Valley People 10/21/2025

WOULDN'T ordinarily risk boring you, but for the first time in my apparently endless life, I'm dreaming vivid dreams, so vivid I remember them at wake up time. Must be the cancer meds, but two nights ago I experienced a truly terrifying nightmare. There I was looking on when Rick Stieves, Scott Simon and Drew Barrymore appeared to be arguing. I asked if I could mediate. Drew screamed, "One of these bastards stole my adderall! I can't do my show without speed!" I said I was sorry but maybe Oprah could help. Then all three sang in chorus, "Oprah Shmopra, Mr. Buttinski. You're spending eternity with us."

COLUMBUS DAY, aka Indigenous Peoples Day, the local angle: Joe Cervetto, a San Francisco businessman who spent many happy hours at his Boonville place on Redwood Ridge, was best known for his enthusiastic portrayals of Christopher Columbus in the city’s annual Columbus Day celebration.

Cervetto developed an early interest in his fellow Genoese, Christopher Columbus, becoming an authority on the life and times of “The Greatest Navigator” and, in 1958, assumed the role of portraying his idol in San Francisco's Columbus Day Parade — a role he played with gusto for the next 30 years, wading ashore at Aquatic Park in annual re-enactments of the big event. (The forces of the good and the true put an end to the annual reenactment.) Joe Cervetto died in 1998.

SUDDENLY IT’S FALL! And it seems like it is, as well! We are experiencing colder nights and warmer rainy days, and our community is encircled by the fruits and vegetables which are the result of the gardener’s patience and skill! I love this time of year and I’ve heard other people saying the same. The deep gold of pumpkins, the dullish reds and yellows of squash, the tart brightness of crisp apples, the deep purple of figs, the prospect of approaching persimmons, as well as the amber and mauve tints of grapes, varying into reds and purples. What a world we experience at our doorsteps! And as usual, I’m glad I live here!

— Charmian Blattner, October 1997

BETH SWEHLA: Our school is getting a new track combined with a soccer/football field. Today several of our agriculture classes had a possible career experience relating to turf grass or sod. Students learned about growing and installing turf or sod as a career. Then the classes went out to the track and watched the new turf being installed. They were able to ask questions to some of the crew. It is going to take at least another 3 days to complete the installation. The students can't wait to be able to use the field! So exciting!

GOLDEN EAGLE SIGHTING ON COMPTCHE UKIAH ROAD

Taking the Comptche Ukiah road from Mendocino to Ukiah on Wednesday 10-8, up near the top ridge just before it sharply descends to Ukiah, near Greenfield Ranch. My sweetheart is driving, and through my cracked window I hear Ravens making quite a fuss, the shadows of circling birds fall upon the road below, I ask her to slow down so I can look, Suddenly a Golden Eagle surges ahead of us, followed by a cluster of Ravens trying to chase it off. There is a large turnout just ahead so we pull in there to watch the show. We get parked and the eagle is soaring to great heights, but still pursued. Suddenly it descends, and to our surprise starts flying straight at us. Just before it gets to us, it lands sharply in a dead fir tree, about 60-80 ft. feet from us, I hear its talons as they grasp the branch with a loud “clack.” Three of the ravens take a nearby watchful post, We can’t see the eagle as the stem of the dead tree shields us from it. But it is quite thrilling to know it’s right there. So we proceed to talk about it. After about five minutes the eagle lifts off, and with the ravens in close pursuit, descends into the valley below. After a short while the ravens return, clearly satisfied that they had made their point! This is the first Golden Eagle I’ve seen in years in the coast range between the Mendocino Coast, and the 101 corridor. Although not common , neither was it unusual to see one or two on the drive. I am pretty sure the proliferation of vineyards has had severe impacts on their habitat, so I hope this sighting is a sign of things to come¦.

— Chris Skyhawk

CONSTRUCTION ANECDOTE: According to the County’s contract with the Lambert Lane Bridge Replacement contractor, several specialized consultants must be hired and on-site to advise the contractor’s crew on various ancillary requirements: A biologist, an archeologist, a storm water run-off specialist, etc. A few weeks ago the contractor was dismantling the temporary Bailey Bridge which had been in place since 2017 after the old original bridge washed out from the heavy rains in the wet years prior to 2017. Pains are taken to safely salvage and re-use as much of the material from the old bridge and the construction as possible, including lumber, crumbled concrete, rock, dirt, gravel etc. The roadbed of the temporary Bailey Bridge was made of pressure treated slabs of lumber (probably not meant to be in place for years at a time) which the contractor crew had removed while dismantling the bridge sections so that the Bailey Bridge could be returned to the County yard for the next wash-out. The slabs were stacked and tied in pallet-sized piles about a hundred yards from Robinson Creek ready for pickup when the storm water specialist told the contractor that they had to be covered up with a tarp to prevent run-off into the Creek. The contractor crew was taken aback. Here were worn-down slabs of pressure treated lumber that had been driven over and worn down by traffic right over the Creek for more than eight years, but now they were worried about run-off when they were piled up a couple hundred yards from the Creek?

(Mark Scaramella)

BILL KIMBERLIN:

A few years ago I was wandering around a ranch next to my aunt’s old summer resort. There is a great big apple dryer on this neighboring property, as well as several interesting old barns. But the best part that day was discovering a cache of old Model-T era cars and trucks under some trees.

One truck was particularly interesting because, while it had emblems identifying it as a “Reo Speedwagon”, there was a pretty big tree growing through the middle of it, where the truck bed should have been.

To be able to still find this kind of stuff is to be able to still find what I call “Old Boonville”. My uncle Dewitt once told me that as a kid hiking the Valley hills in the 1930’s he came across an abandoned cabin that used old newspapers to insulate its interior walls. Taking a closer look at the papers he found that they were from the Civil War era. There was no telling how long this place had been there. Time frozen, is still an intriguing aspect of living here.

Sometime after discovering the Reo I called the owner of the property for permission to take some photos. When I mentioned the Speedwagon he said that he got it from his neighbor (my uncle Avon) and that, “It had been your grandfather's. He used it to haul bootleg liquor during prohibition. It had some hidden places for the booze.”

Now that was a real surprise. I just happened upon an abandoned old truck that used to belong to my grandfather and he used it during prohibition to haul liquor?

I had heard the family stories for years. I had pestered my Aunt Leonore to tell me them over and over again when I was a kid living at the resort. So now I started to look into them a little more.

The image at the head of this article is of my great grandfather John Mason’s San Francisco Brewery. It is a photo taken from a lithograph that hangs in my uncle DeWitt’s dining room.

Mason’s Brewery was one of the first in San Francisco. It was a Steam Brewery and they also made Irish Whiskey. Masons was founded in 1854. It moved to Sausalito in 1892 as Mason’s Malt Whisky Distilling Co. and by 1925 was producing one sixth of all the alcohol in the country. The site of the old distillery is now called Whiskey Springs and is a condominium development.

John Mason had come to California from Ireland in 1849 but his wife died and he had to go back to get another one. The one he got this time was from New York and her name was Mary Hayes. Her father, Jacob Hayes was the first Chief of Police in New York City. That was in 1803, and he held the position for fifty years.

Stumbling upon what was left of that old truck and finding some ties with my own past illustrates one of the pleasures of Old Boonville for me. But there is more to it than just nostalgia. This small country town allows us to sometimes get a glimpse of simplicity that is harder to discover in the outside world. While chopping wood, working on the well, or occasionally going without electricity may not sound like amenities, they can be when they slow things down just enough so that a metaphorical Old Boonville can come clearly into view.

I read a story recently about a Silicon Valley executive that was so busy that when the lights at his home failed one winter he just didn’t have time to fix them so he went without and used only candles for light. Over time he came to love the soft flickering glow so much that he never did fix the lights, he just kept the candles. At first his girlfriend would come over and complain bitterly about it, but soon, she too lit her own home with candles. They each had accidentally introduced themselves to something they would never have otherwise chosen.

Now I actively look for and try to celebrate Old Boonville when ever I can find it.

THE LOUISE SIMPSON TRACK AND FIELD, BOONVILLE, CA

The nearby Anderson Valley community park is looking good these days as well.

MICHELLE YEOMAN: Hi. My name in the valley was Shellie Sand. My parent's were Lovella and Dick Sand. Mom worked for Philo lumber Company that part of my family owned for many years. She then worked for the Superintendent of AV school district, then the principal of the elementary school which she loved. My dad worked for CalTrans and retired, then worked for Eversole Cemetery and drove the Senior Citizen’s bus. I was involved in everything from the 4H to cheerleader in school to a judge in the Mendocino County Fair. I loved every minute of it. I worked for the Redwood Drive In owned by Domald and Donna Pardini and Eva and Floyd Johnson all the way through school. I miss the valley deeply. Eva and Bill Holcomb were my parents’ best friends. Palma and Billy Holcomb are my son Matt Sand’s godparents. I have so many beautiful memories. Two years ago I had a stroke. I was determined to walk out of the nursing home on a cane AND I DID. LOL Doing as well as expected getting stronger every day. Please, if there are any classmates or friends or anybody that would like to post please do. I would love to here from you. God Bless. (Facebook: Anderson Valley stuff)

THE BOONVILLE DISTILLERY

Moonshine was never just corn liquor — it was whatever the land gave you.

In Anderson Valley, that means apples, pears, and a whole lot of heart. Our version of “apple pie moonshine” honors the early makers who worked with what they had — fruit from the orchard, fire from the still, and determination that ran deep.

This is our kind of shine: made by hand, rooted in community, and crafted with the same grit and creativity that built this valley.

American as apple pie — and twice as spirited.

HARVEST IS BEGINNING TO WIND DOWN in Anderson Valley

As the final bins roll in, the vineyards shift from green to gold — a sure sign that another season is coming to a close.

Pictured here is the legendary Savoy Vineyard, tucked in the heart of the mid-valley in Philo. Its rows have produced some of Anderson Valley’s most acclaimed wines, and this week they stand in quiet beauty, resting after the work is done.

Soon our tired farmers, pickers, cellar crews, and winemakers will be able to rest as we settle into winter rains and the festive holiday season. Thank you for your hard work, team AV!

(AV Winegrowers Association)

OLIVIA ALLEN: Has anyone else had the experience of Advantage II-resistant fleas in the area? I live on the hill up Philo-Greenwood Road, and the fleas on my kitties do not die with Advantage II. I tried Cheristin and one kitty had a bad reaction to it. I am going to try Frontline next. I am worried I waited too long and am going to have an infestation. Waaaah.— feeling stressed.