Prior to this summer, residents of Hesperus and Durango West looking for a market for fresh produce and other items had to make the trip all the way into Durango or Mancos. Now, they have an alternative.
The Kennebec Market, located behind The Kennebec restaurant in Hesperus, is held from 2 to 6 p.m. every Wednesday. The market is scheduled to occur on a weekly basis through Oct. 16, said Adrienne Gomez, manager of the market and the restaurant.
When the Hesperus One Stop closed, it left a hole for the people in Durango West and Hesperus who want simple grocery items, she said. The market was created out of a desire to service those people and to provide people with a mid-week option in the evening.
“We’re just trying to offer something different,” Gomez said.
She said the market typically has an average of six or seven vendors but has room for more. Interested potential vendors can try out the market one time without paying a fee.
Among the food vendors, the Kennebec sells bread, and Orchard Street Gardens of Farmington brings produce. Other vendors sell jewelry, yarn, salsa and spices.
Becky Woodbridge, owner of Bitchin Cookies, which has appeared at the market five times and plans to continue, said the market serves a completely different crowd than the county’s other farmers markets.
“The lovely value to (the farmers market) is it’s covering people who don’t come into the city to the Saturday market,” she said. “Everyone I have sold cookies to out there have never heard of me. And I’ve been doing the Durango Farmers Market part of last year and all this year and it’s definitely, without a doubt, a 100% completely different crowd.”
ngonzales@durangoherald.com