Pile Burning Workshop

  • Saturday December 7, 2024 10:00 am to 4:00 pm
  • 7 miles north of Laytonville
  • Learn how to build piles in the forest and safely burn them
  • Get hands-on instruction in lighting piles, monitoring them, and quenching them.
  • Learn about what permits are required and how to get them.
  • Learn new techniques for burning, including the conservation burn technique, making biochar in a Ring of Fire kiln, and building a rick of poles and watching it burn.
  • The workshop is FREE with a FREE lunch. The event is supported by a grant from the Mendocino Community Foundation.

Pre-registration is required since we need to limit attendance to 30 participants because of parking issues. Directions and more details will be emailed to you once you register.  Register by clicking the button below and filling out the form.

  • Natural Building Workshop

    Tired of drywall? Come play in the mud with us. Join our hands-on Natural Building Workshop in Leggett, CA from August 10-17! We believe in building real skills for a resilient community. You’ll learn multiple techniques from expert Colin Gillespie: • Cob building • Natural Plasters • Earthen Floors & more! We learn while we work, and then we feast. Get ready for amazing food,…

  • Natural Building Workshop

    Tired of toxic, flammable, and expensive buildings? Come experience nature’s bountiful solutions with us! Join our hands-on Natural Building Workshop in Leggett, CA from August 10-17, 2025! We believe in building real skills for a resilient community. You’ll learn multiple techniques from expert Colin Gillespie: Pole Building Cob Building Natural Plasters Earthen Floors & More! We learn while we work, and then…

  • Defensible Space and Fuels Reduction Work Party

    With all the wonderful things Tan Oak Park does for our community like host our Fire Benefit free every year and now provide a huge water tank for fire departments, we can give back a little by working a few hours to make the park more fire-safe. Next Wednesday July 23rd, community volunteers will join…

  • TOPFest 2025

    Tan Oak Park hosts a Summer Solstice Event Saturday June 21, 2025 celebrating the completion of the Leggett Fire Water Tank, a 72,000 gallon water tank dedicated to fire protection for Tan Oak Park and the surrounding region. Get Your Tickets

  • Forest Health Extravaganza March 29 & 30

    We’re co-sponsoring this packed event with the Eel River Recovery Project and many other groups shown below. On Saturday March 29, 2025 at Harwood Hall in Laytonville, we’ll host an all-day gathering featuring speakers, panels, lightning talks, a poster session, and plenty of time for questions and networking discussing all aspects of forest health, fire…

  • Photos from the Pile Burning Workshop

    On Saturday December 7, 2024 we gathered along a private road north of Laytonville and explored different ways to burn piles while making biochar. The piles were created by a thinning project under a Calfire Forest Health Grant. The thinning crew came through and built the piles and saved about an acre of piles for…