So… I accidentally wrote a book.
Okay, not accidentally. I meant to do it. Sort of. It started as a simple idea: “I need a place to jot down my foraging notes.” I’ve been wandering the woods for years, picking things, sniffing stuff, occasionally regretting it—and I wanted a better way to keep track of what I’d found, where I’d found it, and whether it tasted more like a miracle or like mulch.
But somewhere between “I’ll make a little notebook for myself” and “Oh hey, this might actually help other people,” I ended up with a fully formatted, full-size, full-on book. And now it’s coming to Amazon.
Cue the nervous sweating and celebratory moose calls.
So what is this book, exactly?
It’s called The Forager’s Notebook, and no—it’s not going to help you identify anything. If you don’t already know what that weird fuzzy plant is, I’m not going to be the guy who tells you to eat it. That’s how you end up with a stomach full of regret and a story for the ER nurses.
This isn’t a textbook or a field guide. It’s not going to teach you botany or cure your seasonal allergies. It’s a journal. A foraging logbook. A DIY tool for wildcraft nerds and nature lovers who want to build their own guide to the land around them.
Think of it like this: I hand you a really well-laid-out notebook, and you fill it in with all the weird and wonderful things you find out there in the world. It’s got 135 pages for recording plant names, locations, seasons, edibility notes, medicinal uses, sketch boxes, and more. It’s structured, but not bossy. Like a Canadian librarian.
Why I made this
I’ve always liked the idea of learning by doing. And by failing. And then trying again with better boots and fewer assumptions. That’s kind of how homesteading works too, isn’t it? You learn the hard way, and then you write things down so you don’t repeat them... unless it’s a good story, in which case, repeat away.
When I started foraging more seriously, I wanted a place to track what I’d picked and how it went. What did it look like in spring vs. fall? Where did I find it? Did I get chased by a bear or a bee or just my own conscience? Did I make something delicious with it? Did my wife pretend to like it?
I tried using random notebooks, scraps of paper, apps that drained my battery faster than a TikTok binge... and finally said, “You know what? I need something better.” So I made something better.
And then I realized: if I need this, maybe other people do too.
What’s inside?
Aside from 135 log pages (which is a LOT, by the way—don’t ask how long it took to format that many in Word), I also included something special: 20 wild food recipes to get you started.
Because let’s face it, it’s one thing to find a mushroom. It’s another thing to remember where you found it, and yet another to not turn it into a rubbery little tragedy on your dinner plate.
So I included some of my favorite forager-friendly recipes like:
Morel Mushroom Cream Sauce (because morels are a gift from the fungus gods)
Wild Leek Pesto (try not to eat the whole jar with a spoon, I dare you)
Chokecherry Syrup (AKA the reason pancakes exist)
Fireweed Jelly (bright pink. tastes like wildflowers. not kidding.)
Oyster Mushroom Soup (a solid meal after a cold hike or questionable adventure)
Are these Michelin-starred dishes? No. Are they real food you can actually make at home without fancy equipment or a culinary degree? You bet your squirrel-chewed mushroom guide they are.
Who’s this for?
It’s for anyone who:
Spends more time in the woods than in the grocery store
Has a collection of unidentified leaves pressed in their dashboard
Is trying to remember where they found that amazing patch of berries last fall
Wants to pass their knowledge down to kids, grandkids, or future feral forest dwellers
Just likes writing stuff down and feeling a little more in tune with nature
It’s also a great gift for homesteaders, hikers, herbalists, bushcrafters, and people who think “I could totally live off the land” (and maybe already are).
But seriously… no identification?
Nope. I don’t want that kind of liability, thanks.
This book assumes you’re doing your own homework, using real field guides, going on plant walks with experts, or—you know—not eating anything that looks like it might eat you back. The Forager’s Notebook is a companion to your learning. It’s a place to record what you’ve already learned, reflect on your experiences, and refine your knowledge over time.
Because foraging isn’t just about filling your basket. It’s about paying attention. Observing. Making mistakes and learning from them. Building a relationship with the land. That’s what this book is really about.
When’s it coming out?
Very soon. Like, I’m-waiting-for-the-final-proof-copy soon. Like, I-might-hit-publish-before-my-coffee-gets-cold soon.
I’ll post the exact release date as soon as Amazon clears it, but in the meantime, you can bet I’ll be talking about it everywhere—on the blog, on Facebook, probably in line at the hardware store if anyone makes eye contact with me.
Want a sneak peek?
I’ve already shared some behind-the-scenes stuff on my blog and social media. You can also scroll through my wild food recipes if you’re curious about the kinds of things I cook up after a walk in the woods. Spoiler alert: I do not believe in bland.
And if you want to be the first to know when it drops (and get your hands on some bonus freebies I’m cooking up), make sure you're on my email list. I promise not to spam you. Unless you like spam. In which case, I’ll just send you a recipe that doesn’t use it.
Final thoughts from a guy who once mistook a burdock burr for a hedgehog
Writing this book has been kind of surreal. I’m not an author by trade—I’m a homesteader, a forager, a dad, and a guy who still sometimes forgets where he left his coffee. But I made this thing, and I’m proud of it. I think it’ll help people. I think it might even inspire a few folks to pay a little more attention to what’s growing under their boots.
So if you’re the kind of person who loves the woods, who likes the smell of pine needles and wet moss, who gets excited by mushrooms and dandelions and weird little berries—this notebook is for you.
It’s coming soon. And I can’t wait to put it in your hands.
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