Christmas Tree Farm Odyssey: Sebastopol

With Thanksgiving now a pleasant memory, it's time to start thinking of getting that must-have of the holiday season, the Christmas tree. There are those practical people who merely unpack the artificial tree from its storage boxes, and assemble it in the living room, pre-wired, perfectly shaped and sized, and flame-resistant. Then there are those of us who have to have the real deal, despite the inconvenience. There are a number of good Christmas tree lots in Marin including Pronzini's (we've gone to their lot near the Marin Civic Center in years past, and had a great experience there) and McGovern's on McClay Road in Novato, as well as Home Depot, Target, Safeway, and other places to get trees at good prices. But to the hopeless romantics among us, nothing quite beats the experience of going to a honest-to-goodness genuine Christmas tree farm, getting your hands dirty, and cutting the thing down ourselves. Of course it's a great family photo op and usually a lot of fun, too, and those annual trip to the Christmas tree farm remain some of my fondest childhood memories.

Unfortunately, there aren't any Christmas tree farms in Marin County anymore (the last one—in Olema—closed down years ago). To get the real Christmas tree farm experience within close proximity to Marin, you have to head north to rural Sonoma County. Most tree farms seem to be clustered around Sebastopol and Petaluma, with a few near Sonoma and Santa Rosa. We recently checked out four Christmas tree farms sited in the rolling hills southwest of Sebastopol: Garlock Tree Farm, Reindeer Ridge Tree Farm, Frosty Mountain Tree Farm, and Fisher Farm. Christmas tree farming is definitely a family business—three of the farms, Garlock, Reindeer Ridge, and Frosty Mountain, are operated by branches of the same family.

Garlock Tree Farm

Garlock tree farm is located at 2275 Bloomfield Road, on 10 acres of conifer-covered countryside, where they've been growing and selling Christmas trees since 1966. They offer an assortment of tree varieties, including Douglas fir, White fir, Monterey pine, Scotch pine, sequoias, and pre-cut Noble firs. Saws and carts are available, and for an nominal extra fee they'll shake your tree free of loose needles and any creepy-crawlies that may have taken up residence in it and bundle it for easier transport.

Like many area tree farms, they offer complimentary coffee and candy canes. As an added bonus, they also offer free horse-drawn carriage rides around the farm, which are a lot of fun. On days when the horses aren't available, tractor-drawn rides are offered. There's a small gift shop where ornaments, tree-related paraphernalia, and snacks like popcorn, hot dogs, cookies, and hot apple cider are available. The service at this family-run farm is friendly and we found ourselves chatting with several generations of the family. If all that isn't enough, there's a bounce house ($1 per kid) and a small barn featuring friendly animals, including goats and rabbits, from Marin's own Barnyardigans petting zoo.

This year Garlock Tree Farm is open November 27 through December 20, Fridays from noon to 5 pm, and Saturdays and Sundays from 9 am to 5 pm. For more information, visit their website: garlocktreefarm.com or call (707) 823-4307. There's a printable coupon on the site for $5 off any pre-cut Noble fir.

Reindeer Ridge Farm

More-or-less around the corner from Garlock Tree Farm, at 3500 Mariola Road, is Reindeer Ridge Farm. Offering pretty much the same tree selection and services as the previous farm, Reindeer Ridge had tractor-drawn hay rides for customers, and a gift shop and snack bar in a large shed. Santa Claus was supposed to be on hand the day we visited, too (according to the sign out front), but apparently he was a no-show that day. He should be there most weekends, however.

The gift shop, with a warm fireplace blazing merrily away in one corner, offered a wide variety of ornaments and Christmas decorations. The snack bar served up popcorn, hot cider, and hot dogs and bratwurst from the grill outside. You can also play foosball if you want. Outdoor attractions include tractor-drawn hay rides, a couple friendly donkeys to visit, and a big tractor tire swing. The views from Reindeer Ridge are pretty spectacular, too.

Reindeer Ridge Farm is open weekdays 11 am to 6 pm, weekends 9 am to 6 pm. Call (707) 829-1569 for information.

Frosty Mountain Tree Farm

Frosty Mountain Tree Farm, at 3600 Mariola Road, is directly adjacent to Reindeer Ridge Farm. It's literally just on the other side of the fence, and people were walking down the road from one farm to the other during our visit. Frosty Mountain, like the other two farms we visited, offered a variety of trees ranging from cut-your-own Douglas firs, Monterey pines, and Sequoia redwoods to pre-cut Noble firs from Oregon. They'll also shake your tree, bundle it with netting, and drill a hole for stand-mounting free of charge. Stands are sold on-site, too.

In addition, free tractor-drawn hay rides are offered, and there are farm animals for children to visit. In the big red barn, a former apple-packing shed, there's Santa's Workshop, a large gift shop selling the requisite ornaments and stuff, as well as Mrs. Klaus' Kitchen, offering hot cider, popcorn, apple fritters, and cookies. There was also a coffee stand operated by Hardcore espresso, which, while quirky in a western Sonoma County sort of way, makes a really good cup of coffee.

Frosty Mountain Tree Farm is open weekdays from noon to 5 pm, and Saturday and Sunday from 9 am to 5 pm. Information: www.frostymountaintreefarm.com or (707) 829-2351.

All three farms accept cash, checks, and credit cards.

Fisher Farm

Located just south of the above farms at 2870 Canfield Road, Fisher Farm is a small family farm offering mainly Monterey pine choose-and-cut trees, along with a pretty good selection of pre-cut Douglas and Noble firs. Their barn offers free coffee, cider, decorations, and tree accessories. Tractor-drawn hay rides are offered as well. Around back of the barn were some farm animals to visit, including two extremely friendly pigs.

They also offer a popular pumpkin patch in October. Fisher Farm is open weekends from 9 am to dusk. Information: (707) 823-4817

More things to do and directions

We also stopped by Twin Hill Ranch, located nearby at 1689 Pleasant Hill Road. The centerpiece of this working apple farm is a huge barn full of crafts, food items including apple pies, breads, and juice, a snack bar serving hot dogs and homemade chili, and a cozy open fireplace. (If you look hard enough at some of the area Christmas tree farms, you'll find a postcard for Twin Hill Ranch that's also a coupon for a free three-pound bag of apples!) There's also a picnic area with a spacious lawn. Twin Hill Ranch is open daily to Christmas from 9 am to 5 pm. Information: www.twinhillranch.com (707) 823-2815

From Marin, take 101 North to the Gravenstein Highway (116) exit and head west towards Sebastopol. Turn left onto Bloomfield Road and follow it to where it intersects with Kennedy Road. To reach Reindeer Ridge and Frosty Mountain, head onto Kennedy Road and turn left onto Mariola Road. To get to Garlock Tree Farm, continue south on Bloomfield Road. To reach Fisher Farm, continue south on Bloomfield Road. At the stop sign, bear left/straight onto Canfield Road and follow it south until you see Fisher Farm to your right.

To get to Twin Hill Ranch, head west on Bloomfield from Highway 116, and continue on as it becomes Pleasant Hill Road (Bloomfield continues to the south where it intersects Kennedy). Follow Pleasant Hill Road north to Elphick Road. Turn right on Elphick, then follow the signs to Twin Hill Ranch.

There are plenty of other tree farms in the Sebastopol area. To see a listing, go to the Sonoma County Farm Trails website: www.farmtrails.org.

Next stop: Petaluma.