COBB, Calif. – Gray skies and occasional raindrops couldn’t dampen the spirits of the thousands who made their way to Cobb Mountain on Saturday for the fourth annual Blackberry COBBler Festival, held each August.
The festival venue was the Belmont Pines Golf Course (formerly Mountain Meadow) in Cobb Village.
Vendors of all kinds, 90 this year, sold wares in tents that snaked across the scenic meadow with the pine-covered hills in the background. Many offered blackberry-themed products and edible items made especially for the festival.
The festival has grown since its launch in 2019. This year, an estimated 4,500 people attended. For many, it was their first festival experience, and attendees came from all over Lake County and beyond.
This themed event provides a way to showcase local businesses and artisans while also providing a way for community organizations to raise money. The sale of homemade blackberry pie by the Cobb Mountain Lions Club supports their work in the community and a children’s play area, the Kid’s Zone, was a fundraiser for the Cobb School.
Blackberry jam and vinegar, blackberry pastries and drinks, and blackberry-scented soaps and candles were sold throughout the festival. Food vendors created special menus for the event. For example, Henny Penny Catering Company offered tacos with blackberry mango salsa.
Festivalgoers could enjoy live music on a shaded patio while feasting on a wide variety of food, including barbecue platters, tacos, Hawaiian shave ice, ice cream, boba tea, handmade candy, local beer and wine, and more. And of course, there was plenty of blackberry pie.
The Cobb Area Council and the Seigler Springs Community Redevelopment Association co-host the annual festival. Cathy McCarthy, chair of the Cobb Area Council, and Jennifer Gayda of the Bottlerock Candle Company co-chaired the event.
McCarthy said the festival was created to lure people back to Lake County after the 2015 Valley Fire and to bring some lighthearted fun to the area after such a devastating event. They expected about 500 guests at their inaugural event in 2019 at Pine Grove in Whispering Pines, but 2,000 people showed up, including many from outside the area who had fond memories of past vacations on Cobb.
McCarthy is pleased with the broad support of the Cobb community, which includes a volunteer pool of full- and part-time residents. Local businesses have also been supportive, she said. Mountain High Coffee and Books, for example, uses blackberries in its baked goods, and the Adams Springs Golf Course Restaurant has created a special blackberry-inspired menu.
After a few months of well-deserved rest, the committee will begin planning next year’s festival to once again attract people to Cobb and bring some blackberry-themed fun to the community.
Esther Oertel is a freelance correspondent for Lake County News.
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