Nadine Mazzola was one of my ANFT trainers and is a skilled Forest Therapy Guide. You can find several online videos of interviews with her on PBS.
Her new book, “Forest Bathing With Your Dog” is truly lovely. When people aren’t sure about how Forest Therapy is different than “a good, brisk walk in nature,” I use the following analogy:
Most times that I walk my dog, I put their leashes on and we have a steady 30 minute walk on our standard route around the neighbourhood.
But sometimes, I let them walk me. After 30 minutes, we’ve barely made it past our neighbour’s house. Our dogs, tails wagging in delight, are using all of their senses to “read the papers” - aka, notice everything around them to discover the “news” of what dogs and other creatures of all kinds have come and gone. They are lost in what they smell, see, hear, taste and touch. This - is Forest Bathing.
I love letting our dogs walk me because they slow me down and I notice too... Many of my favourite photos come from these walks. When looking at what they’re so intent to smell or see, there’s often beauty that I would never have discovered otherwise.
