40 minute

moment with all you beautiful beings is the manifesta-

walk along Norman Manley Boulevard, the main drag flank-

tion of this idea of living the life of your future self,” Op-

ing the heavenly (if tourist-plagued) Seven Mile Beach just

permann crooned into the microphone. And it was about

north of downtown Negril. That one’s hard to forget.

there I turned off the recorder, stretched out on my mat,

Putting it all together requires more digging in the menPHOTOS COURTESY OF TMRW.TDAY FESTIVAL. PURPLE GLASSES PHOTO BY DAN McCARTHY

Pretty strong pitch, no matter how you slice it.

tal dust pile: Where was I heaving myself off of a perilous

and realized any traditional reportorial work for this one was going to be futile. Just go with the flow.

spring water cave naturally carved into the earth, with the

That flow involved Bluetooth headphones serenaded

turquoise water and the apparent specter of death at every

by Oppermann’s dulcet Germanic tones, instructing the

leap? Where was that house in the cliffs where I joined a

room to follow him along on a journey to the other side of

small, sexy crew of colorful strangers led by that husband-

reality (in your mind): “You are traveling through dimen-

and-wife team of plant-medicine science for guided psy-

sions now…deep in the universe…past space and time.

chedelic social hours? Was I in front of my hotel when I was

There is a yellow liquid waterfall of light to let in your

alone on a beach chair under a single overhead safety light

mind. Expand your DNA…”

at 3 a.m. at the end of one night? Yes, that I remember. The journey into the mind’s eye—that night and now—comes with an easier takeoff thanks to an earlier trip through inner space at the start of the week…

Meeting Peter Oppermann for the first time, a catalogue-model-handsome life coach and meditation teach-

Steam Team Kevin

Campbell,

owner

of

Steam

Team

JA

(STEAMTEAMJA.COM ), embodies the archetype of a 21st century youthful Rasta carving a life and sustainable career for himself on his native soil in the days of legal green.

er leading a multiday series of guided audio inner-space

Tall and broad, his dense beard and dark eyes frame a

meditations and lectures, you first catch the loose-jawed

face outlined in a lion’s mane of long dreadlocks. And he

Berlin accent you’d expect from someone promising to

is always at the ready to provide hearty blasts of steam

take your consciousness from a state of 3D to 5D.

via the coconut-and-bamboo clay bowl steam chalices

His lecture and involvement in the week’s agenda, a sweep-

he makes and sells. Call it the original vaporizer. Torched

ing wellness series of mixed classes, workouts, lectures, and

coconut shell charcoals sit atop a handmade clay bowl, sensimag.com JULY 2019 33

humboldtredwoodhealing.com

Humboldt Redwood Healing

@humboldtredwoodhealing

Lic. CML18-0000803 | CML18-0002208 | CML 18-0002213

34 JULY 2019 Emerald Triangle

PHOTO (TOP) COURTESY OF TMRW.TDAY FESTIVAL AND (BOTTOM) BY DAN McCARTHY

with whole raw flower placed below the small, quar-

all over the US, South America, the Middle East, Africa,

ter-sized clay separator. Water from the base is heated

Europe, and Australia. What started as a raucous get-

as the coals are torched, and the activated flower in the

ting-to-know you evening over Rasta Pasta and quality

bowl steams off all the cannabinoids drawn through the

hash joints eventually gave way to a live acoustic duo

bamboo mouthpiece for a super mellow, terpene-rich

charming the room, closed by an early morning DJ-led

blast of the local crop. The charcoal burns clean and nat-

nighttime dancefest with enough sweaty yogis and oth-

ural, and is hot enough to throw a fresh dab on to really

er acrobatic searchers to make any writer reconsider his

spice up your session.

choice of a Rocket Pop-print cabana shirt (roughly a size

My first steam with Kevin went down the night Chris-

too small, thanks winter) as the night’s swagfest.

toforu and his team led a platoon of festival partiers to

Being in no mood for dance, I spent the evening steam-

local hotspot Pushart—a hot-people ensemble to be sure,

ing with my new company, and later with Marcus “Bubble-

heavy with Canadians, and peppered with people from

man” Richardson (BUBBLEMANBRAND.COM), an OG name in the global hemp game from Canada. For those who know him, he needs no introduction. For those who don’t, consider: Bubble Hash. Have you had it? Good. His is better. The best, actually. And that makes sense, considering he pioneered the art of it, invented his own bags for production (which is how the stuff first came to the island over 20 years ago, according to Richardson). In other words: Best. Bubble Hash. Ever. Ever, ever. A few blasts and I could bite a tiger.

The collective steam-meet with Bubbleman gave way to a weeklong orbit around each other. At times, we were meeting up at Woodstock for lectures or scouring the bazaar on the ground floor. Other times, I was hopping in Bubbleman’s rental to follow Campbell down backcountry roads and Orange Hill’s government-maintained roadways. Not for the faint of heart.

One afternoon of rally-car driving brought us to Waba Claysensimag.com JULY 2019 35

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ton’s Farm, where natural-wonder swimming attraction The Blue Hole sits at the base of Waba’s hilltop Xanadu, built in the 1940s high in hills, with a finished rooftop lined with pots of cannabis plants overlooking the ocean in the distance. It’s energy is one of a refuge and haven of authentic Rasta life, communal living, and general survival at the hands of random tourists there for an Instagram-perfect attraction, or a walkthrough and sampling of outdoor cannabis of shocking quality, enough to cause any weed snob to reconsider their side of the indoor-vs-outdoor argument.

Speaking to VICE News (which filmed a segment at Waba’s farm recently), Waba laid out the perilous nature of being a celebrated local farmer with the kind of growing skills built over a lifetime of labor in the dawn of national (and international) cannabis legalization. Considering weed was still illegal in Jamaica until 2015 (yes, really), legalization has opened the floodgates for the green gold rush on the island.

With the threat of outside entities moving in and taking over the emerging legal cannabis market from native farmers, the time to be politically cognizant of the changing laws and regulations of Jamaica’s cannabis industry has never been more prescient. For Waba, he’s applied to legally sell his crops, but the local governing board has yet to approve it, so it’s a hurry-up-and-wait game. Even if they do get the nod, the cost of getting licensed to grow and transport product is more than the average annual salary of a Jamaica. High cost of entry, the maw of bureaucratic red tape, and big money muscling in on seasoned farmers in the weed world: sound familiar? Should the governing board simply reject Waba’s application flat-out, all that fire flower and smiling crew at the farm will be either back on the black market, or simply pushed out.

“I would have to stop, because I’m a business person, you know?” Waba told VICE. “I’d have to go do something else. But what about the other person who can’t [do something else]? Ganja is not just a drug. It’s a spiritual

thing that’s sent here to help poorer-class people. Without ganja, I don’t know what this community would be.”

Rooms and Board If you ever find your way to this part of the island, here’s a free tip: Hang out at Seven Mile Beach, of course, but stay in the cliffs. Both spots have their pros, neither, that I could tell, really have their cons.

But then came Tensing Pen (TENSINGPEN.COM ), an otherworldly privately owned resort of grass-roofed bungalows and rock-cliff-connecting foot bridges stretched between points on the cliffs impossible not to leap off of into the Caribbean Sea below. Once settled in the area, you start to understand why a woman I met on an afternoon of meandering along the West End said those who know, know to hit the cliffs versus the beach. I ran into her after the rains started and I popped into a spot called Xtabi for refreshment and new set of views. Earlier in the week, I had bummed a pack of Cheyenne Silver cigarettes off her at the festival where she was working the check in desk. With a touch of a history lesson, mostly about a class of Americans and Canadians who have been coming to Negril as a cultural hippie-haven after the San Francisco 1960s dream of peace, love, and Flower Power died at the hands of American Exceptionalism, she regaled me with stories of the “old days” on the cliffs, and the sheer bacchanal of daily life that it was. And still is (if you know where to find it).

I wasn’t there to find it that day, but good to know where to return to on subsequent journeys to the island.

No, I was too busy enjoying the cove views from my chalet at Tensing Pen, which overlooked a portion of limestone cliffs where a set of stairs had been carved into the ancient stone, likely during the island’s colonization by the British and the Spanish in the 17th or 18th century.

“Nobody knows who put it there or when,” said Anne-Marie Petros, part of the husband-and-wife team sensimag.com JULY 2019 37

38 JULY 2019 Emerald Triangle

PHOTO COURTESY OF TMRW.TDAY FESTIVAL

who own the resort. Their two Rhodesian Ridgeback

on someone else’s dime, by the way) and anything that in

doggos patrol the grounds for pets and food and com-

the end leaves you feeling better than when you arrived.

pany as two dogs living better than 99 percent of the

For Andrew and Stacy and their realized dream of a festival

world’s population do.

(which returns next year, so get it on your calendars now if

Wellness, Fashion, Friends, Smoothies

this appeals to you), that result is all that matters.

And no matter if your entry point is cannabis, psyche-

It wasn’t all a big party. Well, okay, it felt like that, but

delics, Burning Man-style spiritualism and mysticism,

between the local jewelry makers, Steam Team’s corner

agnostic-based energy chakra touting this and that, or

booth, and the eco-conscious-fashion garments selling as

just some good old steamin’ and dreamin’, however you

a platform for local communities, Tmrw.Tday was a true

get to the place most were at by the time we were at the

melting pot of island solace, commerce, and storytelling.

closing night party, then who cares? Good vibes, good en-

There were also a multitude of speeches by wellness

ergy, good living, good people.

entrepreneurs. Downstairs on the ground floor, there was

That final night party went down at a jaw-droppingly

always available water, farm-to-table vegan food options,

beautiful private (and for rent!) compound called Llan-

and invigorating health shakes made slowly (very slowly)

trissant Villa (BEACHCLIFF.COM ), owned by a delightful,

using local island fruits. All of which were easily enhanced

silver-maned septuagenarian and pharmaceutical com-

with CBD found all over the festival at Woodstock, includ-

pany CEO, currently at work on getting his synthetic-can-

ing a stand-alone CBD café right in the middle of the beach.

nabinoid-based medicine to create HIV quiescence (read:

Memories Fade But Wisdom Lingers

silencing the thing that makes HIV deadly) to clinical trials.

We talked for a long time after sunset: about his time on the

That week in May at the festival was one of sensory

island, about meeting new people at multicultural festivals,

overload. Honestly I don’t even have the energy to get it all

and about simply not being a shit person. We talked about

right, but for that matter I don’t want to, at least for this one

his work, about cannabis as medicine. And we talked about

(although you can read the full-length version of this nar-

how, in spite of the world changing at a rapid clip, faster

rative at SENSIMAG.COM/DANINJAMAICA ). No, this story is

than ever before, by focusing on the right things—cannabis

really about the takeaway—whatever one got from the fes-

legalization, for one—we have a chance to create a better,

tival, the orbiting pathways to higher living and more en-

healthier, more just world than the one we’re living in.

gaged existing (not hard to do living in paradise for a week

Now that, I remember.

sensimag.com JULY 2019 39

As innovation in cannabis-infusion takes great leaps, most experts expect infused food and drinks to rule the pot market in the 2020s.

by R O BY N G R I G G S L AW R E N C E

YEAR OF THE

EDIBLE 40 JULY 2019 Emerald Triangle

Fed by the best minds IN RESEARCH AND TECHNOLOGY, INNOVATION IN CANNABISINFUSED FOOD AND BEVERAGES IS ENTERING A NEW ERA. BIG AG AND BIG FOOD ARE CIRCLING, DIPPING THEIR TOES IN, READY TO POUNCE AS SOON AS THE US GOVERNMENT LEGALIZES CANNABIS—A MATTER OF WHEN, NOT IF, THAT MANY BELIEVE COULD COME AS SOON AS THIS YEAR OR NEXT. Anheuser-Busch, Molson Coors Brewing Co., Mooseh-

effects. They’ve found a way to make fat-soluble cannabi-

ead, Coca-Cola, Diageo (maker of Smirnoff and Baileys),

noids into water-soluble powders and liquids so that in-

and Mondelēz International (maker of Oreos) have all

fusing anything is a simple matter of adding and stirring.

announced they’re looking into CBD- and THC-infused

And that’s just the beginning. Late last year, the Human

(mostly CBD) food and beverages. CVS and Walgreens

Genome Project, which provides source information for

are planning to sell CBD products in some states. Scotts

gene farming that transforms commercially and thera-

Miracle-Gro is buying up cannabis cultivation companies

peutically valuable segments of the human genetic code

and making moves into genetically modifying cannabis,

into agricultural products, mapped the cannabis genome,

while Monsanto—consistently voted the world’s most evil

opening the door to an even more sophisticated level of

corporation—was one of the first companies to establish

research on par with other economically lucrative crops.

offices in Uruguay after that country legalized adult use.

Citing a study showing that consumers don’t have any

Scientists who honed their skills at the world’s top food

problems with corporations considering cannabis-in-

and pharmaceutical corporations and research institu-

fused products, Nancy Whiteman, CEO of Colorado’s

tions have put their minds to the plant, figuring out how

leading edibles maker Wana Brands, told Paul Barron of

to break cannabis down to its components and put it back

The Barron Report podcast, “My working assumption is

together again to create consistent, measured, predictable

that every major company is looking at this.”

sensimag.com JULY 2019 41

Business Law (Contracts & Compliance) ■ Intellectual Property ■ Cannabis Defense ■ DUIs/DMV Hearings ■ All Felonies & Misdemeanors ■

FREE CONSULTATION FOR DEFENSE WORK ONLY

Kathleen Bryson Attorney

Former Humboldt County Deputy District Attorney Member of National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML) Member California DUI Lawyers Association Voted North Coast Journal’s Best of Humboldt - Attorney & Law Office (2015-2018) 42 JULY 2019 Emerald Triangle

732 5th Street, Suite C Eureka, CA 95501 info@humboldtjustice.com www.humboldtjustice.com

707.268.8600 Working in Association with

Shay Aaron Gilmore Business Law

www.shaygilmorelaw.com Phone/Text: 415.846.6397

Everyone does appear to be eyeing the edibles market,

Mainstream food growers and producers are making

especially since The Arcview Group published a head-

moves. British Columbia-based Village Farms—one of the

line-grabbing report predicting edibles sales would qua-

largest producers, marketers, and distributors of green-

druple in the US and Canada, to $4.1 billion, and global sales

house-grown produce in North America—has already

would reach $32 billion by 2022. They can’t help but notice

converted a large portion of its vegetable greenhouses to

that consumers are gobbling up newly legal CBD-infused ev-

cannabis, and Newstrike Brands is partnering with food

erything—including food and drinks—pushing predictions

company Neal Brothers to produce cannabis edibles.

that CBD sales in the US will hit $22 billion (up from $262 million in 2016) in 2022, according to the New York Times.

Edibles Winning in California

They also like what they see in edible consumer de-

Cannabis legalization in the world’s fifth-largest econ-

mographics. Primarily female with post-secondary ed-

omy and largest legal cannabis market has gotten off to

ucation and high incomes, these shoppers buy edibles

a rocky start as high taxes have forced far too many Cal-

the same way they do groceries, looking for items that

ifornians to hang onto their black-market dealers, but

satisfy their food preferences, tolerances, and flavor

that hasn’t stopped analysts from predicting that $5.1

profiles, according to research firm High Yield Insights.

billion of cannabis edibles would be sold in the state—ri-

These consumers like edibles because they’re discreet

valing the beer market—this year.

and offer longer, more intense highs and better pain and

“While the cultivation and concentrates markets are

anxiety relief than smoking, according to an RTI Interna-

getting most of the buzz, it’s the edibles market that rep-

tional study of cannabis users in legal states.

resents one of the strongest sectors for growth in the can-

Cannabis is taking its rightful place as an established

nabis space,” Investing News reports. “This market sector

and valuable functional food ingredient, and we haven’t

is driven in large part by new users and those focused on

seen anything yet. Sylvan Charlebois, dean of the Fac-

health and wellness who want a smoke-free cannabis ex-

ulty of Management and professor of agri-food distri-

perience. There are signs this consumer segment is al-

bution and policy at Dalhousie University, predicts that

ready flooding into the California cannabis market.”

within 10 years, 5 to 7 percent of all food sold in Canada will contain cannabis.

A number of events and evolutions have converged so that more and more of us will be snacking on CBD-infused gummies and sipping mocktails microdosed with THC in the 2020s.

Canada Opens Up Edibles Market Though Canada’s population pales in comparison to the US’s, the country of 30 million people is the first G-7 nation to legalize, and it’s attracting a lot of attention. The Canadian government kicked the complex undertaking of designing a regulatory system for edibles down the road until this month, and earlier this year it held a two-month public consultation period to help craft those regulations, which were expected to impose tight limitations on potency and packaging. Ignoring consumers’ clear preference for gummies (which make up a quarter of the edibles market in the US), Health Canada is promoting healthier edible options such as cannabis-infused kombucha and protein drinks.

Marijuana Policy Group co-founder Miles Light told

CBC News that edibles and non-flower products are the ultimate end-game for cannabis companies in Canada

A number of events and evolutions have converged so that more and more of us will be snacking on CBD-infused gummies and sipping mocktails microdosed with THC in the 2020s

because food is a friendlier niche for new, smaller companies than cannabis production, which is already dominated by a handful of mega-producers. sensimag.com JULY 2019 43

44 JULY 2019 Emerald Triangle

“People will never trust products that don’t deliver consistent experiences. We can take the plant components apart and put them back together, literally at will, to drive those experiences.”

—Jon Cooper, Ebbu

Better Eating Through Chemistry?

ing oils, and brewers such as Heineken-owned Lagunitas

A couple years ago, Jon Cooper, CEO of Colorado-based

are giving beer a dank edge by adding common cannabis

cannabis research company Ebbu—which industry gi-

terpenes pinene and myrcene. Terpenes were among the

ant Canopy Growth Corporation acquired last year as

most studied compounds last year, Analytical Cannabis

part of its efforts to build a collection of patented, stan-

reports, and that research is now shaping the industry

dardized products that deliver specific outcomes—told

as companies like Steep Hill Laboratories establish data-

me that trust, control, responsibility, and safety would be

bases of terpenes and their usefulness for growers.

the cannabis industry’s defining message as it evolved.

Synthetics—CBD and THC created in a lab from organic

“People will never trust products that don’t deliver con-

hosts such as yeast, sugar, or petroleum-based chemicals—

sistent experiences,” he said. “Big companies coming

will also play a big role. Hyasynth Bio, a Montreal-based

into this space will have no choice but to achieve that.”

startup recently acquired by Organigram Holdings, plans to

His prediction is proving to be prescient, and you can ex-

produce thousands of kilograms of CBD powder made from

pect to see more and more edibles designed to promote spe-

yeast for pharmaceuticals and packaged goods within two

cific effects such as relaxation, focus, energy, stress-relief,

years. (Organigram is investing heavily in edibles innova-

and sleep on cannabis store shelves. “We can take the plant

tion, including a $15 million fully automated production line

components apart and put them back together, literally at

that can produce 4 million kilograms of chocolate cannabis

will, to drive experiences,” Scott Riefler, vice president of sci-

edibles per year using advanced engineering and robotics.)

ence for cannabinoid company Tarukino, marveled during a “Smart Kitchen Summit” podcast sponsored by The Spoon.

David Kideckel, managing director and senior equity research analyst at investment firm AltaCorp Capital, told

Tarukino, Ebbu, and several other companies have de-

The Growth Op that the ability to make cannabinoids in

veloped processing techniques that emulsify cannabi-

bulk in a lab allows for more consistency in the produc-

noids into nano-size particles that dissolve into water and

tion of all cannabinoids and will open up a whole world

mix more easily into blood. These water-soluble concen-

beyond THC and CBD. “As soon as cannabis is descheduled

trates are game changers, making it a breeze for food and

as a controlled substance on a federal level in the United

beverage manufacturers to infuse products with dose- and

States, you’re going to start seeing research dollars pouring

effect-specific formulations of cannabinoids and terpenes.

in from Big Pharma and CPG [consumer packaged goods]

Terpenes are a big factor here, and they’ve become all

companies,” he predicts. “They’re going to work on figuring

the rage—expect to see more and more of them. Dispensaries and retail stores offer everything from terpene concentrates and vaping liquids to terpene-infused cook-

out the potential of every cannabinoid in the plant.”

ROBYN GRIGGS LAWRENCE is the author of the best-selling Cannabis Kitchen Cookbook and the newly released Pot in Pans: A History of Eating Cannabis.

sensimag.com JULY 2019 45

ZERO CALS. ZERO CARBS. NO ALC. NO GLUTEN.

Hi-Fi Hops Cannabis-Infused Hoppy Sparkling Water.

Find it nearby: hifihops.com

46 JULY 2019 Emerald Triangle

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hifiho Tune in: @

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HOPS. THC. NOW IN STEREO.

MOUNTAIN WISE FARMS

A Balanced Connection with the Plant WE LIVE HERE, WE LOVE HERE, WE GROW HERE.

can be healed by eating healthy, organic food and using clean, natural medicine.Even in California’s new legal recreational market, Mountainwise still considers their flowers as medicine.

Mountainwise Farms is inspired by the endless possibilities that the cannabis plant has to offer the world.

Bullock and her team at Mountainwise live for their love of the land and their spirit of shines through every flower harvested and grown. Every day, Bullock’s team works to “respect the planet, respect the plant, and respect the people who use it” at Mountainwise Farms.

With decades of growing experience, Sara Bullock and her team at Mountainwise Farms consider them-

For more information, visit:

MOUNTAINWISEFARMS.COM

selves stewards of the land. By cultivating a balanced connection with the plant, Mountainwise creates a premium product every season.

As a community-based business, Mountainwise has deep roots in the culture of Humboldt County. They recognize that cannabis farmers are the backbone of our community. “We live here, we love here, we grow here,” is the Mountainwise motto. Bullock believes that Humboldt County “saved her,” and has turned her into the person that she is today. “My goal is always to give back to the community, this place is everything to me,” explains Bullock Mountainwise began as a homestead ranch that provided meat and eggs to local grocers in Humboldt County, along with cannabis medicine. As the industry matured, Mountainwise made it their primary goal to grow extraordinary cannabis. Today, Mountainwise Farms is about so much more than just gardening; it’s designed to harness the power of therapeutic horticulture. Bullock believes that most modern ailments sensimag.com JULY 2019 47

48 JULY 2019 Emerald Triangle

HPRC

Humboldt Patient Resource Center SERVING HUMBOLDT COUNTY SINCE 1999.

Established in 1999, the Humboldt Patient Resource Center (HPRC) was one of the first medical marijuana dispensaries in the country. Founded with support from the City of Arcata, HPRC has grown with the Humboldt County community. In 2019, HPRC opened a second location in Eureka with an adjacent community-based health and wellness center called The Connection.

At the dispensary, HPRC offers medical and recreational consumers a carefully curated selection of cannabis products, from flower and wax to seeds and clones. Many of the most popular products are grown by expert staff in the dispensary’s on-site garden and sold under the HPRC brand.

In everything it does, health and wellness is the focus at HPRC. In addition to a staff of well-educated and experienced cannabis consultants, a qualified nurse practitioner is available daily to consult with patients. HPRC has zero tolerance for pesticides or mold; products that test positive for even trace amounts are pulled from the shelves to protect patients’ health.

Community involvement defines HPRC. The HPRC The Connection wellness center is open to everyone and offers free weekly classes, from yoga to recycling to tai chi. During Eureka’s monthly celebration, Arts Alive, The Connection opens its doors with live music and local art.

“HPRC is your dispensary, this is your place,” explains Mariellen Jurkovich, HPRC’s director since 2004.

Going above and beyond what’s offered by your typical dispensary, HPRC has a philosophy of health and community that fits in perfectly with the culture of Humboldt County. HPRC shares in the heritage of Humboldt County, a story of love, care, and healthy cannabis.

For more information, visit:

HPRCHUMBOLDT.COM

sensimag.com JULY 2019 49

{HereWeGo }

by L I Z W I L S O N

Chumayo Spa

120 H St., Blue Lake // 707.668.0101

Platinum Studio Salon & Spa 123 5th St., Eureka // 707.476.8100 PLATINUMSTUDIOSALONANDSPA.COM

HEALTHY SILENCE Float pods offer a holistic escape.

Imagine shutting a lid on all the noise, light, and distraction of your day-to-day life to enjoy tranquil time alone dis-

for me. I can draw from this calmness days after having a float,” explains Mike Kansa, an avid floater in Eureka.

connected from the world. This is “floating.” The first “isola-

For many years, the Humboldt community has had only one

tion tank” was created in 1954 by psychiatrists to test the

option for floating at Chumayo Spa in the rural town of Blue

effects of sensory deprivation. Sometimes referred to as a

Lake. Chumayo has offered floating since 2003 as a “short cut

“sensory deprivation tank” or “flotation tank,” the complete-

to meditation,” explains Julie Jonte, registered nurse and owner.

ly dark, soundproof tanks are filled with body-temperature

Earlier this year, Platinum Studio Salon and Float Spa in

salt water to promote the sensation of weightlessness.

Eurkea opened a modern and stylish facility with several

Advertised as a form of alternative medicine, flotation

float pods, a sauna, and a blow-dry bar. Each private suite

therapy can significantly lower stress levels, leading to a de-

includes a float pod and shower, allowing clients to get in

crease in blood pressure, heart rate, and muscle tension. The

and out of the float pod at their leisure; taking short breaks

element of zero gravity in floating pods allows for spinal cord

from floating can help reduce fears of claustrophobia. Out-

and joint decompression, providing relief from physical pain.

fitted with options for personal lighting and music, Platinum

In addition, the tranquility provided by eliminating stimuli can

offers float times ranging from thirty to ninety minutes.

help facilitate deep meditative states, which often results in increased mental clarity, focus, and calmness. “It’s a full reset 50 JULY 2019 Emerald Triangle

In our stressful world, float tanks offer a unique and healthy way to unwind and unplug.