Columns

By Pierre Ratte This weekend’s rain released earthy fragrances, falling gently over two days and lessening fire-season anxieties. Maybe the rain is ending this year’s fire season and beginning winter’s filling of reservoirs and the Sierra’s snowpack. Last winter, Northern California received epic rain and...

Sadly, last weekend’s eclipse was not visible while hiking, due to cloud cover, but there was a noticeable darkening of sky and forest. While walking this trail a lovely waterfall appeared, brightening the darkening day with a glinting trickle. Walking in a natural setting can...

Healdsburg Library staff members are looking forward to a very busy October, with many exciting opportunities to engage with the public. Some weeks are so packed with activities that I can only offer a smattering of suggestions; for the full list, please visit our...

Despite climate and global warming concerns, this summer in Sonoma County was relatively cool if measured by the late onset of grape harvests.

100 Years Ago: Sept. 20, 1923 Grape Shipments Running High as Cars Grow Short The surplus of refrigerator cars has been exhausted and the Healdsburg district is now on a hand to mouth basis in grape shipping, according to W. E. Hicks, Northwestern Pacific station agent. There...

Autumn light slashes through a dazzling collection of pumpkins. Once upon a time, it seemed all pumpkins were orange. Now, they come in a plethora of colors ranging from orange to red, yellow, green, white and striped combinations. Pumpkin is a vernacular term for winter...

For the second time in three years the de Young Museum is holding the de Young Open, a juried show for community area artists. First held in 2020, this year’s Open features artists from nine counties in the Bay Area: Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin,...

As we welcome September in Healdsburg, many of our residents are in full back-to-school mode, and that’s noticeable at the library. Our staff, as well as the teachers, kids and parents, have had their recovery time and gotten the school year running smoothly; now...

A bas-relief sculpture in Healdsburg along University Avenue harkens back to the days of manual labor when steel and iron workers built skyscrapers that changed America’s city skylines. The subject matter and style reflects Depression Era art coming from the Federal Emergency Relief Act, which...

100 years ago: Aug. 30, 1923Heat Wave Ends as Storm Breaks A break of almost 20 degrees in the temperature marked the transition of the weather from hot wave to storm conditions. After several days of excessive warmth, with marks of 100 degrees recorded on...