Organized by VBMA Members, these educational EcoTour adventures afford professional collaboration opportunities, extraordinary learning and are in the most interesting places. Here you'll find information on upcoming EcoTours, and photos from previous EcoTours.
2024 VBMA EcoTour
THANK YOU TO REAL MUSHROOMS FOR SPONSORING OUR ECOTOUR!
REGISTRATION IS OPEN for the VBMA 2024 EcoTour in Oregon!
DETAILS:
We'll arrive in Eugene on October 26th and attend the Mushroom Festival at Pisgah Arboretum on the 27th. Shuttle and ticket to the festival are included in the registration price.
After the festival, we'll spend time in the area on guided hikes, foraging for mushrooms, and discussing how to connect with the spirit of plants. Our guides will be Ihor Basko, DVM and Scott Kloos of the School of Forest Medicine. Enjoy hot springs and guided hiking among the big trees while you connect with your surroundings and your colleagues! The 31st is the official EcoTour departure day, but you may feel free to stay in Oregon on your own longer if you wish.
TRANSPORTATION:
Transportation is not included. Carpooling is being arranged if needed. Please contact [email protected] with your plans and questions.
LODGING:
Lodging is not included, so you'll need to make your own reservations. We've decided to stay at Belknap Hot Springs from October 26th - 30th, leaving on the 31st. Rooms in the lodge or cabins must be reserved as soon as possible before they fill up. Camping is also an option. Lodges and cabins have kitchens for your convenience.
Reservations may be made by phone or online: Phone: 541-822-3961 www.belknaphotsprings.com.
PRICING:
VBMA Members - $325 per person
Family of VBMA Members who do not participate in guided hikes* - $162.50 per person
NON-VBMA Members - $375.00 per person
Price includes Mushroom festival ticket, shuttle to and from the festival, snacks, and special guest hiking guides*.
Sign up using the form below, or CLICK HERE.
DETAILS:
We'll arrive in Eugene on October 26th and attend the Mushroom Festival at Pisgah Arboretum on the 27th. Shuttle and ticket to the festival are included in the registration price.
After the festival, we'll spend time in the area on guided hikes, foraging for mushrooms, and discussing how to connect with the spirit of plants. Our guides will be Ihor Basko, DVM and Scott Kloos of the School of Forest Medicine. Enjoy hot springs and guided hiking among the big trees while you connect with your surroundings and your colleagues! The 31st is the official EcoTour departure day, but you may feel free to stay in Oregon on your own longer if you wish.
TRANSPORTATION:
Transportation is not included. Carpooling is being arranged if needed. Please contact [email protected] with your plans and questions.
LODGING:
Lodging is not included, so you'll need to make your own reservations. We've decided to stay at Belknap Hot Springs from October 26th - 30th, leaving on the 31st. Rooms in the lodge or cabins must be reserved as soon as possible before they fill up. Camping is also an option. Lodges and cabins have kitchens for your convenience.
Reservations may be made by phone or online: Phone: 541-822-3961 www.belknaphotsprings.com.
PRICING:
VBMA Members - $325 per person
Family of VBMA Members who do not participate in guided hikes* - $162.50 per person
NON-VBMA Members - $375.00 per person
Price includes Mushroom festival ticket, shuttle to and from the festival, snacks, and special guest hiking guides*.
Sign up using the form below, or CLICK HERE.
2019 International EcoTour: Aigas Field Center, Scotland
We had the most amazing time on our International Ecotour, 29th through July 6th 2019 we stayed at the Aigas Field Center, Scotland’s foremost center for nature study and wildlife holidays. A once in lifetime experience!
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 familiarizing 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.
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 familiarizing 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.
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!
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.
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!
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.
2014 International EcoTour: Jillian in the Jungle, Cusco, Peru July 20th - 30th
From Laurie Dohmen, VBMA Member and Past President:
If you want details of the trip, I wrote a review of my experience in the Winter 2015 VBMA Journal (see excerpt below). 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
Herbal medicine is definitely the mainstay of the cultures we visited. It was easy to study ethnobotany, since it was all around us. We looked at plants for disease that are common to all cultures, such as viruses and arthritis. We also learned herbal remedies for local ailments, such as snake and insect bites. I think we learned that there are over 20,000 species of ants alone in the Peruvian rainforest. There is one species of fire ant that lives only on the sacred Palo Santo (Bursera graveolens) tree, and it is a form of punishment there to tie people to the tree to get bitten. It has been known to be fatal. Therefore, it is very important to have many handy remedies for bites. In fact, there is one plant for first aid for snake bites, just to get back to the village, and other plants to actually treat and cure the snake bite. Another big category of herbal medicine in Peru is psychotropic herbs. The famous Ayahuasca comes from Peru. It is actually a combination of two herbs. “The vine (Banisteriopsis caapi) with a monoamine oxidase inhibiting (MAOI) action and the leaf (Psychotria viridis or Diplopterys cabrerana), which requires that MAOI action to make their dimethyltryptamine (DMT) orally active” (Highpine, 2013). Don’t you wonder what caused some ancient shaman to combine these herbs, and what that spirit journey was like?!
If you want details of the trip, I wrote a review of my experience in the Winter 2015 VBMA Journal (see excerpt below). 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
Herbal medicine is definitely the mainstay of the cultures we visited. It was easy to study ethnobotany, since it was all around us. We looked at plants for disease that are common to all cultures, such as viruses and arthritis. We also learned herbal remedies for local ailments, such as snake and insect bites. I think we learned that there are over 20,000 species of ants alone in the Peruvian rainforest. There is one species of fire ant that lives only on the sacred Palo Santo (Bursera graveolens) tree, and it is a form of punishment there to tie people to the tree to get bitten. It has been known to be fatal. Therefore, it is very important to have many handy remedies for bites. In fact, there is one plant for first aid for snake bites, just to get back to the village, and other plants to actually treat and cure the snake bite. Another big category of herbal medicine in Peru is psychotropic herbs. The famous Ayahuasca comes from Peru. It is actually a combination of two herbs. “The vine (Banisteriopsis caapi) with a monoamine oxidase inhibiting (MAOI) action and the leaf (Psychotria viridis or Diplopterys cabrerana), which requires that MAOI action to make their dimethyltryptamine (DMT) orally active” (Highpine, 2013). Don’t you wonder what caused some ancient shaman to combine these herbs, and what that spirit journey was like?!
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.
Below is a slideshow video of our photo collection from the trip, courtesy of Cynthia Lankenau, Ihor Basko and Cornelia Wagner.
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.
Below is a slideshow video of our photo collection from the trip, courtesy of Cynthia Lankenau, Ihor Basko and Cornelia Wagner.
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 that we hope someday to translate into English
Below is a slideshow video of Cynthia Lankenau's photo collection from the EcoTour.
Our guide, Julio, authored a wonderful book containing 200 different herbal monographs that we hope someday to translate into English
Below is a slideshow video of Cynthia Lankenau's photo collection from the EcoTour.
