Photo by Jackie Bryant
Palomar Craft Cannabis
I have been trying to get myself to a cannabis grow operation for a while now, but plans have always fallen through. I wasn’t able to make it up to Humboldt at a certain time or I was ghosted in a text chain with Fallbrook growers. Barring my boyfriend replanting a few plants in his own backyard, I had run into a dead end.
That changed on a recent weekend when I attended a new tour offered by West Coast Cannabis Tours. I’ve previously covered cannabis experience tours that included dispensaries, breweries and glass-blowing facilities, but this tour was a whole other ballgame.
First, West Coast’s Ultimate Cannabis Grow Tour (which debuted, naturally, on 4/20) is the only tour in the U.S. that visits a grow operation of such a large size. As with other tours, guests are free to blaze on the limousine bus, but it’s BYOC. When I went, details were kept mum until the actual tour began, but once the bus was moving, it was revealed that the destination was the Iipay Nation of Santa Ysabel reservation, where the Kumeyaay tribe allows sale and cultivation on its land.
The exact operation we visited is called Palomar Craft Cannabis, run by San Diego County native Kyle Castanon. He founded the “grow” (short for “grow operation”) 10 years ago during the medical cannabis days and currently runs his entire operation on the reservation.
For those who’ve never been to a cannabis grow, pictures don’t do the experience justice. I know a lot about the cannabis plant, including what it looks like, and as a food writer with an interest in farming, I’m certainly no stranger to a greenhouse. But seeing such a critical mass of cannabis plants—whose images were burned into my childhood mind as something illicit and harmful—is impactful. Growers refer to the particular method Castanon uses as the “sea of green,” a process that keeps all of the plants uniformly sized and level. It’s also an entirely accurate description of the view looking across one of his five greenhouses.
Then there’s the smell. In the past, I haven’t romanticized the flavor or smell of bud. Quite the opposite, actually. For me, the smell was associated with shame and something to be covered up. But walking into Palomar Craft Cannabis’ facility and being hit with that aromatic, green smell was fresh and uplifting rather than heavy and overpowering. It was one of the more exciting cannabis experiences I can remember.
Photo by Jackie Bryant
Palomar Craft Cannabis
It was a true treat, inside the greenhouse, to be able to grab the buds and feel the sticky resin coat my hands. I took a deep whiff and instantly felt a little buzzed. Whether it was real or psychosomatic hardly matters—I couldn’t tell the difference, anyway.
I wish anyone with any interest in cannabis, no matter how simple, to experience this connection. As it is with food and drink, cannabis consumers are far removed from the fact that they are ingesting an agricultural product. Communing with the plant can result in a greater interest in all aspects of production, which promotes healthy industry growth for both producers and consumers.
After visiting the grow, we visited Mountain Source, the tribe’s own dispensary, where its products are sold without state excise tax. The dispensary is open to the public but visiting Palomar Craft Cannabis, or any other grow for that matter, is not possible outside of this tour. So that leaves only one recommendation for those curious about cannabis cultivation: the West Coast Cannabis Tour. It’s worth it.