1962 Willys Pickup owned by Jess Palcencia of La Grange took home the trophy for best vehicle


Adult Coyote Howl winner Stephanie Hines of Sacramento

Hot cars, great music, an impressive number of Coyote Howl contestants, loads of raffle prizes, good food and a variety of merchandise, mostly of the hand made variety, made this year’s Coyote Howl a Howlin’ Success!

With over 35 entries in the parade, the day’s fun started off in a big way this year.  The antique and classic cars then continued on over to the old “Frostie” parking lot where attendees got to check out and admire the 26 classic and antique cars and pick their favorite.  Jess Palcencia of La Grange came up the winner with his 1962 Willys Pickup earning top honors. 

In addition to hamburgers cooked up by the Jenkins Chapter of the VFW and the Lyon’s Club giant sausages, attendees munched on hot dogs and a variety of “fried” goodies which went far beyond the mundane fried zucchini and onion rings to include fried Oreos and fried Coke!  Henna Artist Kristy Tribuzio's colorful designs soon livened up the scene and people, young and old adorned themselves with face and body paint.  An array of hand crocheted caps, booties and similar creations were on display at Flamboyant Fibers.  Little Thunder Arts & Crafts displayed a variety of handmade Indian jewelry and other items.  A variety of hand made woodcrafted plaques and signs, summer apparel, jewelry, scented candles and country style gift items, all priced for the bargain hunter filled the park.  By day’s end, vendors were packing up far less merchandise then what they had unpacked that morning.

The Coope De Lill Quartet drew music lovers, young and old to a shady corner with ample seating.   The Howling Contest took over that prime spot in the afternoon.  This year’s winners included “Pup” Ari Diaz (age 10) from Lake Don Pedro, “Pup-pak” CJ Morey (age 9), Branden Morey (age 10) from Coulterville along with Kyle Kendrix (age 10) of Modesto and Adult winner Stephanie Hines of Sacramento.  Even the Coyotes were impressed!

The warm evening, beautiful garden setting and scrumptious food of the Coulter Café as well as the great vibes of the Blues Box Bayou Band wound up the day.  People young and old found their second wind and danced the night away.  The lucky winner of the evening’s door prize was Debby Cook.  Janelle & Charlie Danel, who have been closing down their café for many years in order to host this annual fund raising party, as well as their hard working crew, outdid themselves…the meaty ribs literally melted off the bones, the corn tasted like it was picked only moments before!  Locals were joined by tourists from the Netherlands, Germany and elsewhere who got to experience not only a unique slice of Gold County life, but hear the truly American sounds of Zydeco and Cajun music sprinkled with a bit of western and Spanish flavors.

John Shimer, president of the Northern Mariposa County History Center thanked the Coyote Howl committee, the many volunteers who helped organize the event and the sponsors who help made the 24^th Annual Coyote Howl both fun for all and a howlin’ successful fund raiser for the History Center.  Additional photos may be seen at the museum’s new website: www.coultervillemuseum.org.

Article Submitted by Dale Silverman