That old time feeling: Stinging Nettles
Spring is in full sting here, and apparently, it is in Olympia too. A few of us took a trip up to Olympia, Washington to collect baskets of the wonderful Stinging Nettle, a blessing of the spring foods.
Nettles are amazing. I once asked a group what they would eat if they could eat only a […]
Jon Young, Seven Generations, and Beyond
Jon Young gave a great lecture on Friday, speaking to the group about the importance of cultural mentoring, the system that he has evolved over time side by side with native elders from the Akamba of Kenya, San of the Kalahari, Haudenosaunee of the Northeast and Polynesians of Hawa’i’i.
So what is this cultural mentoring thing […]
Reed Island Willows
We are at winter’s end, and the willows wave at us from the shore of Reed Island, a boat-only accessible island on the Columbia River.
So with only days to go until spring, we hurriedly packed our willow clippers into kayaks and canoes, and set off for the great Reed Island. What did we have in […]
Molasses? I don’t eat any part of the mole.
When the Wild Foods Potluck first began, noone could have imagined the sheer creativity of those involved. In the six months since it began, Portland has been able to sit down to dinner with wild plants, wild game, garden greens, and dumpster gleans.
I personally might have to say the last Wild Foods Potluck was the […]
Night Kayaking on the Willamette
Night-kayaking in the city is that perfect juxtaposition of the city and the wilderness. The last few months we have taken to throwing our skin boats in the water under the Hawthorne Bridge and paddling out to Ross Island.
At first, trucks, strange smells come from the highway. As we slip slowly into the realm of […]
Horns, Ropes, and Whips (Fun with Kelp)
Our kelp pickling adventure was slightly slimy and filled with friends. Sound like fun?
It began with a lovely spring day that broke the grey Northwestern fog ceiling. We strode out onto the beach with legs jelloey from the drive, and felt the unfamiliar earth and sand under our toes. And in a quick moment, I […]
Kelp + Elderberries = Pickles
A whole bunch of folks showed up at my place to pickle the kelp we gathered (a Dancing Hawk workshop, technically). So with this small army of people dying to produce a peck of pickles, we quickly washed, peeled and chopped up our kelp.
Then we mixed up a couple of good pickling mixes, one sweet, […]