Foraging walk at Dean Castle

Name: Foraging walk at Dean Castle
Start: 2026-04-04T11:00:00+01:00
Location: Dean Castle Country Park

Schedule

Sat, 04 Apr, 2026 at 11:00 am

UTC+01:00

Location

Dean Castle Country Park | Kilmarnock, SC

We will meet in the carpark at 11am.
This is an opportunity to learn how to identify edible and medicinal plants and mushrooms.
We will cover the dos and don’ts of plant ID apps.
The plants we learn on this walk will be the first emerging plants of the foraging season as spring starts to come into its element. We will learn the names of these plants, the common habitats that they are found in, associated folklore, any medicinal and edible uses and of course the all important ID features that are required to distinguish them from other similar looking plants that you may want to avoid due to toxicity.
This walk will be led by Me - Dean Pilgrim Shaw, a plant and mushroom enthusiast, I am by no means an expert but I am a passionate individual who has been learning plants, habitats and uses intentionally for over 10 years now and I’m still learning and will always be learning more and more about the beautiful plants and fungi that grow on this beautiful planet.
This will be a casual and educational walk and experience but if you want to bring a notebook for notes please do so.
As there will be multiple people on this walk we won’t be all foraging big amounts of what we find as we walk but rather we will be identifying plants, picking samples, passing them around to touch and smell and discuss. But if you’d like to bring something along to collect plants in for use, please bring a plastic net veg bag that you can find in lidl or a basket if you have one to go and explore and forage in your own time after the foraging walk to help what you’ve learned sink in.
I will be providing snacks and nibbles at the end of the walk, wild garlic cheesy pastry swirls, crackers cheese and freshly chopped herbs from the walk and pine needle soda.
As a wee token of gratitude for coming along to not only learn but to support me I will be giving out little gifts for you to take away with you and create some amazing things with. I’d like to keep those a surprise though but I think you’ll like and appreciate it.
Please let me know if any allergies or dietary requirements in advance so I can best cater to your needs 😃
After food and beverages, and little gifts have been given out you are invited to join me in a cold water dip in the river so please bring some swimwear and a towel if you plan on this. You’re more than welcome to spectate from the side if that’s not your cup of tea.
I will be bringing along my gong and singing bowls and if the weather blesses us with anything that isn’t rain we will have a glorious soundbath after the cold dip so if you have a yoga mat and a cushion please bring along and there will be time to go back to your cars to get this for that, weather permitting, all my fingers and toes crossed for this to work out but we do live in Scotland after all! 🤞
I estimate for the full day, if we get the weather for it and the sound bath goes ahead to last about 4 hours - so finishing up around 3pm -
Bring suitable footwear and clothing for the chance of rain.
After some careful consideration I have priced the whole experience at just £25 which can be paid via PayPal, bank transfer or cash on the day - however a £10 deposit will confirm your spot and must be paid in advance. This lets me know how many gift packages I need to make up, and helps be buy the materials needed.
And to celebrate the launch of my new website I am entering everyone who shows up into a raffle to win a free Super Soul Seeker Ceremony at my house worth £300. Feel free to enter a friend into this if it’s not your cup of tea.
I’m limiting the Spaces to 10 spots as I don’t want to overwhelm myself as this is the first ever foraging walk. I may be able to squeeze in one or two more if the spaces fill.
There are currently 9 spaces left at the time of writing this as one very keen person has sent me full payment in advance.