On one hand, Glen Ellen is the town that Jack built. Nearly every sign references freewheeling roustabout author Jack London, from the burger on the menu at the local watering hole to the lively miniature boat races on Sonoma Creek each spring.
But on the other hand, even if the “Valley of the Moon” author had never set foot in this charming village, it would still lure countless visitors looking to get away and feast on everything that ripens around this enclave at the base of Sonoma Mountain.
“It’s the kind of place where everybody knows everybody, but we love sharing it with newcomers,” says Kim O’Donnell, event manager of the saloon and adjacent Jack London Lodge. “Tourists come into the saloon and hang out with the locals, and hours later they leave as friends.”
A Dickensian scene unfolds each year in front of the saloon in early December when a vintage carriage pulled by majestic Percheron draft horses picks up visitors for sing-along carols…