Harvest: ‘For me, Christmas lives inside a cake’
My family’s tradition is the bûche de Noël. A Christmas log. It arrives on an antique silver platter, dusted lightly with powdered sugar for snow, as if it has just been lifted from the forest floor.
4-Day ‘Cyclone’ Hammers Healdsburg
For four long, wet days in Healdsburg last week, historic rainfall totals and quickly rising Russian River and Foss Creek waters hopped their banks, flooded streets, caused road closures, led to a small mudslide on Fitch Mountain and flooded at least one home in town.
Books on hold: Library to close for 3 weeks
The good news is that the downtown Healdsburg Regional Library will fully reopen its doors on Wednesday, June 25, at 10am, after a top-to-bottom remodel. “Library staff are overjoyed to return to the Piper Street Branch,” said Branch Manager Jon Haupt. “Our regular location is ideal—walkable to local schools and services in the heart of Healdsburg.”
Healdsburg Braces for New Year’s Storm
Last week, the National Weather Service issued a “coastal flood warning” for the entire Sonoma County coastal area—including Healdsburg. But a quieter-than-expected rain event over the weekend averted the dire warnings that the higher-than-normal tides would bring to coastal cities.
This week, however, the weather...
Healdsburg Library embraces its remodel
The newly refreshed Children’s Room lives up to the hype. The laser-cut madrone tree silhouettes provide a charming entryway into the room. Tables and chairs in the room are of different heights to accommodate a variety of sizes and preferences, with spaces for children of different ages and interests.
Shakespeare in the Piazza, with pizza
'Two Gentlemen of Verona' is one of Shakespeare’s earlier works. I’ve always thought it was one of the Bard’s easier plays to follow, written before he got all “Shakespeare-y.” It’s the tale of besties Valentine and Proteus whose friendship is tested by, of course, a woman.
Midpoint in the Fall Sports Season
The Healdsburg High School athletics program is midway through its first normal autumn in several years. A total of 149 students are participating in the season’s sports, from a football team of 43 to a girls’ golf squad of five to a cheer team...
Slump-and-slide at Fitch Mountain repaired
“The North Fitch Mountain community has been our partner every step of the way since 2017,” said Johannes Hoevertsz, director of Sonoma County Public Infrastructure, last week. “Their patience and support have been invaluable, and we’re proud to deliver a safe, reliable road that serves residents, visitors and emergency responders alike.”
Test-Driving the World of Work
There’s yellow caution tape over the door and a dead body in the middle of the room. Her name is Sarah, according to the three younger-than-expected investigators, and she has been shot twice.
The investigators evaluate the location of the bullet shells and the gunshot...
Montage Parking Lot Challenge Gets Results
Montage Healdsburg’s plan to remove 107 blue oak trees to build a new parking lot has been withdrawn by the developer. The plan, approved by the Planning Commission at its May 28 meeting, drew immediate protest from a group of local environmentalists, who took the formal measure of filing an appeal of the approval....
Arts & Entertainment
Roots in the community
The proprietors of BloodRoot Wines, Kelly and Noah Dorrance, have been organizing an annual music and wine festival called The Ramble as a fundraiser benefitting GIFFORDS, a national organization dedicated to preventing gun violence.






















