Photos
These are all photos taken by me or by folks that have come on my wild walks over the years. Most of them are from the Cali Bay area, my jungle journeys to the Amazon rain forest, and various other spots around our wonderful world. Nearly every plant, tree, and fungi featured has a medicinal or edible use with the exception of some simply beautiful beings pictures…
“When the student is ready the teacher will appear. When the student is truly ready the teacher will disappear.” ~~ Zen proverb
Passion flower aka maracuya which makes great fruit full of Vitamin C and tea of the flower/leaf helps one relax and sleep!
Old man's beard aka Usnea Lichen. Medicinal natural antibiotic especially good for the lungs.
A Coyote pup I saw getting chased off by two mama doe Deers by Lake Lagunitas! True trickster spirit always on the prowl!
Getting that King snake magical immunity from rattlesnake venom! Grizzly Bear taught me that the King snake power can only be used for good and it will punish you if you try to use it for bad!
Cali King snake which are known as the kings due to their immunity to rattlesnakes which they will hunt and kill!
A honey bee getting nectar from a pride of madeira flower which is in the borage family. Apitherapy (bee sting application) is a very healing ancient practice with similar peptides to the Kambo frog from the Amazon rain forest.
A wild Lions Mane mushroom which is exquisite and very healing for the gut and brain hence why it looks like one!
Bears head mushroom aka coral hedgehog. Same family as Lions mane mushroom with similar amazing taste and medicinal benefits for the brain!
Soloman's Seal. The root is medicine for inflammation and the flowers smell lovely.
Leopard Lily with a yellow jacket. The tuber is edible much like a potato although it's so rare and pretty I have never tried harvesting one.
Another Leopard lily. Hummingbirds love it.
Group wild walk with Wu Wei Tea Temple going to Carson Falls where the yellow legged frogs live.
Doing a Maori Hongi (breath of life) with a giant redwood tree.
Big beautiful buck. The Deer is revered as a deity known as Kauyumari by the Huichol Wixarika tribe in Mexico.
A Lakota style Purification Lodge aka Inipi which means to make new life. The pit holds lava rocks to be heated up used much like a sacred sauna. The deer skull by the lodge I found and gifted to the elder "water pourer".
Wild Walk with Wu Wei talking about charcoal face paint and getting Qi from the tree!
Young Bay tree shoots... edible tasty treats that are in the cinnamon, avocado, and sassafras family! Very anti-viral and the older leaves can help one's scent recover from covid from simply smelling the leaves. The Miwok and Pomo people would put the leaves up their nose for this reason to help sinus infections.
Local Cali clay mud bath!
Local Cali clay pinch pots I then fired up on a campfire working with kiddos backpacking!
Clay mud bath in Ecuador working with the Kichwa tribe. They do this to purify their bodies.
Douglas Fir, Bay leaves, Yerba Buena (wild mint), and Lemon Balm makes great tea full of Vit C!
Rare and endangered native Cali succulents by lake lagunitas.
Labyrinth walking meditation post sound healing session.
Jungle family friends overlooking the yellow legged frog falls.
"California Lilac" aka Red root which is a medicinal lymph and spleen tonic. The flowers smell heavenly and can be used to bathe with while the leaves make and astringent tea.
Magic Spider Web. The spider Iktome is known as at trickster spirit by the Lakota people much like coyote.
Coyote brush. The leaves look like coyote paws and the natives say this is why coyote has a white belly due to always jumping over the white flowers of this bush. It attracts monarch butterflies as well and the flowers can be used as a great fire tinder.
Emigrant wilderness backpacking trip with youth in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. Mirror Lake!
Indian Ghost Pipe. A magical mushroom used for calming one's mind and body.
Chocolate Lily aka rice root as its bulbs are also edible although also rare and too pretty to pick.
Lady bug aggregation... scientists believe they are huddling like penguins to stay warm but I think its more of a celebration gathering ha! Thousands of them unite every year in fall/winter.
My loyal fur ball. Photo credit Mary Serphos.
Turkey tail mushrooms very medicinal for cancer and immune tonic.
Mendocino coast
Shiringa trees a type of rubber tree I've dieted in the jungle of Peru.
With mi Maestra Estela and her nephew Maestro Isakea
A gorgeous jungle plant thats commonly used in house plants up here.
A type of Piñon Colorado also known as flor de Jamaica which is similar to Hibiscus full of Vit C and good for the dream time.
Wild Reishi in the jungles of Peru. Known as the mushroom of immortality as it is extremely medicinal for all kinds of cancers and an overall immune tonic.
Renanco tree with edible fruit and bark that heals infections, gives strength, and teaches how to sing via the dream time during dieta.
Chiric Sanango aka Mokapari in Shipibo. A master plant and tobacco relative revered for healing many diseases from fevers, chronic pain, and deep seated trauma from separated families.
Leaf of Chiric Sanango Mokapari.
Myself with Maestra Estela and a friend outside the ceremonial maloka of Ayamadre.
True Hibiscus. Great for cooling the system down.
Shipiba Maestra Maria giving me a flower bath of Rosa Sisa (wild marigolds) and albaca (basil) for cleansing.
Maestra's pet Macaw Carlos. Very smart and cheeky bird! Poachers had hunted it for its feathers and clipped it's wings and then Maestra Estela helped rehabilitate it to fly again. He would talk in English/Spanish often!
Carlos want a cracker?
Carlos giving me a neck massage with his sharp talons!
Young Aya vine representing the DNA double helix so perfectly.
Wild Aya vine aka Oni in Shipibo.
Chakruna... life of the garden that gives vision
muchas plantas medicinales de la selva en Ecuador con tribu de Kichwa
Aya y Chakruna.
Making jungle tea!
Vine of the soul.
Shiringa tree that connects one to luz divina and the jaguar.
Mi tambo de silencio por dieta
Ceremonia de fuego
Mis Shipibo Maestros Isakea y Ronin Tsoma
Cielo aya
Mi Maestra y yo con cielo nishi
Singing an icaro to abuela
Familia de la selva con aya
Baby bobinsana a bush that teaches in the dreamtime and is connected to las sirenitas
Beautiful bug in the Amazon
Rio Negro of Brazil
Tracks of the blue deer cute as a button!
Amanita Cocorra choice edibles
Giant fun guy!
Delicious dinner!
Hawk mushrooms... apparently edible but bitter so they say...
Amanita Muscaria the famed xmas present.
"The mainstay of the heavens"
Rhododendron flowers make magical honey!
Rough skinned Newt!
A rare albino sierra tree frog
Ribbit ribbit rana rana
Red eared slider turtle hiding in its shell!
Turtle are revered by many tribes. The Karuk make maraka's with their shell and the Shipibo paint their face or weave their clothing with the patterns of the turtle for spiritual protection.
Blue belly western fence lizard that is a wizard and can regrow its tail if its attacked or help rid ticks of lyme disease when they are bitten by transmuting their bacteria!
Artist conk mushroom named aptly for the ability to draw on the spores. They are relatives to reishi mushroom and have many of the same benefits for boosting our immune system.
Another artist conk.
Oyster mushrooms that are always a treat to find after the recent rains. You can continue to harvest from the same spot many times!
Delicious dinner of oyster mushrooms good for inflammation plus full of fiber, protein, and minerals!
Also known as angel wings
Gorgeous falls with my four legged friend.
The secret life of a snail slow and steady wins the race.
Flower power birthday blessings.
Sacred Mt. Tamalpais
Beautiful bay nuts related to avocados!
Manzanitas aka little apples related to blueberries. Sweet treats full of antioxidants.
Wild rope cordage I made for my water bottle and a hazelnut harvest with some rose hips!
Bay nut truffles I love to make with madrone and manzanita berries. Also some dates and raw local honey.
Butterfly on a butterfly bush which smells like heaven.
Russian River Healdsburg.
Staghorn Sumac which is a key ingredient in Za'atar seasoning. High in Vit C and super tasty.
Chinquapin chesnut... a rare find but totally edible once you get inside the spike shell.
Albizia mimosa tree of happiness. Long used in TCM for promoting a state of calm relaxation.
Wild cucumber... some are apparently edible, but most say are too bitter unless pickled.
Wild walk with the Siripiari community.
Heal all plant aka wound wort or self heal. As it name's suggest it can heal all... member of the mint sage family.
Chicory! The roasted root is very similar to dandelion and helpful for detoxing the liver and makes a good coffee replacement!
Buckeye tree which I use for making fire by friction.
Pride of Madeira flowers up the Cali coast.
Heaps of Turkey tail mushrooms!
Gobble gobble!
Fairy Slipper Orchids.
Rough skinned Newt.
Indian warrior flowers. Good for pain relief. Can be smoked as well as brewed.
Making a pine toothbrush! Full of Vit C! Photo Credit Dean Boen
Wu Wei Wild Walk. Photo Credit Dean Boen
Admiring the Madrone tree for its hard wood that makes great fires, good tea, and tasty berries. Photo Credit Dean Boen
Foraging Madrone berries full of antioxidants. Photo Credit Dean Boen
Madrone makes good mala beads as well when dried! Photo Credit Dean Boen
Goldenback fern spore print tattoo! Photo Credit Dean Boen
We don't have to walk far to learn about plants all around us! Photo Credit Dean Boen
Learning about coyote mint that is related to thyme and oregano. Photo Credit Dean Boen
Descending the mountain. Photo Credit Dean Boen
Succulents are cool... literally they help cool burns like aloe vera. Photo Credit Dean Boen
Snowy Egret Lake Lagunitas. Grizzly bear always said they are birds of peace and bring good luck for fishermen.
Calico flower which is used for cancer. Native to Brazil but I took the photo in Guatemala.
Giant artist conk! Photo Credit Ryan Gurley
Turkey tail logs can keep producing year after year!
Munching miners lettuce. Photo Credit Mary Serphos
Coal burnt spoons I made with youth.
Locally made Christmas wreath of Bay, Pine, and Toyon berries.
Mt. Shasta a true power place not far from where I did my first vision quest with Grizzly Bear.
Cute Chipmunk among the Thimbleberries.
Peacetown.
Can you see the bird face in the orchid?
Mara'akame of the Huichol WIxarika from Mexico traveling through Guatemala post all night prayer ceremonia.
Staff of God.
Cactus of the four winds.
A beaver's finest work making a dam!
Sour grass full of Vit C. It's underbelly is a beautiful purple and looks like a butterfly.
Salsify aka goat's beard named after its seed's that look like a fluffy goatee! Edible root much like a parsnip.
Playing flute and maraka.
Post sound healing weekend retreat.
Dual flutes at Wu Wei Tea Temple.
Edible maple flower!
Beautiful bug in Peru.
Gorgeous grub in Peru that lives among the Renanco trees.
Caterpillar munching on Suelda con Suelda symbiotic vine that means weld with weld and is used for helping healing bones and ligaments. Peru
Ceonothus Silk Moth Caterpillar in Pt. Reyes.
Crazy Caterpillar in CA
Caterpillar cruising along in Wyoming.
Cute Caterpillar.
Anise Swallowtail Caterpillar munching Fennel
Anise Swallowtail Butterfly on Fennel.
Beautiful butterfly in Pucallpa Peru.
Butterfly on Shiringa tree (a type of rubber tree) in Iquitos Peru.
Monarch the queen due to being poisonous to predators!
Same Shiringa tree different butterfly. Peru
Painted lady butterfly.
Butterfly blessing!
Peruvian butterfly in Iquitos.
Anise Swallowtail.
An injured Blue Morpho which is the biggest butterfly in the world!
Giant Sequoia Redwood.
Charcoal face paint.
Angels Trumpet related to Datura. Also called Toé or Kanachiari in Shipibo. Revered for telepathic powers and used for healing in extreme cases as it is also deadly being in the Tobacco nightshade family. Simply smelling the amazing flowers will enhance dreams.
My first trip in 2012 to the amazon Rainforest in Brazil.
Sagebrush smugestick with bay leaves. Sagebrush is related to mugwort and also aids in promoting dreams.
Mugwort dream pillow with mullein, roses, calendula, sage, lavendar, and tobacco.
Wild plums, blackberries, and fig trail snacks!
Raccoons revered as doctor spirits.
Coyotes, foxes, and deer love to munch Amanitas! Hence the flying reindeer lore!
Double barrel cedar flute at Wu Wei.
Thai pan pipe flute at open mic.
Playing the hand pan drum while singing an icaro.
Mt. Shasta Groundcone a parasitic plant similar to Indian Warrior. It can be smoked and drunk as medicine for the mind.
Cali Sierra Nevada Rubber Boa friendly snake. Revered in many cultures as a protector and healer promoting transformation.
Cali Ring necked snake.
Common Garter snake. Many different types.
Praying Mantis on Fennel.
Giant Ponderosa Pine near Tahoe.
New Zealand aka Aotearoa "the land of the long white cloud".
Machu Picchu Peru.
Near the Sun gate.
Ecuador Andes after a jungle journey dieta.
Aspen trees in the Rocky Mnts. Famous for helping with pain hence where Aspirin originates from.
Native American flute wild walk.
Foraging huckleberries which are much like blueberries packed with antioxidants.
New Zealand.
Panther Amanita.
Mt. Diablo aka "One who greets the dawn" by the Ohlone people.
A species of Cali wild Ginger. Not truly related to ginger, but used the same way.
Swimming with my dog in the high Sierras at Sword Lake.
Wild Violet that grows under the Redwoods. Good medicine for cancer and heart ailments.
Another variety of Turkey Tail.
Scarlet Waxy Cap mushroom. Not edible.
Yellow Waxy Cap. Not edible.
Yet another colorful Turkey Tail. They can grow on many different trees from Oak, Bay, and Fir.
Kambo Frog in Peru. Very medicinal used much like Bee sting Apitherapy. Famous for "incurable" diseases used among many tribes.
Mexican Marigold aka Rosa Sisa o Flor De Muerto "flower of the dead" as it flowers on el Día de los Muertos to honor our ancestors. It's leaves smell like heaven and are used in agua de floridas and for limpieza's to bathe with.
Shoofly plant a member of the Tobacco nightshade family which are famously anti-parasitic hence its funny name.
Mushroom totem in Lago Atitlan Guatemala.
Blue Heron rarely seen inland hunting! Normally they fish for food but they also hunt.
Duck feather in New Zealand. One of the few birds that can swim and fly!
Bumblebee flying into a Morning Glory flower which has a long history of magical use for seeking visions.
Wild walk up on Mt. Tam. Photo Credit Sophie Fleming
Water blessing song. Photo Credit Sophie Fleming
Wild Hazelnut bush. Pick them in the autumn when things fall! Photo credit Sophie Fleming
Morning glory crawling up a Redwood. Photo credit Sophie Fleming.
Yellow Violet. They taste like wintergreen! Photo Credit Nick Sklias
Making Rock paint different colors of pigments. Photo Credit Nicki Clark.
Rattlesnake Plantain. Not the edible medical kind of Plantain herb, but such a pretty plant.
Charcoal cave!
The apple doesn't fall far from the tree... mi papa! Photo Credit Alex Nutu
My father making grape juice in France. Photo Credit Alex Nutu
Coyote Tobacco in Arizona. Photo Credit Alex Nutu
New Zealand paradise.
My dog foraging his own blackberries!
What did the fun guy say to the dog? Conk conk whose there?
My brother and dad fishing... they caught a Leopard Shark (and returned it)!.
Mi hermanito y mama in Arizona.
Serenading my aunt.
Rucking up Mt. Tam.
Two Redwood Sequioias joined at the hip!
The grand Tetons, WY.
Indian blanket flower WY.
Paper Wasp nest on a Birch tree in WY.
Bee getting pollen from a medicinal Thistle flower.
Tupelo tree which makes the sweetest honey!
The bark of a cork tree! Super squishy!
Japanese Knotweed which is a supermedicinal antiviral, antibacterial, and anticancer. Famous for treating Lyme disease.
Mi Maestra's dog Cubre which is the Peruvian National hairless hound. He would hunt chickens for us to eat.
Jungle moss is fascinating.
Tending fire on Limantour beach Pt. Reyes
Honey bee getting its nectar.
Ho ho ho merry foraging!