Just outside of Veneta Oregon there’s 219 acres of pristine PNW forest called Havenroot. Havenroot is a campground that offers a humble retreat from the world and hosts different groups throughout the year. The crew there have spent years working with nature to bring people a cursive experience. They have trails, archery and axe throwing, canoeing, zip lines, a low rope challenge course, a corral for horses, and swimming. The campsite is amazing and provides a great time to lose yourself in the moment. One of my favorite experiences was on the sections that range from tent sites to cabins strategically placed throughout the property, offering a sense of seclusion and privacy while still working with nature. There’s also a really cool ecotone trail that campers can explore the local flora and fauna that winds throughout the grounds.
How did I ever find out about Havenroot, you ask? For a few months a close friend of mine kept talking about Folk & Forage and how much fun it is. Folk & Forage is a mini festival of all things mushrooms. A gathering of like-minded people that love our fungus friends. They offer classes and workshops on how to forage, identify, prepare, and store mushies and other herbs and plants.
To be honest, I hesitated to go because I didn’t want to horn in or be a distraction for my friend all weekend but when they said they were doing a pop-up pizza stand and how much fun we’d have, I was all in and started packing for the trip. My friend also generously offered for me to stay in their RV with them and to be honest at 51 with some health issues this was a blessing I couldn’t thank them enough for.
Folk & Forage offers festival goers several classes and workshops over the weekend to sit in on and learn. Wyrdwood is the main stage area for music that has a small amphitheater surrounded by big, beautiful trees and led lit pathways that gently guide you down to the main area. On the second night I came walking down the path into the mini amphitheater right as Mahzeter started playing and enjoyed having their fusion of electronic and Eastern music sonically wash over me and the crowd.
Across from the concert on the other side of the pond are there’s a sheltered Pavilion that can hold workshops and gatherings. Campers were treated to workshops like Beginners Wild Foods Foray, Coastal Fungi for Color, Foraging the Wild Foods of Spring, Growing and Companion Planting Mushrooms Outdoors. People got to hear from experts on how to forage, identify, prep their wild foods.
The weekend was one of the most fun times I’ve had in recent memory. People were so cool and happy to be there too that the whole vibe was a beautiful space to be in and very hard to leave. People watched out for each other, and children played happily romping all over the campgrounds during the day. There was music being played somewhere all thru the day and night around campfires and in quite spaces. There was art everywhere and the famous Mushroom Masquerade Ball with an award ceremony for best costumes. This is a must see, there were so many creative costumes. I ran into a giant Morel on my way to the bathroom one night in the dark and had to think about whether I really that high for a moment.
Each night, after the kids went to bed, concerts were held in Wrydwook that went late into the evening. People stayed after each night early into the morning to play their own instruments and share their music with each other. It was really cool to see people connecting in large and small groups all over the grounds only lit by their fires.
I spent most of my time in our camp at the Pavilion which is a large area that covered with several picnic tables and a large fire pit. My friend set up an area for his traveling kitchen and people immediately congregated. They set up small propane fired pizza ovens and served the hungry group that continually floated through. I really enjoyed talking with the stream of people, I heard so many amazing stories of healing and joy. I met many others who’ve used psychedelic to heal from past trauma and hurt. We shared the stories of our journey and process with each other. The whole space had a sense of open-source learning and some shared projects they’ve secretly working on with everyone. People shared ideas and resources freely, the atmosphere had that electric buzz to it that groups of passionate people generate. I learned about psychedelics and how they react with the pharmaceuticals that some have to take. I’ve been SSRI free for almost a decade but many need to still take them and there should never be shame or judgment. It was interesting to hear how some people weave mushrooms into their required pharma routine. I talked to one person who uses Effexor and takes a few days off from the script, because that’s all they can handle before the withdrawals, to use psychedelics and then they start taking them again after. It sounds like slowly each time they are able to see marked improvements in their daily lives.
Folk & Forage brings dreamers, explorers, and free thinkers together, seeing people bring their passion to the event and share made for a magical space. It was really hard to leave, and I spent that morning in partial denial that it was coming to an end. I finally packed up my gear and said a temporary goodbye to everyone. Driving home I realized I made the two-hour drive without the radio on. I drive 3500 miles a month up and down the Willamette Valley doing sales and I always have music or podcasts on for company. The weekend was such a rich experience that I just needed to process and unpack on the trip home and several days after. I didn’t realize how much I had unplugged over the weekend and honestly, I haven’t gone back to the habit of always playing something in the car to fill the void. I’ve been enjoying being in the moment more and listening to the hypnotic sound of the tires hum on the pavement and feel the sunlight fill the car and warm my skin. I know the Folk &Forage experience changed me and I can’t wait to return in October to see my mushy family.
Mush Love 🍄☮️