The Coastal Forager – Bushcraft Camp, Galloway, SW Scotland

Description

Coastal foraging – Wild camp – Wild cookery

Three days of deep coastal exploration

Thursday 30th April – Sunday 3rd May 2026

Join foraging guide Mark Williams of Galloway Wild Foods and Steven Hanton of The Wilderness Folk School for an immersive  3 days of coastal foraging, wild gastronomy, outdoor cooking, camp craft and bushcraft skills on the stunning Galloway coast.

This is the coastal version of our very popular autumn fungi camps in Perthshire. 2026 will be the first one, but here’s what an attendee said about our autumn forest fungi camp:

“This was absolutely THE BEST! Mark, Steven and Hanna led us through a wonderful few days, looked after us, informed us, fed us, inspired us, entertained us and made the whole weekend amazing. Thanks to all my fellow weekenders for great company and fun.” – Charlotte Flower, Perthshire Fungi Camp 2024 Attendee

This long weekend consists of guided walks, talks, forays, presentations, workshops, hands-on cookery,  and relaxed camp living. We will be based in a stunning private estate in the far SW of Scotland where mature forests roll down to the sea. Expect wood smoke, parachute shelters, delicious food and deep immersion (but hopefully not submersion!) in Galloway’s incredible coastal foodscapes. The location and timing of this event allow us access to a wide range of coastal vegetables, seaweeds and shellfish in their prime, and coastal forests full of aromatic shoots and herbs.

The event is suitable for foraging novices, as well as those with a good grounding in woodland/hedgerow foraging looking to expand their repertoire, and meet like-minded people in a beautiful location.

“MAGICAL 5 star weekend – instructors, other course members, location, itinerary, the campsite, food and cocktails. I learned so much and look forward to booking on more courses with these guys. If you are thinking of booking on a course don’t hesitate!” – Caroline Dennison, 2024 Perthshire Fungi Camp Attendee

Meet Your Guides…

Mark Williams of Galloway Wild Foods is a wild gastronomer and professional wild food educator, who has been teaching about foraging for 35 years. Mark is a font of knowledge and enthusiasm, specialising in making foraging fun and accessible, while providing solid foundations for a lifetime of discovery, enjoyment and worry-free wild eating. Mark is author of The Coastal Forager (available spring 2026) and this weekend will cover many of the species and recipes featured in the book. He works closely with landowner/conservation organisations such as The National Trust and Scottish Natural Heritage. Mark’s seaweed feasts are legendary! He is also a member of the Association of Foragers and the British Mycological Society.

Steven Hanton of Wilderness Folk School  is a bushcraft expert with over 20 years’ experience in wilderness skills, bushcraft, animal tracking and remote travel. He has spent extensive time with indigenous peoples across the globe for whom bushcraft is still a way of life, but he is no more at home than when exploring the fantastic woods, rivers and mountains of his native Scotland. A resident of highland Perthshire, Steven is passionate about the natural history and wildlife of the area and brings a wealth of experience to this exciting collaboration. As well as sharing years of practical foraging and wild cookery knowledge, Steven will build and run the expedition style camp, and teach some exciting campfire cookery and preservation techniques.

Steven and Mark share a love of the outdoors and the natural world,  and know how to make it fun and accessible.  You will leave with new skills, knowledge and insights into the remarkable world of fungi, as well as outdoor living and fire cookery skills.

Location:

Dunskey Estate, Near Portpatrick, Galloway, SW Scotland.

Our camp is in a privately owned mature woodland 2 minutes from the sea, with easy access to sand, shingle, and cliff habitats plus an excellent range of seaweeds and shellfish at low tide. Ticket holders will be notified of the exact meeting point and kit list two months prior to the event – you should plan to be near Portpatrick, SW Scotland.

Format: 

This is a holistic and immersive weekend based around a fully provisioned wild camp, with food included in the ticket price. You should bring your own camping gear, but full camp infrastructure including multiple fire-pits, sheltered social spaces, hygienic and private outdoor toilet,  and lots more will be set up for you. (We have some spare camping gear if you need it, and this can be requested on booking).

Accessibility:

This event is suitable for anyone of moderate fitness that is comfortable outdoors for long periods and can move safely on uneven and occasionally slippery ground. Sorry, but the event is not suitable for mobility scooters. Please email me on mark@gallowaywildfoods.com if you have any questions about accessibility.

The long weekend is designed to give a full and rounded insight into coastal foraging, as covered in Mark’s forthcoming book “The Coastal Forager” – including the identification, sensitive harvesting, cooking and preservation of:

• Coastal vegetables such as sea beet, sea kale, sea sandwort, sea radish and lots more
• Seaweeds – we’ll time forays for low spring tides to meet 20 or so of the tastiest.
• Shellfish – we’ll explore the safe and sustainable harvesting of shellfish, and those that wish can enjoy eating them
• Woodland and hedgerow plants and herbs
• We will also work in some optional sea fishing sessions, and fish/shellfish prep and fire cookery skills

Camp life and outdoor skills will also be a core part of the weekend, and you can expect plenty of expert guidance around wild camping and cookery skills throughout.

The course includes walks, talks, hands-on workshops, wild food cookery using open fires,  discussion of the most useful foraging textbooks, and exploration of a diverse range of coastal habitats.

Expect:

You should be happy camping in spring conditions, and have your own camping gear (see below for a full kit list).

Late April/early May brings the most reliably dry and sunny weather to the west of Scotland (though we make no guarantees, and have plenty of excellent camp infrastructure to keep us cosy whatever the weather brings)

You should be prepared to contribute (with guidance/training) to camp life with such tasks as fire-tending, food preparation and washing up.

You should be of moderate fitness and comfortable outdoors in all weathers.

Midges are not an issue on the coast of SW Scotland at this time of year.

What is Included in the Ticket Price?

• A fabulous campsite on a private estate with multiple sheltered fire spaces for learning, socialising, cooking and eating.

 

• Breakfast, lunch and dinner from Thursday evening until Sunday lunch. Cooking and eating together are integral parts of the weekend and the event is catered to a very high standard using a wide range of wild coastal harvests, Scottish cheeses from The Ethical Dairy, wild fish/shellfish and perhaps some wild venison.  Most dietary requirements can be accommodated, though if you don’t eat wild fish, meat or shellfish you will miss out on some of the highlights, and we may not have capacity to provide alternatives. While Steven and Mark will lead the cooking, you will be expected to be an active participant in food preparation and cleaning up afterwards (ie. don’t expect to be waited on!).

 

• Camping Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights.  Our main camp will be in a beautiful woodland near the sea, but you will be welcome to pitch your personal tent anywhere in the vicinity. You’ll pitch your own tent (we can help if required), but we’ll have great camp infrastructure set up for you, with a parachute shelter, a social fire area, a fire cooking areas, clean drinking water, and a kettle always on the go. We will set up a  camp toilet that is hygienic, comfortable, pleasant, ecologically sensitive and private. Don’t want to camp? While we strongly recommend camping on site to get the most out of the course, you may also stay off-site, but this does not reduce the ticket price and you will have to walk and drive in and out to your accommodation. The campsite is not accessible for campervans, and the nearest park-up will be 20 minutes walk to and from our main camp.

 

• Tuition, presentations, guided walks, workshops and practical sessions on coastal foraging, bushcraft and general outdoor skills  with Mark and Steven. The weekend will be full, but gently paced, and its possible to take time out of the schedule if you wish for wild swimming, tent time or whatever you need.  The guided sessions move at a slow pace but you should be comfortable on pathless, boggy, rocky and occasioanly slippy coastal terrain.

 

• Wild Cocktails – Mark brings his legendary selection of foraged spirits, potions and elixirs and you’ll be guided through a selection of foraged cocktails throughout the weekend.

Topics covered include:

Foraging Skills and Knowledge:

• Wild vegetables and herbs from multiple coastal habitats – Galloway is blessed with a vast range of coastal succulents
• Seaweeds – around 20 of the tastiest species, and how to handle, preserve and cook with them
• Shellfish – safe harvesting, preparation and cooking
• Sea fishing
• Staying safe on the coast
• Considerations around pollution, and how to avoid it
• Fish skils – filleting, smoking, cooking
• Edible and useful plants of maritime woods and hedgerows

Campcraft and Wild Cookery:

Steven has a vast knowledge and experience of bushcraft and will be sharing his passion and insight throughout the course. In particular we will be exploring:

• Fire lighting, management and specific fire lays for cooking
• Wood choice for cooking fires, hot-smoking and poisonous woods to avoid
• Underground (hāngī) cookery
• Wilderness cookery techniques – planking, broiling and campfire breads

Sorry, this event is suitable for over 16s only and there are no concessions. Under 18s must be accompanied by a ticket-holding  parent/guardian.

---

Please read before you book:

Travel and arrival – Detailed joining instructions will be sent out to you well in advance of the course commencing. This will include where to meet, parking arrangements and options for public transport. If coming by train, Stranraer is the closest train station, and there are regular buses between there and Dumfries. You need to get to Portpatrick, which is on a regular bus route from Stranraer. We are unable to offer a train pick up but we may be able to organise a carpool with another participant if you contact us in advance . ** PLEASE DON’T book public transport or accommodation until 8 weeks before the course start date as this is when we will confirm that the course will go ahead and that we have enough participants**.

Accommodation – This course includes on-site camping. You will need to provide your own tent/tarp and hammock or other sleeping shelter. We may be able to loan you a tent if you are stuck. Camping is wild but there plenty of excellent flat sites. All other facilities are provided including large group areas, a kitchen and a toilet. If you don’t want to camp on-site, then please contact us in advance to discuss the options for joining us each day as there is a 20 minute walk in and out of the location each way from the nearest parking.

Food and Drink – This course is fully catered at a very high level from dinner on the first day until lunch on the final day. We can cater for most common dietary requirements including vegetarians and pescatarians but may not be able to provide like-for-like alternatives and would remind you that wild fish and shellfish are significant parts of the course. There is space to provide detailed dietary information on booking and we may get back in touch for more information. We have an ample drinking water on site.

Weather/conditions – We feel very at home in the outdoors and we will set up a camp that will provide adequate food and shelter to keep you comfortable in all weather. Late April/early May is the most reliably dry and sunny period in Scotland, but  weather can still be changeable and unpredictable! Please make sure you bring suitable clothing as per the kit list and contact mark@gallowaywildfoods.com if you are at all unsure about what to bring. Courses will not be cancelled due to bad weather.

Age requirements – 16 – 18 welcome if accompanied by a paying adult, otherwise 18+.

Fitness/ability/accessibility – The course is not strenuous, but does involve walks out from camp on woodland paths, rocky (and often slippery shore) and plenty of uneven ground. As a guide, you should therefore be fit and able enough to cope with walks of up to about 3km over this terrain. There will be a walk of around 1.5km from the parking site to base camp, we will however be able to drive your gear in for you so you don’t have to carry it. Our courses are also hands-on experiences which are educational and we expect students to get involved and not view the course as a normal holiday or demonstration style event – be prepared to get involved with camp life, including dish washing! Sorry, but the event is not suitable for mobility scooters. Please email me on mark@gallowaywildfoods.com if you have any questions about accessibility.

Payment – Payment in full is required to book your ticket. Email mark@gallowaywildfoods.com if you’d like to pay in instalments. You can cancel up to 8 weeks before the trip and receive a refund less 5% to cover paypal fees and admin, or a gift voucher for the full amount.  We will only refund cancelations within 8 weeks of the event IF we can refill the place from the waiting list, and will deduct 10% to cover admin and Paypal fees. If we cancel the course for any reason (unforeseen circumstances or not enough participants) then we will refund 100% back to you. See our full Terms and Conditions.

Insurance – We have comprehensive liability insurance and risk assessments, but we recommend that you have a basic level of insurance which covers yourself and your possessions for adventurous activity – no outdoor activity is free from all risk. We also recommend you take out holiday insurance in case you need to cancel at short notice and we can’t refill the place.

First Aid/Medical – Your course leader will be trained to First Response Emergency Care level 4 (Ambulance ECA) and will carry a comprehensive first aid kit with the group at all times. Please bring with you plenty of any required personal medication.

Toilets – We set up a ‘woodland composting toilet’ – private tent with toilet seat over a big hole. Its hygienic, pleasant, ecologically sensitive to our special sites and private.  Sea and river bathing are easilyaccessible, but there are no showers!

---

Kit List

Please contact us if you are unsure about any of the items on the kit list.

Clothing

• Underwear/socks for the duration of the course

• 2/3 pairs of trousers – ideally robust yet quick drying.  

• 2/3 base layers – t shirts or merino wool

• Mid- range layer – light fleece or wool shirt

• Warm layer – larger fleece/wool jumper

• Waterproof and windproof jacket

• Waterproof trousers

• Warm hat and gloves 

• 1 pair sturdy waterproof boots or wellies, provided you can walk comfortably in them

• 1 pair of camp shoes – old trainers are ideal. 

​

Equipment​​

• Small day sack (35 litres or so)

• Dry bag for waterproofing items for day walks 

• Tent or Tarp and Hammock.  PLEASE MAKE SURE THIS IS UP TO THE JOB!

• Sleeping pad/mat (closed-cell foam min 15mm, inflatable pads are good but not thick inflatable mattress style beds). 

• Sleeping bag, 4 season or two lighter bags (People are most often too cold not too hot!  Make sure your bag is up to the job!)

• Headtorch and spare batteries

• Powerbank and phone charging cable

• Wash kit, towel and swimming kit (optional!)

• Personal medication and small first aid kit

• Sun block

• Insect repellant – midges are not a significant issue on the Galloway coast in spring, but there may be other bitey things about! We like Smidge, it works well on our midges

• Bowl, plate, mug, knife fork, spoon.  

• Water bottle

• Notebook and pencil

Optional

• Binoculars

• Camera

• Books

• Knife – no cutting tools are necessary as we will provide all tools​

​

---

Frequently Asked Questions

What happens if I’m late for a course? Please keep us informed on your journey if you are going to be late.

Where do I park and is it safe? Parking is safe and private. Full joining instructions will be sent out in advance of the course.

Do you allow dogs? I’m afraid not. In our experience dogs are very hard to manage around food and course activities so unfortunately we have a no dog policy.

Is there phone signal and charging available? There is good signal at most of our locations. We have no onsite power so please bring a powerbank for charging.

Do most people come on their own? Yes they do, and enjoy the welcoming atmosphere and like-minded people. We also have many people that choose to come with a friend or family member.

Do I need prior experience? Not at all. Longer events such as this often attract more experienced foragers, but we always ensure that novices are fully inducted, coached and informed in such a way that everyone gets full benefit from the course.

Are there any hazards or risks I should be aware of? There’s no such thing as completely risk-free outdoor activities. Mark and Stephen have collectively over 50 years of experience of running these types of courses so rest assured the risks have been carefully assessed and mitigated as best as is possible. You are in good hands and a full safety brief will be given for all activities. There are ticks present in the woods (like almost all UK woodlands which have a deer population) but you will receive a brief and the risks from Lyme disease are minimal.

Are there midges? Midges are not a significant issue on the Galloway coast in spring.

Can you give advice on accommodation and the local area? Yes – see here. You should plan to be in the Portpatrick area of Galloway.

What is your cancellation policy? You can cancel up to 8 weeks before the trip and receive a refund less 5% to cover Paypal fees and admin, or a gift voucher for the full amount.  We will only refund cancelations within 8 weeks of the event IF we can refill the place from the waiting list, and will deduct 10% to cover admin and Paypal fees. This is due to the fact that course involves a large amount of planning and expense in advance. If we cancel the course for any reason (unforeseen circumstances or not enough participants) then we will refund 100% back to you. See our full Terms and Conditions.

Can I pay in installments? Yes – but we require 50% of the full fee to reserve your place and the balance is due 8 weeks before the event. Email mark@gallowaywildfoods.com to arrange payment by instalments.