Intimate inns, champagne-style sparkling wines, hand-holding walks and dinners for two have enticed lovers to Mendocino County for decades. But families, wine enthusiasts, nature lovers and fresh air advocates also find plenty to do here.

The world's tallest redwoods, national forests, the Ecological Staircase and Russian River habitats draw bird watchers and naturalists. Gardeners flock to rhododendron and azalea nurseries, Fetzer Vineyard's Valley Oaks gardens and the Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens. Campers find coast side campgrounds as well as inland spots next to the Eel River and Lake Mendocino. Art galleries and antique shops throughout the county offer one-of-a-kind treasure hunts.

What else? You can fish in streams or from ocean charter boats; paddle canoes and kayaks. Bicycle up State Park trails; see rodeos in Anderson Valley, Covelo or Willits. Ride the Skunk Train. Attend a Mendocino Music Festival or an Ukiah Players Theater performance. Go horseback riding and explore miles of beaches and tidal pools. Or, you can take a stroll along the edge of a high bluff over the pounding clear blue Pacific with the wind blowing your hair, wildflowers all around, gulls circling overhead, and just let the breeze blow your cares away.

These are samplings of how to spend your time and find your pace in Mendocino.

Mendocino Village, long a star on the nation's culinary map, has been joined by a growing number of restaurants and chefs throughout the County who are receiving rave reviews. In addition to featuring the catch of the day from fishing boats out of our many harbors, chefs and cooks around the county use the local lettuces, apples, pears, lamb and beef, to name a few ingredients. And as a region with a 150-year winemaking history, many of our chefs and restaurateurs are intimately familiar with our increasingly broad range of Mendocino wines and expertly match them with their dishes.

Mendocino Wine & Mushroom Fest in November celebrates two of the county's bounty, as does Mendocino Crab & Wine Days in January. Salmon, reeled in by local fisherman, is the star of the World's Largest Salmon Barbecue in July. July also brings out our County Woolgrowers to the County Fairgrounds in Boonville with a venerable sheepdog competition and lamb barbecue.

Farmers markets in Mendocino showcase the freshest produce. Known as a source of premium ingredients, Mendocino is also a leader in the organic movement for both food and wine. Wild mushrooms abound, as does a budding industry in cultivated exotic mushrooms. Small producers package mustards, herbs, apple wreaths, pear preserves, jams, meat marinades, wild rice, pistachios, coffee beans, available in winery tasting rooms and specialty food shops around the county.

At this festival you will find guided mushroom tours, winemaker dinners, mushroom dishes at restaurants and inns, special lodging rates and packages, writing contests, wine tastings, luncheons at wineries and inns, mushroom exhibits and classes.   All these events are on the schedule at the fourth annual Mendocino Wine & Mushroom Fest. The 12-day event takes place from Wednesday, November 12 through Sunday, November 23, 2003.

Prices vary by Event. Examples: free for Wild Mushroom Exhibits and Beer & Wine Passports; $5 for wine tastings; $10 for guided mushroom walks and wine & appetizer tastings; $15-60 for cooking classes; $65-$85 for winemaker dinners.

Daily guided mushroom identification tours will take place at the Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens and at parks in Mendocino County. Mushroom growing workshops, musical events, poetry readings, slide shows and art exhibits are also on the schedule. The Mendocino Wine & Beer Tasting Passport offers a foray into tasting rooms to hunt for mushroom stamps and be entered in a drawing for prizes.