How did the mythology of marijuana’s most enduring code, 420, come to life?

This Saturday is a big day for those who partake in weed, pot, reefer, ganja, Mary Jane, the devil’s lettuce or as it is most commonly known: marijuana.

Recreational marijuana is still illegal in Texas, but medicinal use is allowed in certain instances. Medical marijuana dispensary Texas Original has several pick up locations in North Texas.

Walk into a gas station or smoke shop and you’ll see them on the shelf, packaged in colorful boxes with flavors like fruity pebbles, magic mango and grape ape gusher. Like marijuana, these cannabis-based products deliver a high. But unlike marijuana, these products are legal in Texas, thanks to laws that allowed the cultivation of hemp.

CBD derived from hemp is legal in Texas and led to two Fort Worth companies to team up. Martin House Brewing Company and Power BioPharms have partnered to produce a nonalcoholic seltzer with 5 milligrams of delta-9 THC.

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April 20 or 420, has been synonymous with marijuana for decades, but what is the origin of the hazy day? Here’s what we know:

FIVE CALIFORNIA TEENS ON A HAZY ADVENTURE

The most prolific 420 origin story comes out of California in the early 1970s.

A group of five friends obsessed with smoking weed, also known as the “Waldos,” used to meet outside their San Rafael high school at 4:20 p.m. everyday to smoke pot after class and sports practice.

The legend goes, the Waldos heard that a Coast Guard member planted a cannabis plant nearby but could no longer take care of it, according to the History Channel. Everyday the Waldos would meet at 4:20 p.m. under the school’s Louis Pasteur statue to smoke and then, with treasure map in hand, go out to hunt for the plant.

As the story goes, the Waldos never found the unattended bush, but their story lives on and now, over five decades later, their 420 terminology is part of the pop culture lexicon.

GRATEFUL DEAD INFLUENCE

The Waldos may have never found the plant, but they did find a way to one of the biggest bands of all time, the Grateful Dead.

In the 1970s, the Waldos had a few connections to the band. A Waldo’s dad managed real estate for the band, while another member’s older brother was good friends with Phil Lesh, the Dead’s bassist.

During rehearsals in San Rafael, some of the Waldo’s would hangout and get high while the band was getting ready for shows. The legend grew from there.

When the Huffington Post tracked down Lesh, he confirmed that he was friends with the Waldos and “wouldn’t be surprised” if the group had coined the 420 term.

As the Grateful Dead hit the road in the ‘80s and ‘90s, 420 became synonymous with the band’s fan base for lighting up the bud.

Eventually, High Times reporter Steven Bloom found a flyer at a 1990 Grateful Dead concert that read, “We are going to meet at 4:20 on 4/20 for 420-ing in Marin County at the Bolinas Ridge sunset spot on Mt. Tamalpais,” according to the Huffington Post.

Bloom, intrigued by the flyer, wrote on it for the High Times in its May 1991 magazine issue. Former High Times editor Steve Hager told the Huffington Post, that once the magazine wrote about the origin of 420, they never looked back.

“The publicity that High Times gave it is what made it an international thing,” Hager said. “Until then, it was relatively confined to the Grateful Dead subculture. But we blew it out into an international phenomenon.”

POLICE CODE, BOB DYLAN AND OTHER 420 RUMORS

While the Waldos story is history among many in the marijuana subculture, other rumors about 420’s origins have popped up over the years.

Some say 420 is police code among officers for someone smoking marijuana (it’s not). Other’s have noted more darker origins for April 20, such as its Adolf Hitler’s birthday and the same date when the Columbine school shooting happened in 1999, according to a Snopes fact check.

Rumors even circulated that the Bob Dylan song “Rainy Day Women #12 & 35”, is responsible for the number, according to Time magazine. Since 12 multiplied by 35 equals 420.

However, the most credible story on the marijuana-infused holiday remains with the Waldos of California and their daily afternoon hazy smoke session.