Terrapin means water turtle. The original word came from an Algonquian word, torope, and perhaps the Abenaki word turepe, meaning tortoise or turtle.
Algonquian languages are spread throughout North America. Terrapin Hill Farm, where Wild Indigo Herb Fest is being held, is in Shawnee territory, and long long ago was home to the mound building Adena people. Arrowheads and other traces of ancient activities have been found in the area.
Terrapin Hill Farm is named for its turtle-like hill where we took this photo.
We learned about Terrapin Hill Farm by coming across their events… specifically a live action role playing event, called the Brandywine Festival. This festival is the first and only official Middle Earth LARPing event in the U.S. A folkloric connection is that the Greek god Hermes created the first lyre from a turtle shell and Terrapin Hill Farm hosts music festivals. Interested in what else they do?
We visited in June 2025 to see how we felt about the area and consider whether it would work for our vision of a new herb conference. Take a look isn’t it amazing!
What we discovered is that Terrapin Hill Farm will be a wilder experience than some other herbal conferences you may have attended. The farm has more than 350 acres and miles of trails to explore. The infrastructure is limited with most people camping, glamping, parking buses or RVs, or staying off-site.
The potential for wildlife encounters is high. While there, we met a resident snapping turtle (and of course kept our distance to avoid upsetting her).
Terrapin imagery is found throughout the farm.
I can’t help think of various stories about terrapins, turtles, and tortoises. The story my mind dredges up first is the race in “The Tortoise and the Hare.” A tale of the consequences of bragging and rewards of steadily plodding on.
Many indigenous creation stories of North America feature turtles as the foundation for Creation. Some of the stories and more can be found here: https://www.native-languages.org/legends-turtle.htm
Then the phrase “turtles all the way down,” comes to mind, which admittedly I associate with Terry Pratchett’s stories of Disc World, but relates to tales of turtles and tortoises as the metaphorical foundation that Creation sits on and the infinite unknown.
Bringing the infinite unknown into Terrapin Hill Farm, with herbalism and healing just somehow seems right. Join us!
Presenters
Your last chance to submit a proposal is sneaking up on us… we extended the deadline to November 30 and will stick with that… we are getting a lot of wonderful proposals. Click on the link below for info and click on the form to revise or edit your submission.
Early Bird Registration is now open!
It helps to have some early birds register so that we get some funds built up to support the event early on. Register here.
Sponsors and Donors
It takes a lot of energy and money to make these things happen. We adore sponsors and donors because they make it so much easier for magic to happen. If your organization wants to sponsor, click the sponsor link below.
We are collecting donations for a silent auction, so if you can’t attend but would like us to showcase your products, contact us. We already have books from Robin Rose Bennett!
