About Us
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Rivers and Roots began many years ago harvesting trees and bark for birchbark canoes.
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At the time, I was also busy making naturally tanned leather (braintan buckskin), weaving natural fibres into basket and bags, learning plants, animals, birds and mushrooms, and generally enthralled that the Earth could provide our needs in such beautiful ways.
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These days, Rivers and Roots focuses a lot on foraging and herbalism as Earth based practices related to our very fundamental needs of food and health! We also offer many other Earth based practices, such as tracking, basketry, and other bushcraft.
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The real focus though, is the magic of being and working with the Earth.
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For some, it may be as simple as slowing down, and letting Nature recalibrate our nervous systems, and to rekindle gratitude and humility. Others may want to dig deeper into our Earth kinship. Either way, we’re here to support you and learn and experience together.
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Along the way, we hope to make all sorts of great human connections too while sharing food, drink, some good laughs and some great experiences.
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Where Do We Do It?
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Most of our meetings will be at our home just north of Wakefield Qc, 30 minutes north of Ottawa, at 507 ch. Shouldice. Some of our foraging forays will be in wild and not so wild places in the Ottawa/Gatineau area.
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We look forward to meeting you!
Pierre Blin, (BA Outdoor and Experiential Education, Queens University) Director and main instructor of Rivers and Roots.
​Pierre was raised in the suburbs of Toronto and was blessed to have a little forested ravine to explore, and to have taken summer trips to the great lake and shield country of Muskoka.He has had a life-long fascination with nature, and ancestral skills and ways. He has studied wildfood, foraging and herbology with masters, such as Sam Thayer, Abrah Arneson, and Joe Pitawanakwat. He has studied wilderness and nature mentoring skills with Jon Young, Mors Kochanski, Ricardo Sierra and many others, as well as countless hours of self study. Pierre has been teaching wilderness skills through camps, education centres and his wife’s small businesses for over 20 years. He has built three birchbark canoes, one of which is currently on display at Kawartha Outdoor Education Centre.