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VBMA ECOTOURS
Organized by VBMA Members, these educational adventures afford professional collaboration opportunities, extraordinary learning and are in the most interesting places. We're hoping to offer an EcoTour very soon!
2019 International EcoTour: Aigas Field Center, Scotland
We had the most amazing time on our International Ecotour, 29th through July 6th 2019 we'll be staying at the Aigas Field Center, Scotland’s foremost center for nature study and wildlife holidays. A once in lifetime experience!
A PHOTO GALLERY OF OUR ADVENTURE CAN BE FOUND HERE.
Scroll down if you'd like to see a video slideshow of our trip.
VBMA MEMBERS - CLICK HERE FOR A SPECIAL SLIDESHOW OF THE HERBS WE FOUND!
Details of our Adventure
Saturday 6/29/19 - Arrival
We arrived at the House of Aigas, home of Sir John and Lady Lister-Kaye and award-winning field centre, in
time for afternoon tea. The rest of the afternoon was spent familiarising ourselves with the Aigas
gardens and grounds, and settling into our accommodation before dinner in the Baronial hall of the
house.
Sunday 6/30/19 - Glen Strathfarrar & Aigas
This morning we headed to Glen Strathfarrar, a remnant of Scotland’s ancient Caledonian pine forest to look for golden eagle, dipper and migrants such as wheatear and cuckoos that have returned from the south. We saw a suite of wildflowers, including bog asphodel, northern marsh orchid, heath-spotted orchid, dwarf cornel and starry saxifrage. After a buffet lunch we spent the afternoon walking round the Aigas estate to learn about the European beaver, their Scottish wildcat breeding project and familiarized ourselves with the loch, grounds and nature trails.
Monday 7/1/19 - Black Isle
After breakfast our destination was the Black Isle, a diverse mix of pebble shores and cliffs, agricultural land intermixed with areas of native woodland, forestry and old hedgerows, where we looked for common and rare species of wildflowers; it was a nature lovers paradise. We visited coastal mud flats where we saw the many wading birds that make this habitat their home. We strolled through woodlands, listening for recently arrived warblers and explored the farmland which abounded with skylark, yellowhammer and the reintroduced red kite. We joined up with EcoVentures for an exhilarating two hour boat trip in search of the resident population of bottlenose dolphins.
Tuesday 7/2/19 - Strathconon
We headed for Strathconon, a vast strath with a high population of red deer and resident golden
eagles.
Wednesday 7/3/19- Aigas and River Beauly
We spent the morning at Aigas, further exploring the grounds on foot, walking around the Aigas Loch and native pinewoods, home to their twinflower translocation project, and participated in some workshops such as owl pellet dissection and foraging. After a buffet lunch we took a walk along the River Beauly.
Thursday 7/4/19- The West Coast
On our longest day of the week, we headed west to the mountainous and dramatic shores of the west
coast of the Highlands. We explored the vast shoreline, and enjoyed spectacular scenery, beaches, sea lochs and mountains.
Friday 7/5/19- Glen Affric and Glen Cannich
Friday morning was spent wandering through the ancient Caledonian pine forest of Glen Affric where
we enjoyed a packed lunch looking out over Loch Beinn a’Mheadhoin. Following Glen Affric, we headed to Glen Cannich, another nearby glen, before heading back to Aigas for afternoon tea.
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2016 Domestic EcoTour: Quinault Rain Forest, Washington
In June 2016, VBMA members spent time in the Valley of the Rain Forest Giants, saw The World Largest Sitka Spruce, and hiked around a mountain lake and five miles of Quinault Forest trails. They witnessed the magic of cascading waterfalls, the magnificent Pacific Ocean and endless medicinal plants and soft green moss and lichen-rich forests. The rain forest and Olympic Peninsula are world-renowned for easy flat hikes along river beds to mountain hikes with views and elevation, and we saw it all!
We arrived at the Rain Forest Resort Village, took hikes, attended lectures and had a ton of fun! VBMA member Donna Kelleher was our 'on the ground' local coordinator and did the vast majority of the work with Ihor Basko...the pictures below are all medicinals found behind her house, except the photo of our native honeysuckle, which was taken on Orcas. A huge thanks to all our speakers, Donna, Ihor, Hanna Jordan and Liz Hassinger, as well as all the volunteers who took on this task and made it a HUGE success!
CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE INCREDIBLE PICS FROM OUR TRIP!
Cynthia Lankenau was kind enough to write up a synopsis of the tour for us:
From the afternoon of June 11, 2016 to June 15, 2016; 30 VBMA members, teachers and companions reveled in the majestic Rainforest in the Olympic Peninsula of Washington State, Quinault Lake; home of the largest Sitka Spruce, a true grandmother of trees. We had a monopoly in this small isolated resort giving the retreat a wonderful sense of camaraderie. With no easy access to stores or quick stops, our local coordinator Donna Kelleher, her husband Jeff, and fellow VBMA member Erin Zamzow used their cabin as a meeting place with available breakfast and lunches; a vast array of healthy food. After an initial meet and greet on the 11th, we were up on the 12th to greet the Sitka Spruce, the world’s largest known. It was moving to be in the presence of this immense tree to start our official eco-tour. Our participants were worldwide from Australia to England, US and Canada. Hanna Jordan started our program with a talk on the intelligence of the heart and the health benefits seen when using this knowledge in daily life followed by a discussion on nervines including Bacopa. Our afternoon was spent hiking in the Rain forest with Donna, filling ourselves with Salmon Berries, Thimble Berries, Huckleberries (avoiding the red elder berries, though!) as we met Hedge Nettle, Devil’s Club, foxglove, Salal, Cleavers, Bleeding Heart, Scouler’s Corydalis, Douglas Fir, a lot of ferns: Bracken, Deer, Sword, Licorice, Lady, Maiden; dogwood, Cascara, Angelica, Morning glory, Field bindweed, Elder, Dock, Oxalis, Trillium, Usnea, Wild Ginger, Heal all, mints Twisted Knotweed, Clasping Twistedstalk, False Lily of the Valley, Youth on age, Lungwort, Liverwort, Indian Plum, Twin Berry, Pathfinder, Baneberry, Pearly Everlasting, Fireweed, Sweet Sicily, Horsetail, Ocean Spray to name a few!!! Donna is a vibrant knowledgeable herbalist and it was a true joy to spend time in the woods with her. With free time, a few of us went to the coast and were treated with spectacular views of the Pacific Ocean and were able to see some very old cedars. The next day was spent in the morning with Liz Hassinger, making incredible teas and tinctures. It is very helpful to understand how to make medicines from our plant remedies. Liz gave a thorough and enjoyable talk. n the afternoon, she continued with a discussion on the ability to connect with plants, how to open our hearts and mind to plants. We all sought out the plant that called to us and spent some time really connecting with that particular plant. Donna continued the afternoon with another herbwalk; a highlight meeting a Yew tree. A small group continued the day’s connecting with plants with drumming. Our last day was filled with MUSHROOMS!!! After a talk on the most common mushrooms seen in the Pacific Northwest and their healing abilities, we had an incredible walk with Ihor and his wife, Jane, sensing, finding, feeling and experiencing mushrooms. There is such joy walking in the woods with Ihor, a truly remarkable herbalist!! The eco-tour ended with good companionship with an evening banquet and a viewing of Juliet of the Herbs! This was a totally satisfying trip; a perfect blend of personal peace and tranquility in the forest, a secluded almost exclusive location with great herbal information and awesome camaraderie of fellow veterinarians and families.
2016 International EcoTour: Jillian in the Jungle, Cusco, Peru July 20th - 30th
From Laurie Dohmen:
If you want details of the trip, I wrote a review of my experience in the Winter 2015 VBMA Journal. It was one of the most powerful and amazing experiences of my life. I took over 600 pictures of herbs, and over 50 pages of notes. It was definitely a total herbal immersion and I got more than my money's worth.
A great time was had by all, and going on your own when you can is highly recommended!
You can learn more about Jillian here: https://www.livinginperu.com/etnobiology-3-planta-maestras-102577
2014 Domestic EcoTour: Hawaii
In March of 2014, the VBMA visited HAWAII. VBMA EcoTour Consultant Ihor Basko calls this spectacular island paradise his home, and he was kind enough to organize the wonderful adventure.
We met with a Hawaiian herbal medicine woman, Ginger Saiki, who was our “kahuna” and taught us about Hawaiian Medicine herbs, visited tropical gardens and herbal gardens (including Lima Huli Gardens)...and had plenty of free time to go horseback riding, zip limning from tree to tree, snorkeling, hiking Kauai's trails or surfing and swimming at the beaches as well as whale watching.
You can find a slideshow of our photo collection from the trip, courtesy of Cynthia Lankenau, Ihor Basko and Cornelia Wagner HERE. Enjoy the incredibly beautiful HD images...FOR BEST VIEWING, CHOOSE THE FULL SCREEN OPTION AND AT LEAST 720p RESOLUTION.
2012 International EcoTour: Spain
The 2012 VBMA ecotour took us to sunny Spain! This tour combined a bit of culture with a lot of hiking, relaxation, eating and some herbal education. The dates were April 19 – May 1, 2012. We started our tour in Barcelona to sample the art, architecture, and tapas. We then moved on to the mountains, where we had 6 days of seminars, hiking, and culture with a team consisting of a traditional Spanish curandero and an herbalist who earned a BSc in herbal medicine at Middlesex University. Next, we went to Cabo de Gata National Park, a quiet spot in the hills with easy access to the beach for 2 days of leisure.
Our guide, Julio, authored a wonderful book containing 200 different herbal monographs, which some of you have purchased. We are slowly but surely translating it into English.
You can find Cynthia Lankenau's photo collection from the EcoTour HERE...there are MANY notes, so feel free to pause and read as you go. If you prefer, just watch and check out the beautiful scenery! FOR BEST VIEWING, CHOOSE THE FULL SCREEN OPTION.
VBMA Endorses Quality Herbal Products
VBMA recognizes that the herbal product industry has faced quality control and regulatory challenges, and we recommend supporting those companies attempting to self regulate in a meaningful way. Companies that manufacture herbal products marketed for humans should be members of the American Herbal Products Association, an industry organization which explores issues, interacts with regulators, and establishes policy. Veterinary product companies should be members of the National Animal Supplement Council, an organization which develops policies and procedures on adverse event reporting and quality control.
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