DC Forest Bathing

DC Forest Bathing Immerse your senses in nature. You do not have to be good. Slow down and let nature take care of you for a while.

Relaxing nature and forest therapy walks in DC's most beautiful wildspaces with certified guides. Immerse yourself in the healing benefits of nature. Forest bathing, or shinrin yoku, is simple: by spending leisurely time in nature, we achieve scientifically-demonstrated health benefits while simultaneously transforming our relationship to the natural environment. Guided walks facilitate sensory aw

areness, invite you to slow down, and open the door for nature to do its healing. We aim to reconnect Washingtonians to the beautiful lands integrated into our city while finding ease and freedom. Our walks privilege enjoying sensory experiences over physical exertion like a great hike or intellectual understanding like a naturalist tour. Through a mentoring technique that encourages sharing without judgment or analysis, participants learn from and teach each other, enriching the experience and deepening relationships to humans and non-humans. The Japanese coined the phrase "shinrin yoku" in the 1980s; it is now a cornerstone of preventative health and well-being in many countries. Robust, peer-reviewed scientific literature has well-established the benefits of spending time under the canopy of the forest, including increased immunity, lower blood pressure, lower cortisol levels, lowered heart rate, and numerous others. In the US, nature and forest therapy has taken off in recent years, led by the efforts of the Association of Nature and Forest Therapy Guides (shinrin-yoku.org).

10/31/2025

I was skeptical of forest bathing. But then I tried it alongside eight Harvard doctors who looked to this practice with ancient roots to address modern ills.

Honored to be a member of the guide community here in the DMV!
10/28/2025

Honored to be a member of the guide community here in the DMV!

Go find a “blue space” this week!
07/29/2025

Go find a “blue space” this week!

Nature is tied to well-being, and this often means green spaces. But there is also blue — oceans, seas, lakes. We often feel restored spending time near water.

“Joy is a skill [you] can build”Take note especially of #1: finding awe. And the suggested source? Nature!
07/22/2025

“Joy is a skill [you] can build”

Take note especially of #1: finding awe. And the suggested source? Nature!

Just a few minutes a day of joy snacking can have a big impact on your life, research shows.

Opening Sunday:
05/13/2025

Opening Sunday:

Experience the wonder of nature through the eyes of artists. Look closely at art depicting insects and other animals alongside real specimens.

Sensory immersion using smell…
05/04/2025

Sensory immersion using smell…

There is a universal “smell of the outside,” no matter where you are. We dig into the two main compounds responsible for this smell - geosmin and ozone.

Welcome spring!^^northern spicebush (Lindera benzoin)
03/21/2025

Welcome spring!
^^northern spicebush (Lindera benzoin)

What are you noticing?? Spring is on its way!>>Eastern skunk cabbage (Symplocarpus foetidus), Rock Creek Trail, Montgom...
03/18/2025

What are you noticing?? Spring is on its way!

>>Eastern skunk cabbage (Symplocarpus foetidus), Rock Creek Trail, Montgomery County

📸: .prana
📍: Ancestral lands of the Piscataway and Nacotchtank (Anacostan) peoples

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Washington D.C., DC

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+12024176525

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