wild foods walks starting this Saturday

[Alan Muskat]

Hi foragers,

The season has begun! Morels are in full swing; photos from last Monday below. I'm leading a walk this Saturday the 14th at Laughing Frog Estate, a beautiful "mini-Biltmore." I'm harvesting for an ASAP benefit ramp dinner I'll be at on April 22nd. And I've moved the hunt on June 2nd up to May 19th because reishi are well underway. That means we could find chicken of the woods on our outing on June 16th. And I've dropped the price on both to $40. 

So I'm still teaching. In fact, I'm working on a big public education program: free foraging classes all over WNC. The Executive Director of MANNA Food Bank is behind it, and a couple other nonprofits are interested as well. Also, the mushroom market I've been envisioning for years is finally starting this summer. More info on both here.

Private walks are always available. Have your catch of the day prepared at Zambra Tapas Restaurant for no extra charge. Put a group of five or more together and you come free! 

On a personal note, my winter was framed by two challenging events: kidney stones in December and a car accident in March. Both were scary but could have been much worse. I appreciated the wake up calls, for the simple lesson they both held was not surprising but crucial nonetheless: slow down; appreciate what you already have. 

Wildcrafting, as I've written here, is one way to practice taking life as it comes. Not just unconditional acceptance, but gratitude and delight. Isn't that what love is? Isn't that the most basic skill? 

Thankfully,

Alan

Alan Muskat

The REAL Center

I think over again my small adventures
My fears, those small ones that seemed so big
For all the vital things I had to get and reach
And yet there is only one great thing
The only thing:
To live to see the great day that dawns
And the light that fills the world.

Inuit traditional

ramps

black morel and edible violet

grey morel

fun with garter snake

blue humpback blister beetle (related to "Spanish fly")

morel, wild ginger, waterleaf, and sweet cicely 

No Taste Like Home