Columns

Floating above Santa Rosa, Windsor and Healdsburg’s vineyards in a hot air balloon while sipping champagne and eating croissants makes a morning magical. Even if one is not in the balloon, there is something “uplifting” about hot air balloons. Morning commutes to Santa Rosa down Hwy 101 are boring unless one happens upon a balloon piloting its way up the valley.

The philosophy here is simple, though the execution is anything but. NewTree Ranch operates on permaculture principles and biodynamic practices, supported by renowned consultant Harold Hoven. Over the past decade, the land has been transformed.

Living in a tech-dominated world, it’s hard to imagine a day or year without a cellphone or car, yet that is every day, every year, for the Amish.

In order to pick the remainder of the grape crop and the light walnut crop with hands, it is urged that all local people, including high school pupils, assist with the grape harvest over the coming weekend. A shortage of over two hundred grape pickers exists in the Healdsburg section at the present time.

"This is my 20th year photographing harvest—since 2005—and I still love this time," writes Liza Gershman. "I’ve spent nights with vineyard crews lit only by headlamps and moonlight, capturing the exact moment the fruit leaves the vine. My favorite moment is when the deepest darkness turns into light and the sky opens up. I rarely see sunrise outside of harvest. There’s a reverence to it. A rhythm. A knowing..."

Visiting Cleveland isn’t complete without checking the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame off the bucket list. If in Cleveland, it’s an easy checkmark. It’s Cleveland after all. Despite former claims to fame, Cleveland’s currency now is a museum commemorating rock music, the Rock Hall.

The Burning Man Project has had a 35-year run. With 35 years, isn’t it time to think about morphing into inclusivity? Burning Woman 2026? She/Her/They? But why mess with success?

A recent thread on Facebook suggests that the large mural on the west side of Smith Robinson Gym might be painted over and that its history is lost. Principal Tait Danhousen and District Supervisor Chris Vanden Heuvel both say there are no plans to paint over or otherwise change this artwork at the Healdsburg High School campus. A quick search of Healdsburg Tribune archives discovered the following article, from February 1989.

If you like to meditate and enter a profound connection to the hear and now—pun, drum flair—consider a sound bath. Although there are many ways to enter a meditative state, such as following the rhythm of one’s breath, another easy way is to focus on a single sense. Sound is often chosen because it is uniquely immersive

This summer has been a season of light and abundance, a time when the land seems to glow from within. From the golden haze over vineyard rows to the bustle of the Saturday Farmers’ Market, I’ve been behind the camera capturing the faces, fields and kitchens that tell Healdsburg’s story...