Mendocino County doesn’t boast many surfer/farmers, but Jed Davis, who grew up in Pismo Beach, California personifies one of the most beloved of the cannabis subcultures.

“Growing up, we used to ride horses to the beach and surf,” Jed smiles. Following college in San Diego, Jed ran a surf camp in Baja. He’s always loved the country, and one of his lifelong goals was to raise his family in a rural setting.

“I’ve always been in the cannabis industry,” smiles Marty Clein of Martyjuana Farms.

Originally from Miami, Florida, Marty started smoking cannabis at about 12 years of age.

“Cannabis was the one thing that calmed me, settled me down and dulled the sharp edges.”

A high-achiever as a youth, Marty was a State-Champion wrestler and the student government

The story of Josh and Yeins Chestnut, owners of Lost Paradise Organics is, at its heart, a love story. Their very rural farm on the Humboldt/Mendocino County line represents years of hard work which necessitated moving thousands of miles from Yeins’ native Costa Rica, building their own homestead and like their colleagues, struggling through the complex work of regulation and licensing.

Jonah Ward hikes up a rise to a stunning hilltop overlooking Foster Mountain, east of Willits. It’s not hard to imagine Jonah and his siblings running up this same hill as children, a few decades earlier. Lazy Moon Ranch is Jonah’s family home.

“My parents were Deadheads and hippies from New York and Massachusetts. They came to California separately, met out here and bought our property in the ‘70’s,” says Jonah.

The Impassable Rocks are a monumental presence, towering hundreds of feet over the farm belonging to Teresa Sischo and her husband Todd Haendle. At the end of a decidedly rural road, Impassable Farms represents Teresa’s family legacy with the merger of Todd’s experience as a master grower.

Of all the farms that entered the Kure Mendocino Invitational, Healing Herb Farms is undoubtedly the most high-tech. Owner and CEO Keith Shuster has put his heart and soul into developing a professional greenhouse operation which started humbly from outdoor gardens. Over the years, he’s transitioned into a high-tech, high-yield farm.

If you’re even peripherally connected to cannabis, you’ve heard of Casey O’Neill of HappyDay Farms. One of the most public-facing farmers in Mendocino County, Casey’s full-throated activism, positivity and unique vegetable and cannabis business have made him a passionate spokesperson for the industry.

Renae Wells, her family, parents and nephews share their property, their passion for cannabis and their dreams for the future.

“It’s just Jerry here,” smiles Marnie Birger, Jerry’s girlfriend and partner. “He gets a little help during planting and harvesting, but basically, he’s running the whole show alone. He works very hard.”

“Joseph is a 4th Generation Willits native, and we have a 5th generation on the way,” beams Katie Jeane, steward and farmer at Emerald Spirit Botanicals. Katie, her son Joseph, his wife Catherine and her son River live and farm west of Willits. “We go back multiple generations,” Katie notes.