Cirencester Foraging Courses

We’ll be meeting at the Tunnel House Inn, a charming 18th Century Cotswolds Inn on the outskirts of Coates, a small village just west of Cirencester. Our courses will take place around the southern part of the stunning Bathurst Estate, a Grade 1 listed parkland estate in the beautiful surroundings of Cirencester Park.

We will be exploring the pathways and woodlands in the environs of the Inn. There is a rich flora present and with a number of mature oaks and beeches, we can hope to find a really interesting array of fungi, in season.

The Bathurst Estate is within easy reach of Stroud, Gloucester, Cheltenham, Swindon and even Bristol.

Our Foraging Courses begin with a short introduction to Wild Food UK, a bit about what to expect from your day and a brief summary of the general countryside codes, including our Foraging Code.

Heading off at a leisurely pace around the estate, your instructor will teach you how to safely identify the different species of edible and poisonous plants and mushrooms that you discover. This exploration will take about 2.5hrs, during which we’ll take a break for a homemade refreshment, such as our warming Hogweed & Wild Garlic Soup or Elderflower Champagne!

After the walk we will head back to our meeting point for a tasty wild food meal. This will include a selection of foraged homemade treats created by your instructor, and a dish made with what we have collected during the walk. All of our food is seasonal, so what you are served depends on what is growing at that time of year. In Spring we will be making use of the fresh wild greens and in Autumn, the array of tasty wild mushrooms that the area has to offer.

You will receive a comprehensive set of Wild Food UK ‘Course Notes’ a few days after your course. This email will contain links and articles relating to the plants and mushrooms we discovered or discussed during the day.