In the forest, Chris Doran sits quietly among the trees.
Around him, all is peaceful and still. Looking up, he finds her.
A retired phys ed teacher form Elora, Doran has always had a love for the great outdoors. But since losing his wife Tammy to cancer in 2020, a walk though the forest has taken on a new meaning.
“I’ve always been into the outdoors – hiking, trail running or mountain biking. But it was always just whizzing past nature,” Doran said.
“When my wife was sick with cancer, she began healing meditation. Out of the blue, she said, 'Chris, can you take me to the forest?' So, we began to meditate together. We went a few times, and unfortunately, she passed away.”
Afterwards, whenever Doran embarked on run along a forest trail, he would no longer charge through. Halfway in, he would, stop, sit and breathe.
“Each time, I would make that part a little bit longer. And then eventually, I would just go into the forest to help me heal, to heal from all of the grief,” Doran said.
A gift from his wife, Doran said 'the forest' is something he appreciates as being a life changer.
“Bizarrely, one day, I saw Shinrin-yoku online, which literally is the Japanese translation of ‘forest bathing.' I thought, what is this? My wife and I met in Japan,” Doran said. “I had never heard of it. But it was very much what me and my wife had just been doing together.”
Forest bathing, also known as forest therapy, is a slow walk and immersion in the atmosphere of the forest. A guide helps participants to open their awareness and enable them to tune into and connect to the energy and healing power of nature.
Drawn to the profession, Doran researched further and soon after began to train and qualify as an Association of Nature and Forest Therapy (ANFT) guide.
Today, he operates Emerald Echoes Forest Bathing, where he offers group and individual experiences in forested areas across Centre Wellington and Halton Hills.
Doran hopes to help others find clarity and peace, a space where participants can bathe in the healing atmosphere of the forest, and reconnect with the natural world.
“I finished my training in spring of last year. It’s just a hobby job for me. But this is something that I really enjoy,” Doran said.
“I do four walks a year, the summer solstice, winter solstice and the two equinoxes. I usually take eight people at a time, and they’ve all been full so far.”
Doran said the idea of forest bathing has continued to grow in recent years.
“The number of articles and books about forest bathing has just skyrocketed. People are starting to know what forest bathing means,” Doran said.
“Especially after COVID, there were a lot of people finding nature during that time. The trails were packed. They could not get enough. People changed their attitudes about their lifestyle and health needs, and they began to reflect on what they really want out of life.”
Research suggests forest bathing can reduce anxiety, stress and depression, lower stress, blood pressure and heart rate, elevate some cancer fighting cells in the body, strengthen the immune system, provide better sleep, and increase feelings of gratitude and overall well-being.
“And just seeing people’s emotional response, sometimes they just break down in tears, and usually for two reasons, grief and gratitude,” Doran said.
“Grief comes back to them, and then they are thankful for the forest. It’s kind of shocking when someone just breaks down in tears. You aren’t doing anything to initiate it. It’s just in a quiet and still moment. People can reflect and tap into something that they may have forgotten or lost from the past.”
Doran has even guided people who do spend great amounts of time in nature such as forestry graduates, photographers, hikers or trail runners.
“Many of them have said, I have been in nature a lot, but I’ve never seen nature like that before,” he said.
Groups usually venture off to the Aboyne Trail in Fergus or to another in Halton Hills.
“There’s a beautiful trail in Halton Hills that a lot of people don’t even know about. We use only a very small section of trail, one kilometre at the most. So, it could be three hours, covering one kilometre. That’s how slow, steady, and reflective it is,” Doran said.
Originally from the United Kingdom, and a father of two boys, Doran’s passion for nature began as a child.
“People who know me, and my two sons say that what I’m doing is great. They’ve said that I’m now spreading my love of the environment and nature to other people,” Doran said.
“I really want to focus on people who are experiencing grief and are trying to heal. I’d like to tap into the local grief support groups and also focus on those with a terminal diagnosis.”
Doran said forest bathing can help people who are mentally or physically in need of therapy from the forest.
“We are not therapists, but the forest is. And it opens the door for people to reconnect with nature,” he said.
The next scheduled walk is on June 22 in Halton Hills for the summer solstice.
Anyone interested, can visit here for more info.
Tammy Doran’s ashes were spread on a trail route she had walked along with her family, now known as ‘Tammy’s Memorial Tree Trail.'
In memory, Doran wrote a piece called, Harvest for Grief where he recalls how his wife had set him on his new pathway for life.
“I will walk Tam’s whole tree trail again to celebrate my graduation as a Association of Nature and Forest Therapy Guide and to honour her for inspiring me to step on this new pathway and cross the threshold to a new way forward,” he writes, “..and I will sit, stop and breathe ... and give thanks.”
