Join us for this, our 11th Annual Native Shores Wild Food Rendezvous and teach-in using the wisdom of the ancients in the context of current realities. Gain a realistic vision and practical experience on the roles that wild foods play in everyday life, simple living, survival and primitive skills. We'll cover how wild foods can be incorporated into the everyday diet of those looking for a more simple, sustainable way of living and expanding their nutritive options. We'll cover outdoor skills, in terms of how First Peoples made a living off the land and what possibilities there are for doing this today. And we'll cover the roles wild foods can play in survival situations. Technical details are below. To see a television account of this event go here.

Our Goals
To help participants understand the roles that wild foods can play in recreation, survival, primitive living, and simple living situations; to provide hands on experience with some of the most important plants and processes that could be used in those situations; to provide the opportunity for participants to share and learn from each other regarding their cumulative experiences with wild foods; to promote a sustainable harvest mentality with a strong support of protecting and respecting green and wild places; to directly address the great mass of misinformation found in the popular literature and the internet; and to have fun, make friends, and connect with people who are interested in the same kinds of things.

The Mood We'd Like to Set
We want this to be a fun and educational outdoor experience and adventure. We expect everyone to be friendly, respectful, encouraging of others, and open minded. Leave bad attitudes at home. You are welcome to be a lone wolf or be as social as you feel comfortable - as long as you are respectful to others. We will be together a lot of the time so take the opportunity to get to know people and make friends.

The Site:
Accommodations, & Food
Our base camp is at Rockaway Beach, Oregon, about 16 miles North of Tillamook. The lodge is at 882 N Miller St, Rockaway, OR 97136. Most participants will be in tents in open grass while others can opt to stay indoors in a basic lodge room. Parking is adjacent to our lodge and there are no hook-ups for RVs. While wild foods are the focus of our activities, participants will want to bring food for snacks and sack lunches. Participants are encouraged to stay on site, but have the option of staying in a local bed and breakfast or hotel. If you stay off site you must provide your own transportation to and from the Native Shores event and be on time or you may miss significant parts of the event. There is no refrigeration available for participants, so pack accordingly. You can bring personal coolers, but must bring your own ice. Find a map here.

Instructors / Guides / Teachers
Everyone attending will share their knowledge, ideas, methods, and wisdom based on their own experiences. Participant skill levels will range from beginner to advanced. All input will be respected as personal experience to be learned from. The main instructor and moderator is Dr. John Kallas, Director of Wild Food Adventures. Dr. Kallas has a Ph.D. in nutrition and a Masters in education. He is a trained botanist, nature photographer, writer, researcher, and teacher. John has researched edible wild plants since 1970 and taught in colleges, universities, primitive technology conferences, and to the general public since 1978. He has taught and trained thousands of people about wild foods from all over North America, and given hundreds of wild food presentations. Dr. Kallas founded the Wild Food Adventures outdoor school in 1993, edited the Wild Food Adventurer newsletter from 1996 to 2006, and published Volume 1 of the Wild Food Adventures Book Series; Edible Wild Plants, Wild Foods from Dirt to Plate in 2010. More about John.

What to Bring (See Detailed List)
Rockaway is a small coastal town with a library, a few small convenience stores, and a few tourist stops. Tillamook, 16 miles to the South, comes complete with hospitals, markets, and tourist attractions. The ocean is a 4 minute walk from our base camp. If you plan to fly in, limiting your ability to transport items, call us before making travel plans so we can arrange to provide some things for you. We will be in the same location for four days with access to modern kitchen and bathroom facilities. Those not wanting to stay in tents can pay extra to stay in the lodge for the duration of the event. Tents should be relatively wind and water proof in the event of severe coastal weather. May is not a typically bad weather month, but you should come prepared. Beginning on Saturday, breakfasts and dinners will be provided through Monday morning. You are responsible for 2 sack lunches and snacks.

Refrigeration for personal items will not be provided. Bring a plate, bowl, drinking cup and utensils. Conventional food supplies will be available in town. Wild foods will make up the bulk of our evening meals.

We will travel daily to several gathering sites. Bringing the harvests back to camp for processing and cooking. To gather shellfish, you are required to have a current Oregon Shellfish Collecting License. This is mandatory! See below for details. It is helpful to being a small backpack for day trips, a good knife and other field materials that are listed in detail at "What to Bring".
Prepare for temperatures usually ranging from 40 F to 75 F. Bring clothing for comfort. For coastal forests, bring rugged but layered hiking cloths and comfortable hiking boots.

All seashore clothing should be layered and able to withstand immersion in salt water and protect your body from a fall on sharp rocks. Bring old wetable tennis shoes and very warm layered wool clothing (socks, pants, sweaters). If you do not have much wool, check out thrift stores for old sweaters and pants. Wet suits are generally overkill as most people will only get wet typically up to their thighs. Waiders are bulky, heavy and typically hot to wear. Shorts, bare feet, sandals, and light summer cotton clothing are inadequate for our field trips.

Optional, but encouraged: Bring interesting wild food-related things to share with others in the evenings - books, processing tools, stories, etc. Bring some wild food that you've previously prepared, are proud of making, and would like to share with the rest of us. Wild flours, jams, syrups, canned foods, nuts, beans, etc.

Do NOT Bring
Drugs, alcohol, firearms, fireworks, fighting, or pets. Smoking is prohibited inside the Lodge. Violators and troublemakers will be asked to leave. Anyone asked to leave has no right to a refund. While wine or beer is acceptable as a dinner beverage, alcohol will not be provided by Wild Food Adventures. This is a learning adventure and a place to meet and socialize with like minded people, not a place to party.

Arrival / Departure
Arrive: Anytime after 4pm on Friday May 10, 2013: Set up camp/meet other participants. First activities officially begin between 7 and 8pm Friday. The last activity ends by noon Monday, May 13th.

Native Shores Costs:

A) Registration Fees
Full Registration: $340 (in US dollars) for the full 4 day event.

Early Registration Discounts: Register in advance on or before...
February 21, 2013, and pay a reduced rate of only: $270
March 21, 2013, ,and pay a reduced rate of only: $290
April 4, 2013, ,and pay a reduced rate of only: $300
April 21, 2013, and pay a reduced rate of only: $310
May 1, 2013, and pay a reduced rate of only: $320
May 5, onward, pay full price of $340
These early registration discounts require that you pay in full (received in our office) by these cut off dates.

Further Registration Discounts (ONLY ONE OF THESE CAN APPLY PER PERSON):
Previous Native Shores Attendees get an additional $60 discount off any of the cut-off dates above.
These adults (18+) get a $30 discount off any of the cut-off dates above:
Full time college students
Native Americans
Adult family members that register together

Partial Event Registrations:
Two Day (Saturday + Sunday) attendees pay full price ($340) listed above, but are also eligible for early registration discounts.
Single Day (Saturday or Sunday) attendees pay $150 if they register on or before April 25, 2013, $180 thereafter
There is no extra charge for one or two day participants to attend Friday's orientation.

Fees for Children:
Ages: 0 - 6 attend for free
Ages: 7 - 8 pay 10 times their age
Ages: 9 - 11 pay 12 times their age
Ages: 12 - 14 pay 14 times their age
Ages: 15 - 17 pay 16 times their age up to a maximum of $270
Children through and including the age of 17 must be under the supervision and responsibility of a parent or guardian at all times. The Native Shores Rendezvous, Dr. Kallas, Wild Food Adventures, and anyone associated with them are not, and cannot be responsible for children. There are no child care facilities. That being said, children will find a supportive environment.

B) Lodging:
Off Site Accommodations:
If possible, we'd prefer that everyone be on-site. If staying off site, we recommend arriving by the time our breakfast begins so you will receive any last minute information and announcements prior to heading out for the day. There are no discounts for staying off site. Staying off site is risky in that if you are late and we leave for the day, you may miss significant parts of the event.

Camping on the grounds or staying in your vehicle is included in your registration. Those wishing to stay in the lodge pay an additional fee. The lodge offers both bunk-house options and a few basic rooms with two or three beds. There are no private baths.
Here are the costs to stay in the lodge for the full event:
Share a room with other attendees: $50 / person total for the 3 nights.
Private Room for 3 nights: 2 beds = $150, 3 beds = $180 (add $30 for each extra person to sleep on the floor
Beds & rooms are limited and assigned on a first come first serve basis, combined with relative need.
Lodge beds come only with bare mattresses, so sleeping bags and/or sheets, blankets, and pillows must be brought by participants.
We are all responsible for cleaning the rooms we use before we leave - there is no room service or staff.

C) Carpooling Contribution:
Do not include this with your registration, bring this to the event. Currently estimated to be $5-10/person depending on the current price for gas. So in addition to the entrance fee, you will be asked to contribute a car pooling fee. We will be traveling to a variety of habitats over the four days of the event. Since we do not have busses or vans, some participants who have space in their cars will volunteer their vehical for use in car pooling. Based on current prices, the fuel required for traveling for the Rendezvous costs about $30 per car. Participants will be asked to contribute their fair share of that amount to the driver when they get here.

Refund Policy / Important Dates
There is no charge if you cancel before we've had the time to process your registration. Upon your approval, your check will be destroyed and you will have paid nothing. All except a $20 non-refundable processing fee is returned if a refund is requested on or before April 1, 2013.
80% is returned if a refund is requested on or before April 10, 2013.
60% is returned if a refund is requested on or before April 20, 2013.
40% is returned if a refund is requested on or before April 30, 2013.
20% is returned if a refund is requested on or before May 5, 2013.
0% is returned if a refund is requested on or after May 6, 2013 (includes no-shows)

How to Register
Print out the Registration Form and Waivers at this site. Fill them out completely. Sign them. Write out a check or money order (in US dollars) payable to "Wild Food Adventures" for the appropriate amount. We do not take credit cards.
IMPORTANT: if you live outside of the US... a personal or local bank check cannot be accepted. We can only accept a cashier's check or money order made out in US dollars from a US bank or American Express office. These forms of currency should be payable to "John Kallas". PayPal may be an option. Call us for details.

Recreational Shellfish Licenses
Recreational Shellfish Licenses are now required for anyone over 13 years of age to collect shellfish in Oregon. In-state licenses are $7/year, Out of state licenses are $11.50 for 3 days or $20.50/year. 3-Day licenses must specify the days you intend to do the collecting. You must have the License with you during the Rendezvous or you will only be allowed to watch. If shellfish are found in your possession on the beach, or if you are found digging, and you do not have a license, the fine is $75 and up. Licenses can be purchased "PRIOR" to our events at any Oregon Fred Meyer, Bi-Mart, and other sporting goods stores. If you have any questions call the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife at 800-720-6339 or 503-947-6000. There is an informational page at here. Licenses can be ordered by mail but the process takes about a month. DO NOT wait until the last minute!
Note that a license does not allow us the ability to collect shellfish if there is a marine toxin advisory from the Department of Fish & Wildlife, The Department of Health, or the USDA.