Classes & Workshops
“We are seeking a meaningful experience of life.”Dr. Nicole Apelian
Grow & Forage an Abundance of Edible and Medicinal Mushrooms (Even in the City)
Join Chris Gilmore of Wild Muskoka Botanicals for an online course that will deepen your knowledge on how to grow and forage a range of edible and medicinal mushrooms. In this nine lesson course, you will learn:
- How to save money and improve self-reliance and food security by cultivating mushrooms
- Growing techniques for urban apartments to rural homesteads (including indoor and outdoor methods)
- The foundations of mushroom identification
- Steps and safety tips for learning to forage for wild mushrooms confidently and safely
- The easiest and most rewarding way to grow mushrooms at home (regardless of where you live)
Mushrooms foraging does have a lot of safety risks associated with the practice. Therefore, it is essential to have a solid foundation in identifying and knowing those risks before ever eating a mushroom from the wild. We share top tips for building your confidence in identifying mushrooms and how to get started in sustainable foraging.
Use coupon code THRIVE30 for $30 off your purchase.
Previous Classes & Workshops
Medicine Making: Herbal Remedies, Healing Salves
Learn to make your own herbal remedies and natural healing salves! In this 3-hour class, I will teach you how to make infused oils and tinctures from local herbs. This is an excellent class to learn about the powers of your local plants! I will provide all materials. Classes are open to kids 10 and older with a parent, teens 14 and older can attend solo. Class is held at Nicole’s country property in Raymond, Washington – only 2 hours from Portland, OR and Seattle, WA.
3 or 5-Day Wilderness Living and Survival Skills Experience
Experience what it takes to be ALONE in the woods with Dr. Nicole Apelian and Larry Roberts from the History Channel’s TV show ‘Alone’ for this 3 or 5-day workshop. Learn the skills Larry and Nicole used to survive and thrive and more! We will cover fire making, shelter, natural medicine-making, foraging, cordage (rope making), emergency preparedness, Every Day Carry (EDC), carving and knife use.
Larry and I will be available to answer your questions throughout the workshop and around the campfire during dinnertime. We’ll also delve into the importance of mindset in wilderness survival. This wilderness survival skills workshop is open to ALL SKILL LEVELS
WHERE: This workshop takes place in the Washington coastal range on Nicole’s land near Raymond, WA (2 hours from both Portland, OR and Seattle, WA airports) in the Pacific NW in the beautiful Willapa Valley.
ACCOMMODATIONS: Camping with primitive bathrooms. All food provided (please let us know any dietary restrictions). You may also stay off-site and join us for classes.
Wild Foods Foraging Class
Learn about the wild foods that grow all around you. This is a wonderful introduction into wild foraging. Join me for this fun and enlightening class. I will point out some medicinal plants on our walk as well.
The Basics of Wilderness Living & Survival Skills
Wilderness living skills differ from survival skills in that the first is a knowledge-based way of living in ongoing harmony with the natural world. Survival is inherently an acute, short-term perspective; it is a strategy best applied for when you get lost or hurt and need to find a way to survive through difficulty until you can get rescued.
Wilderness living takes practice – it is how we as humans have lived and thrived for eons in a sustainable way, the way that many indigenous cultures still live today. It is a natural way of living as a part of nature. If you want to learn how to get back to your roots of connection, wilderness living skills are the place to start.
We will cover both of these skills in this course.
This course is offered via the Women Teach Men Program so it is open to men only.
Emergency Preparedness Class (EDC)
Upcoming dates for this class have not been scheduled yet. If you have a group of at least 10 people who would like to take the class, I will happily come to you or we can schedule the class at my country property in Raymond, Washington.
My EDC (Every Day Carry) Preparedness Workshop will teach you what to have on you at all times for emergencies for water, shelter, fire, food, medical and signaling. This 2-hour course also includes how to use these items so you are always prepared. We will cover EDC (what you should have on you every day) as well as items everyone should carry in the car and more!
Classes are open to kids 8 and older with a parent, teens 14 and older can attend solo. Class is held at my country property in Raymond, Washington – only 2 hours from Portland, OR and Seattle, WA.
Soft Fiber Basketry
Upcoming dates for this class have not been scheduled yet. If you have a group of at least 10 people who would like to take the class, I will happily come to you or we can schedule the class at my country property in Raymond, Washington.
Learn how to weave a soft-fiber basket! Once you learn this technique you can enjoy using all sorts of materials to weave stand-alone baskets or weave around glass jars. This is a great skill to have! Bring your own lunch, a water bottle and 2 small mason jars of different sizes. I will provide all other materials. Classes are open to kids and teens 12 and older with good motor skills and are held at my country property in Raymond, Washington – only 2 hours from Portland, OR and Seattle, WA.
Traditional Skills Gatherings
Nicole can often be found teaching wilderness living and traditional and survival skills at the following gatherings, along with many other highly skilled teachers.
Buckeye Gathering: Chico, CA
Echoes-In-Time: Monmouth, OR
Between the Rivers Gathering: Chewelah, WA
The Sharpening Stone: Grants Pass, OR
Saskatoon Circle: Twisp, WA
Rabbitstick and Winter Count: Rexburg, ID and Maricopa, AZ
For a list of other primitive skills gatherings across the country, see here.