The Strains That Made 420: What the Waldos Smoked

420 is the hallmark of cannabis culture. And it wouldn’t exist without a group of hooligans called Waldos, who met every day at 4:20 p.m. to get stoned and look for a secret cannabis field.

I recently got on the phone with Waldo Dave Reddix and Waldo Jeff Noel to discuss the origin story of Waldos and some of their favorite strains in the early 1970’s and 1980’s.

The origin story of Waldos

The Waldos are a group of five friends from Northern California. Members include Steve Capper, Dave Reddix, Jeffrey Noel, Larry Schwartz and Mark Gravich, better known as Waldo Steve, Waldo Dave, Waldo Jeff, Waldo Larry and Waldo Mark. They all met at San Rafael High School, and the nickname “Waldos” came from a wall they hang out by outside of school.

In 1971, the Waldos were blessed with a treasure map from a Coast Guard member. Apparently he had planted a hidden weed somewhere in the forest but wanted to give it up so he gave them a map that should lead straight there. For weeks, the Waldos would meet in front of the Louis Pasteur statue every day at 4:20 p.m. to get high and go on a quest – hence the name.

Have you ever found that mythical ganja stain? nope But during that time, they invented one of the most important codes in cannabis culture: 420.

“We’ve been out there every day for weeks,” Reddix said. “We finally came to the conclusion that we will not find that. The map was so ambiguous that it really didn’t give you any real clues as to where this place was. We finally said, ‘Hey, why don’t we give this up?’ The time when the harvest had to be picked or would go bad was drawing near. We can’t find it, but we found a new secret code that we can use in front of teachers, police officers, family members or whatever.”

Curious about the weed they smoked back then, I asked the Waldos if they remembered the strains they smoked over five decades ago.

These are the tribes that made 420.

South American and Mexican varieties

Much of the weed the Waldos smoked during the invention of 420 was South American and Mexican landrace strains. “There really wasn’t a lot of stress back then. Most of them were Mexican and South American,” Reddix said.

“It was location, not brands. Guerrero, Oaxaca, Jalisco, that’s where the stuff actually comes from. Nowadays you see Purple Dream and Sugar Bears,” Noel added.

Panama Red

In the late 1970’s and early 80’s the Waldos told me they started looking into strains that had real names. Panama Red was one of the first named strains they smoked. It is a sativa cannabis strain that originated in Panama and has a citrus and earthy flavor profile. It is known to induce an uplifting and euphoric high.

Find Panama Red strains

Acapulco Gold

“My favorite [strain] back then it was probably Acapulco Gold,” Reddix said. Acapulco Gold is a landrace strain native to Acapulco, Mexico. She’s known for her pungent, woody, earthy, and coffeey flavor profile.

Smoke some Acapulco Gold and you may feel a mix of uplifting and creative effects, making her a great strain for daytime use.

Find Acapulco Gold varieties

Colombian Gold

Colombian Gold is a strain with southern place names that the Waldos smoked. It is a landrace strain that grows in the mountains of Santa Marta, Colombia and is a sativa like most cannabis strains from this part of the world.

Colombian Gold smells of skunk, citrus, earth and pine terpenes. The high is designed to make you happy, relaxed, and elevated.

Find Columbian Gold varieties

Maui Wowie

Eventually, other landrace strains were discovered and brought to Northern California for cultivation. Hawaiian sativas and strains like Maui Wowie (or Maui Waui) grew in popularity. “The first really potent weed was the Hawaiian strains,” Noel shared.

Maui Wowie is a Hawaiian landrace strain that was born in Maui, Hawaii. She has a sweet, tropical terpene profile and the effect tends to be very strong. It could make you feel happy, relaxed, and uplifted. Waldo Dave and Waldo Jeff told me that it was one of the first strains to really pack a punch.

Find Maui Wowie strains

Thai sticks

The Waldos were big fans of Thai sticks. Thai sticks are flowers on a stick wrapped in grass leaves and tied with hemp twine. They are made with Thai weed, which refers to landrace strains from Thailand.

Thai strains are considered pure sativas. Buds typically exude an earthy, spicy, and citrusy terpene profile, while the effects most commonly leave people feeling uplifted, creative, and energetic. For this reason, strains with Thai genetics are often recommended for daytime use.