About
Fork in the Path is a school dedicated to cultivating a deeper relationship with nature, learning to forage and eat seasonal wild foods, and discovering perspective shifts.
It emerged from a literal fork in the path for founder Carrie Staller. With a background in sustainability, Carrie's path shifted dramatically after getting Long Covid. This health challenge necessitated a career change with less cognitive load and stress.
There was no grand plan to create a foraging school. It began as a passion for mushrooms, then a short-term experiment organizing a handful of classes, while navigating fatigue, brain fog, and headaches. The initial year of Fork in the Path proved incredibly positive and impactful for everyone involved. Carrie realized it was something she could do on her “feel-good” days, and that the time in nature always made her feel better. Fork in the Path became the silver lining of what was an otherwise very difficult situation.
Inspired by the overwhelming enthusiasm of participants and the joining of knowledgeable teachers and thought leaders, Carrie has become deeply committed to continuing Fork in the Path, providing students with a place to connect and learn, and instructors with a place to share their passion and expertise.
Her vision is guided by principles of reciprocity, sustainability, embodiment, community building, deeper connection to nature and seasonal cycles, and the joy of eating wild, nutrient-dense, foraged foods, all woven into the timeless practice of foraging.
She and the teaching team hope that through our classes, you'll discover a "fork in your path" that enriches your life in meaningful ways, big or small.
Our Values
Sustainability
Sustainable foraging starts with understanding the unique strategy for how each species acquires nutrition and reproduces. We teach multiple perspectives and specific techniques to sustainably harvest wild seasonal foods, such as plants, animals, seaweed, or mushrooms, so that they can continue to grow, while minimizing our impact on their habitat.
Ethical
We always have permission or a permit to be on the land or in the water where we teach our field classes. We make sure participants are informed of the rules and regulations, and also how to cultivate a relationship where they are not taking more than needed to begin to cultivate a relationship with wild seasonal foods.
Community Building
One of the things participants love most about our classes is the wonderful people they meet with shared interests. We do our best to design our classes so that participants can forage and learn in community, and leave with new connections.
Accessibility/Inclusion
We care very much about accessibility and inclusion. This is something we are actively working on, while it is also the most challenging value for us to live into for 2 reasons:
#1: The terrain of our field classes is not accessible to everyone. Taking people into places where foraging is possible is often off-trail, or in the ocean, and these habitats are not easy to navigate with mobility challenges or disabilities.
#2: We offer sliding scale class fees, occasional free classes, and, when we are able, we offer free scholarship tickets. However, we are aware that even our lowest-tier pricing is still prohibitive for some participants, and we are working on building a scholarship fund with the hope of giving away more programming in the future.
Reciprocity
We donate a portion of all class registration fees to Indigenous-led organizations. Additionally, we teach participants to cultivate a mindset of gratitude and reciprocity, encouraging active stewardship when possible through techniques such as removing invasives, planting seeds, contributing to citizen science research, and others.
Embodiment
Foraging is an embodied activity. It requires presence, attunement, observation, and agility. The excitement of foraging can lead to heightened states, so to balance that, we integrate movement and mindfulness into most of our classes to help you stay grounded while deepening your relationship with both your own body and the natural world.
Forage-To-Table Learning
Learning where and when to look and then finding wild food is only the first step in your journey. We also teach you how to care for, process, and preserve your foraged finds so you can enjoy them year-round.
Science-Based Education
Our teaching team is committed to offering high-quality ecological education. Our goal is to provide exceptional, cutting-edge learning experiences that are science-based, informative, and inspiring, using best practices for adult learning. (Children are also welcome, but our classes are typically majority adults)
Well-being
We often hear from participants that the experiences they have in our classes introduce them to lifestyle shifts that help them have greater physical and emotional well-being. Some people integrate new foods into their diets that support a holistic diet and improved gut health. Whether it’s one lovely day learning in nature or a lifelong perspective shift, our classes support greater access to wellbeing.