journey
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Baja Botanical Adventure 2023
Join experienced botanist and herbalist Dennis Sharmahd along with herbalist, forager and chef Jess Starwood on a seven day adventure to southern Baja California Sur, Mexico, to explore wild foods and herbal medicines this unique yet diverse region offers. The Plants (& Mushrooms): There are many unique, rare and endemic plants that inhabit this region.… Continue reading
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Edges. An Alaskan Journey.
As I start to wrap up my fifth summer of solo travels, I can’t help but look back on the journey so far. Five years ago I hopped in my Subaru and explored through all the western states, traveling alone for the first time in my life. It was eye opening and life-changing, which led… Continue reading
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The Quest for Saguaro Fruit
The quest for Saguaro Fruit… is it the journey that makes it that much sweeter? Deep into the heat of the Sonoran desert, the hottest days of the year, the giant saguaro cactus offers its deeply hued fruits to the winged folk—the white-winged doves, the woodpeckers and the bats—up to sixty feet above the ground.… Continue reading
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The Unexpected Journey—Stories of a Solo Traveler
The Unexpected Journey—Stories of a Solo Traveler “What am I doing?!” I said to myself as intense panic began to set in. I was standing on the edge of a mountain, 20 miles deep into Montana’s national forest with no phone service or map after I had wandered off in search of a trail with… Continue reading
About Jess
Jess Starwood is an established author, chef, herbalist and educator. She holds a Masters of Science degree in Herbal Medicine and Holistic Nutrition. In 2021, she wrote and photographed her first book, Mushroom Wanderland: A Forager’s Guide to Finding, Identifying and Using More Than 25 Wild Fungi.
She also writes regularly for Edible Ojai & Ventura County, Edible San Fernando magazines and The Mycophile—the publication of the North American Mycological Association (NAMA).
Jess founded The Wild Path School where she teaches foraging, wild foods, herbalism and nature education classes for adults and children. She is a member of the Culinary Committee for NAMA and is on the board of directors for the Arizona Mushroom Society and the newsletter editor for the Los Angeles Mycological Society. She has also worked as a wild food consultant and forager for Michelin starred chefs Niki Nakayama and Aitor Zabala. Jess has been featured in National Geographic, The Guardian, and the Orange County Register.
Classes and workshops for adults and children are held regularly in the Greater Los Angeles area and west coast. Weekend and week-long wild food adventures are also occasionally available. Be sure to check out the event calendar or join the mailing list to be notified first of openings and availability.
Jess Starwood 