Our Story
From The ForestGreetings from our woodland home and center in a Balsam Fir Forest of the southern Adirondack Park. This land is home to bear and deer, bobcat and coyote, snowshoe hare and others whose wild nature has much to teach us of our own.
Of the Earth
We Are Wildcrafters
Kate Gilday
KATE GILDAY has been a clinical herbalist, flower essence practitioner and creator, Ayurvedic lifestyle consultant and teacher for over 30 years. A creative medicine maker, Kate is the founder of Woodland Essence, a forest botanicals and flower essence company and workshop center. For many years, Kate was a member of Collaborative Healing, a group of local practitioners who address health care through a unique integrative network, educating the community and combining conventional medicine with expert complementary care. She is well-loved for the clarity and clinical relevance gleaned from decades of experience in her teachings. Kate brings her love of the wild places, song and healing to the workshops she presents around the Northeast. She has just stepped back from her practice to spend time with her grandchildren, and (finally!) begin writing a book about the woodlands she loves so well.
Don Babineau
DON BABINEAU has spent his life in the forests and on the shoreline of the Northeast. From backpacking and winter camping in the white mountains and attunement with this land. He and his wife, Kate, are certified New York State Guides.
Handcrafted
Mindful. Graceful. Joyful.Everything is made with great care and heartfelt compassion. It’s so much more than what we do, it’s how we live. Like a seed is planted in the earth, it must be nurtured and cared for as children are. Our intention isn’t only to plant a seed but to nurture it, care for it and watch it grow. All seeds have the possibility to grow and become a life force of vitality for everyone.