Calling upon the vast experience and expertise of all you TR MTB’rs to help a novice with tire selection. Current setup is (OLD!) Continental RaceKings (tube) 2.0/2.2 R/F, on a hardtail 29’r.
Terrain is typically flat irrigation ditch levees, which here in the Central Valley of California can be very sandy and loose. I often need to ride on pavement for a bit to get to the dirt, so that’s a factor as well. And I would entertain the notion of riding some foothill single-track, but just haven’t yet (and understand that this could mean an alternate tire for the terrain). Oh, and goathead thorns are not just a thing here, they’re a menace, so puncture resistance is important.
My riding will not be aggressive, adrenaline junkie stuff, just your basic medium-to-hard riding for fun and fitness (but I definitely want to stay connected/upright in the loose stuff).
Ok, what are your thoughts? And thank you for your help!
Tubeless and Mezcal F/R in a 2.35 or 2.4
If you want a front with more bite Barzo matches up well.
Both have good lug which doesn’t eliminate picking up goat heads, but is way better than Aspen, Payote, thunder burt.
Thanks for the suggestions. Can’t really go tubeless at the moment, so I’ll take those recommendations and see what compares with them on the tube-type front. 
Mezcal Front and rear in size 2.35 and definitely tubeless. My favorite tires for the type of riding you’re doing. When I ride a lot of single track I’ll put a Barzo on the front.
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Run them tubed with butyl tubes and run sealant in the tubes. That’s your goat head insurance.
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Good thought. I’m so used to the road/weight weenie mentality, putting tubes in a tubeless tire for normal use would never have crossed my mind.
Thanks for slapping me back to reality! 
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Thanks for the input. Good for a x2 on webdev511.
Another suggestion would be Conti Dubnitals 2.4 in Trail casing. You can then decide if you want the faster rolling Rapid compound or the stickier Grip compound.
Is your wheelset the issue of why you can’t go tubeless?