Upcoming Community Classes, Campouts & Foraging Walks
Interested in learning but not up for a full season commitment? In addition to our season-long intership program (see below), we offer occasional walks and community classes for the general public. To stay in the loop, reach out below and ask to join our email list - or follow our facebook page!
Mayday Weekend Foraging Foray and Campout - Friday May 1st-Sunday May 3rd
Join the Wilders Way along with our good friend and wilderness skills educator Klaus DeBoer on a one-of-a-kind weekend outing to the amazing Waterloo Creek Wildlife Area! Waterloo Creek is truly a hidden gem of our region--nearly 2000 acres of forest, prairie and wetlands all woven together by a trickling trout stream of tremendous beauty. We will camp together in the midst of it all, exploring to our hearts content, learning a good deal about local ecology and foraging for our meals (and teatime) together. Flowers, ferns, greens, mushrooms, roots, shoots and tree leaves will all be on the menu! This will be a chance for foragers/wildcrafters of all experience levels to up their game and build skills in the supportive company of trusted teachers. There will also be opportunities to learn primitive fire skills, do some excellent birding (there will be a unique opportunity to view an eagle's nest), learn some basic forest meditation skills and do some cool crafting together in the wilderness. Sound fun? It will be! Reach out below to sign up soon. Space is limited!
Trip details:
--Open to interested adults and families
--camping and exploring together in a secluded, quiet, easily accessed wilderness area in Allamakee County
--Arrive the afternoon of Friday May 1st and depart the morning of Sunday May 3rd
--all meals will be provided/foraged and cooked together
--sliding scale $150 - $225 per adult; children ages 8-16 $60; ages 8 and under free
Reach out to us at info@thewildersway.earth to register or learn more!
Three Season Foraging Apprenticeships - Registration Closed for 2026
Are you a nature lover seeking to dig a little deeper into the experience of the great outdoors? Are you a forager/wildcrafter already, looking to take your craft, skill and sensitivity to another level? Are you a relative newbie who likes to dive into things nose first? Perhaps you are simply feeling, like most of us, the uncertainty and turbulence of our moment, and wanting to build a skillset to fall back upon during troubled times. Whoever you are this apprentiship is for you, because it will be shaped according to your own interests!
Apprentices can expect to:
*Follow the ins and outs of spring, summer and fall in the magnificent Driftless region, devoloping ecological awareness and connection through the foraging of edible wild plants and fungi.
*Walk widely, question openly and make many a new acquaintance in the context of the great outdoors.
*Work directly with experienced instructors to develop confidence in proper identification and responsible harvest of wild edibles.
*Harvest plentifully each week, and eat well. Learn methods to extract and preserve the abundance for enjoyment year-round.
*Develop resilience for tough times through intimate, practical knowledge of local edibles and medicinals.
*Learn to make foraged handcrafts according to interest - with possibilities including pine-needle basketry, foraged incense, wildcrafting your own art supplies and more!
*Root yourself in the grounding and practical knowlege of the very place you call home.
Apprenticeship Details
*Format includes both one-on-one and group instruction (two, two-hour individual sessions and 1 group session each month)
*Individual sessions scheduled according to personal schedule; group sessions scheduled for the third Saturday each month
*1 group campout
*open to interested youth (13+), adults, parents with younger children and couples or friends - no prior experience necessary
*Cost: $130-200/month sliding scale - pay what is affordable for you! Consider paying more to support those with limited resources
*Program runs April-October.
Interested? Reach out to us at info@thewildersway.earth to register or learn more!
"Conor’s teaching style and anecdotal storytelling made foraging fun and unforgettable. Every outing felt like panning for gold—and finding it. Only instead of the mineral, it was mushrooms, plants, and trees. I went from barely recognizing gooseberries to living completely off the land for a week—eating only foraged food. Conor gave me a foraging foundation that will last a lifetime." -Luigi R.
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