lindera... an person herbal intensive
with herbalist jim mcdonald in Michigan
information for the
august 3 & 4, 2025 weekend
early august classroom day: the structural system
Where & when are we meeting?
On Saturday from 11-6ish, we will meet at the Huron Shelter at Powers Beach in Proud Lake Recreation Area. This is NOT our usual classroom!
PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE bring along a chair to sit on.
Click here for directions (use only this link to get to the class, lest you be led to some other place in the park where we won't be).
You can also search these coordinates on whatever map app you use: 42.576333, -83.568167
Technically, a State of Michigan Recreation Passport is required. They are available at the main park office. Without a pass they will sometimes leave a "ticket" but its just for the cost of the daily park pass. If someone has a Michigan Recreation Passport entry license plate, there's no fee. Carpooling will make this a minimal cost.
What are we discussing?
we'll be applying what we've learned about energetics to the musculoskeletal system; to cover the physiology, do read the info in the Holistic Anatomy book. Also, for you "see & hear" learners, two more free A&P videos at Khan Academy:
(the left sidebar of each link has more videos for each structure in the system)
About fascia:
The Fuzz Speech (Gil Hedley & cadavers)
Tensegrity Applied to Human Biomechanics (Tom Myers)
early august herb walk : highland recreation area
Our walk on Sunday (11 - 6ish) will be at Highland State Recreation Area, on M-59 in White Lake, MI. We'll be meeting in the Haven Hill Lake Parking lot, which is the first right once you get into the park.
There's no address, but this link shows exactly where we're going.
You can also search these coordinates on whatever map app you use:
42.64278235180367, -83.55344449456464
YOU MUST USE THESE DIRECTIONS to find out where to meet! Just typing in the name of the park will not get you to the right location, which would be a bummer.
If you're camping that weekend, camp at Highland State Rec Area. Here's the park website and here's a map to the area.
I really like this trail; there's some very cool stuff for us to check out... one of the few places I know of with wild goldenseal. It'll be a mildly vigorous walk; hilly with fallen trees to climb over/around and a flat out awesome boardwalk. Also, a portion of the trail is a bit overgrown with poison ivy on either side, and there's poison sumach growing abundantly along the sides of the boardwalk, so some may prefer long pants & shoes to shorts & sandals. Some years the mosquitos are formidable, so I advise some kind of bug spray. If you use chemical sprays, do apply it away from others. Afterward, if anyone cares to, you can cool off after the walk in Teeple Lake, on the south side of the park. Haven Hill Lake is a bit... mucky.
Technically, a State of Michigan Recreation Passport is required. They are available at the main park office. Without a pass they will sometimes leave a "ticket" but its just for the cost of the daily park pass. If someone has a Michigan Recreation Passport entry license plate, there's no fee. Carpooling will make this a minimal cost.
Please do be punctual with walks, we may not always be easily findable for latecomers (unless someone brings popcorn to leave a trail). I do usually try to stick around the parking area til people make it and talk about stuff growing there, but arriving on time will ensure you can find us if we head off down a trail.
more important information:
BRING LOTS OF WATER to drink. We will NOT get back to cars to eat. Summer walks are usually hot and muggy, and we'll be hiking quite a bit. If you dehydrate easily, some electrolyte drink is a good idea.
Dress appropriately: this means that you've got clothes to keep you warm and dry, including shoes. Better to have these available than not: being wet and or cold can ruin a walk, not just for you, but the other participants too.
Bugs: Please do a tick check after this walk. We will be hiking through the woods and fields. So bring spray. If you're really concerned, you can consider treating your clothing with a Permethrin spray or wash. Permethrin will kill stuff that lands or crawls on it. 7Song wrote up a handout on treating clothes with permethrin; you can read it here.
Understand that we will still go out even if its raining, UNLESS, there's tornado conditions (or some other intense weather situation). Walks are planned out to see things when they're up and in season to collect and use, rescheduling them is generally undesirable (especially since there's no guarantee about the weather for the next class). For light, mild or intermittent rain: umbrellas and waterproof outerwear will make all the difference in the world between comfy and very bummed out. Please check your emails and the Facebook group before leaving if weather looks to be an issue. Remember that I am not reliably textable.
If there's been or looks to be rain, you may want to have something dry you can sit on.
AGAIN: BRING WATER you can carry with you, if it's very hot and hydration is very important. Please don't overlook this.