As many of you know, Tulip was started in Humboldt County where the salty air meets the lush balmy Redwoods. Our many rivers rage through mountains of tight knit communities living off the grid. Its a different world up here in Humboldt, one only fully understood when someone physically comes here for the experience.

My post this week will give you all a small peek at what we have here, and as this blog continues I can get into depth on topics like Saving the Redwoods, camping, hiking, farms, culinary delights, herbalism and Humboldt's infamous counter culture lifestyle.

Yesterday after work my fiancé and I went out to the beach with the dogs. I haven't had much time to go there in the last several weeks, having just been traveling and doing a big trade show! I was able to take a moment to myself on a rock overlooking a tide pool. The glassy serenity of it all was intoxicating with soft waves as the tide descended. Humboldt beaches are rugged. The type where massive boulders sit out only 100 feet from the shore. They even have their own community of Redwoods upon them. They are ancient and bring peace. I looked down at the tide pool area and noticed something. It wasn't what I saw, but what I did not see. Life. I'm sad to say that our beaches have taken a downturn since Fukushima. We read all of the media's fear mongering about what the radiation is doing to us and our environment, but do we witness these affects? I am no scientist so I cannot say what has caused this, but where are all the mussels? And anemone's? Perhaps a few here and there but not as it used to be.

Humboldt's Redwoods as you all know are also ancient. To be amongst them is to bare witness to the prehistoric. No person can deny the power one feels in their presence. It gets to your core and leaves a mark. I am happy to announce that Tulip has decided, as a part of our new "give back" program to donate a percentage of sales to Saving the Redwoods! This will allow us to donate to many organizations that support the eco-systems of the Redwoods, including watershed restoration and protection, forestry programs and environmental protection non profits in our area. Spiritually this makes sense for me. Of all the times Ive spent frolicking amongst my Redwood friends, Im sure they have spoken to me, and surely asked for my help. When the Trilliums bloom in spring, they thank the sun for another year upon return. Trilliums only grow amongst the Redwoods and we wouldn't have them without their embracing parents.

As we move forward with our program, one of our first calls to action is a local non profit called Eel River Clean up Project.

(ERCP) - click here for the eel river clean up project on Facebook

Some local Southern Humboldt friends of mine decided to get together and do something hand on about the enormous illegal dumping of trash that has been happening on the river for decades. Its really incredible what they have accomplished. A cleaner healthier Humboldt is their motto. This couldn't resonate any more with me and my core values.

Some history on the Eel.

The river and its tributaries form the third largest watershed entirely in California, draining a rugged area of 3,684 square miles (9,540 km2) in five counties. The river flows generally northward through the Coast Ranges west of the Sacramento Valley, emptying into the Pacific Ocean about 10 miles (16 km) downstream from Fortuna and just south of Humboldt Bay. The river provides groundwater recharge, recreation, and industrial, agricultural and municipal water supply. Since the early 20th century, the Eel River has been dammed in its headwaters to provide water, via inter-basin transfer, to parts of Mendocino and Sonoma Counties. During the 1950s and 1960s, there was great interest in building much larger dams in the Eel River system, in order to provide water for the State Water Project. Although the damming would have relieved pressure on California's overburdened water systems, it stirred up decades of controversy, as some of the proposals made little economic sense and would have been detrimental to an ailing salmon run. The Eel was granted federal Wild and Scenic River status in 1981, formally making it off limits to new dams.[10] Nevertheless, logging, grazing, road-building and other human activities continue to significantly affect the watershed's ecology. (WIKIPEDIA)

Its time for me to get back to work, Im mixing up some minty fragrances today. Love my mints! Eucalyptus is so therapeutic and really does it all for me! Check out our Enlighten Mint from the Charmed Collection! It helps with headaches, stress, colds, allergies and mosquitos.

Blessings and a Bright day to you all,

Victoria

Beach Waves, Sea Salt and Redwoods