Caroling with the Pagans in Muir Woods, California
What's the best way to spend the longest night of the year? Drinking cider, watching Germanic dances and signing de-Christianized Christmas carols in the candle-lit dark of the Bay Area's most impressive natural site. On December 21, Muir Woods hosts its annual free Solstice festival, a non-denominational good time for the whole family. Flashlight-wielding kids storm down the luminaria-lit paths, rangers put on puppet shows, and the Germanic fraternal society the Christmas Rebels performs a hypnotic, antler-clanking dance that dates back centuries. The great redwoods watch over the whole event, as nature-loving and spiritual as Marin itself. Are you "dreaming of a green solstice" too?
By Lauren Quinn | Photo: Lauren Quinn | Feedback