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Dive into two days of autumn foraging and preserving in native woodlands. With expert guidance, you’ll focus on seasonal berries and fruits, learning how to identify, harvest, and preserve them safely. Practical sessions include campfire cooking and hands-on preserving techniques, leaving you with meals and preserves you’ve made yourself. By the end, you’ll take home new skills, recipes, and inspiration to continue at home.
Your two-day adventure begins with a guided foraging walk through a variety of habitats, including woodlands, hedgerows, and open grassy areas. You’ll learn to recognise edible, poisonous, and medicinal plants, with guidance on folklore, history, and traditional uses. Plenty of time is given for questions, note-taking, and photography.
Once you’ve gathered your harvest, you’ll return to the woodland base to explore preserving techniques. Working as a team you'll be guided through making your own preserves including chutneys, jellies, fruit butters, and syrups. Cooking over a campfire will be integrated into the meals, allowing you to enjoy freshly prepared wild food as part of the group experience.
On the second day, the focus shifts to consolidating your skills and taking your preserves home. You’ll learn practical tips for storage and recipe adaptations, as well as ways to safely incorporate foraged fruits into everyday meals. By the end, you’ll leave confident in both identification and preservation of autumn produce, and with lots of jars of your own preserves to take away.
South London Woods are situated on the Surrey-Croydon boundary, within a lush greenbelt just south of London. The area features a mix of chalk downland, hazel coppice, and ancient plantations, offering a rich variety of habitats for autumn foraging. Easy access by car, rail, and bicycle ensures convenience while retaining a secluded woodland atmosphere.
For private courses, our South Wales Woodland in the Bannau Brycheiniog (Brecon Beacons) National Park can be booked. This woodland provides a peaceful and spacious environment for foraging and preserving, with varied terrain that supports a wide range of native plants and trees, ideal for a full two-day immersive experience.
Participants can sleep overnight in the woodland using their own sleeping system, or try one of our debris shelters for a true bushcraft experience. Nights in the woodland are calm and safe, offering a memorable connection with nature and the sounds of the forest.
Meals are cooked as a group over the open fire from the evening of day one (dietary requirements are catered for). The overnight stay allows you to practice campfire cooking, shelter management, and enjoy the woodland atmosphere from sunset to sunrise, enriching your hands-on learning experience.
No prior experience is necessary, just an interest in foraging, preserving, and working with seasonal ingredients. A general level of fitness is needed for walking between habitats, but the pace is relaxed to allow observation and learning.
Participants should bring personal kit for the overnight stay, including suitable clothing, sleeping bag, and personal items. Guidance on kit suitability will be provided by the instructors to ensure a safe and enjoyable experience.
The instructors bring years of experience in bushcraft, foraging, and preservation techniques, combining practical knowledge with a supportive teaching style. Each course is designed to be engaging, hands-on, and rewarding, ensuring that you leave with skills that can be applied long after the course ends.
All sessions take place in handpicked woodland locations that offer a safe and inspiring environment. The combination of immersive woodland experiences, expert guidance, and practical skills ensures participants enjoy a unique learning experience that deepens their connection with nature.
Yes, private courses are available at our South London Woods or the South Wales woodland site in the Bannau Brycheiniog National Park.
These private sessions offer a tailored experience where you can set your own pace and focus on the skills most interesting to your group. The choice of settings means you can opt for convince of access or a more remote location with its own special sense of adventure. You can book these by using the 'Can't find dates or have a large group?' button above the booking form and sending us an enquiry.
No previous experience is required. The course is designed for beginners and those with some bushcraft or foraging knowledge. Instructors guide you through identification, collection, and preservation techniques at a comfortable pace.
Even if you’ve foraged before, the course offers advanced tips and practical applications for preserving seasonal fruits and berries. You’ll learn skills that extend beyond the course, including sustainable harvesting methods and campfire cooking techniques.
You’ll need a sleeping bag (3-season recommended), roll mat, pillow or bundle of clothes, and warm layered clothing suitable for the season. Waterproof jacket and trousers, gloves, and sturdy footwear are also essential.
Other useful items include a torch or headlamp with spare batteries, personal first aid kit, wash kit, notebook, pencil, and a rucksack to carry everything.
A tent / hammock is optional we can provide a tarp or a debris shelter.
Instructors can advise if you wish to bring personal tools or fire lighting equipment.
Food is included from dinner on day 1 through to lunch on day 2. You’ll also be actively involved in preparing meals from your foraged harvest under instructor guidance, including campfire cooking and preservation-based recipes.
Dietary requirements can be accommodated if informed at booking. The course also provides access to potable water throughout your stay, ensuring you remain hydrated while learning.
Yes, the course provides hands-on experience with chutneys, jellies, fruit butters, cordials, syrups, and other preservation methods. You’ll be guided through practical steps, including heating, straining, and bottling techniques.
You’ll leave with a share of the preserves you’ve made and knowledge to recreate the recipes at home. Instructors provide tips on storage, shelf-life, and adapting recipes for different fruits or seasonal produce.
A general level of fitness is recommended. The course involves walking between woodland habitats at a gentle pace to identify and collect plants, with ample rest and observation periods.
Most activities are stationary around basecamp, including cooking, preserving, and handling tools. The overnight stay is flexible to suit all participants, allowing breaks as needed.
Instructors provide step-by-step guidance on safe knife use and handling of preserving and bushcraft tools. Safety is reinforced throughout the course to prevent accidents.
Techniques include safe cutting, splitting, and preparation of fruits and vegetables.
You’ll explore traditional and modern methods including making chutney, jelly, fruit butters, fruit leathers, cordials, and syrups. Heating, straining, and sugar/vinegar additions are explained to safely halt spoilage.
These techniques are demonstrated and practised hands-on. Instructors also offer advice on selecting fruits for each method and how to adapt recipes for varying seasonal produce.
You’ll leave with a selection of preserves you’ve prepared, skills in sustainable foraging and preservation, and practical knowledge for cooking and using wild fruits at home. A copy of the recipes used on the course & a recommended book list
Additionally, the course provides a deeper understanding of autumnal woodlands, plant identification, and campfire cooking methods, equipping you with transferable bushcraft and culinary skills for future use.
Surrey, East and West Sussex, United Kingdom
From £175
Surrey, East and West Sussex, United Kingdom
From £260
About the centre
South London
Operated by Pippin & Gile Bushcraft & Foraging Courses, a partner of adventuro.
