Bet You Never Knew this About 420

We all know about 420. It’s become a famous cultural icon for lighting up and getting high. It’s celebrated worldwide by cannabis consumers and has become an event to look forward to by countless people.

But just where did the term 420 originate from? That depends on who you ask. Numerous urban legends are circulating out there and a lot of them sound fairly legit. Before we get to the true origins of 420, first let’s dive into some common rumors and the facts behind them.

California penal code – Nope! The 420 California penal code is for obstructing entry on public land.

Police radio code – there is no universal set of police codes. For the few cities that do have a 420 code, they are entirely unrelated to cannabis.

Bob Dylan song – Some people love to attest that the “everybody must get stoned” lyrics in Bob Dylan’s “Rainy Day Women #12 & 35” are the true origins of 420, as 12×35 is 420.  But we can probably all agree that’s quite the stretch.

Number of active chemicals in marijuana – while this would be endearing, it’s not true. There are 315.

Best time to plant cannabis – this could make sense depending on where you live. But since every region has different planting seasons, the argument is a bit weak.

The Likely Truth: The Waldos 

The Waldos were a small group of friends who attended the San Rafael High school during the early 1970s. They would meet up at a wall near their school to smoke weed, hence their name.

One day they received a treasure map from an acquaintance that supposedly led to an abandoned cannabis crop not far from their school in Point Reyes, California. 4:20 pm was the earliest time everyone was able to meet to go on their pot searching adventures. They kept it playful by reminding each other in the hallway, “420!”. It was the perfect way to talk about something taboo in front of teachers and fellow students. The search for the cannabis pot of gold continued for a few weeks and ultimately ended in vain. But by this time, the term 420 had found a permanent place in the teenager’s lingo. Still, they had no idea it would one day turn into an international phenomenon.

So how did the term go on to reach worldwide merit? We have the Grateful Dead to thank for that. After high school, one of the Waldo’s later went on to become a roadie for the Grateful Dead’s bassist Phil Lesh. It’s believed that the term spread through word of mouth throughout the Grateful Dead community. By the 90s, fans were even passing around 420 fliers at concerts promoting community smoke sessions.

Now that you know the history of 420, what will you be doing this year to celebrate?  Don’t forget NOBO is celebrating 420 the whole month of April!