PV's First Dance with Mescaline

[partially_veiled]

Hey all.

I'll try to keep this short, seeing as it was a low dose (and relatively low effect) trip, therefore there's no real "profound" moments or anything revolutionary...but since this was my first foray into the world of cacti, I thought it was well worth documenting.

First off, I'll say that I was working with Icaro Verde chips (no Mycotopia sponsors ship cacti to Canada...). The dosage was 27 grams of chips (initially I had planned on doing 3 doses of 9 grams, spread out over an hour) pulverized into a very fine powder in a coffee mill. Before grinding, I passed the chips over some burning Palo Santo while directing my intentions, apprehensions and thoughts into the cacti flesh. I actually found myself talking to this plant material (which is not such a strange thing for me) and realized as the words came out that I was more than a little anxious/nervous about this trip. I was taking a very low dose out of the gate, to both see what mescaline felt like relative to my other psychedelic experiences and to test the potency of the particular flesh I was working with (1 kg total)...but there was still apprehension as I know no one (in real life) with any mescaline experience, and had never even been in the same room as any of the sacred cacti before. All my thoughts were focused into the burning incense and the cacti flesh, and when I was at peace and feeling prepared, I then pulverized all 27 grams of flesh and stored it in a small, air-tight zip-loc container. This was preformed at about 7 AM, and I was to bring the dose with me to a cottage outside of the city, where I'd be staying for a few days.

When I was finally ready to dose (~3 PM), I was in a relatively secluded area with my very closest friends, but I was the only one doing any type of psychedelic. The others were drinking and we were more or less all smoking some mid quality bud (I withheld from smoking until later into the trip, probably closer to 5 PM). Normally I would not mix my psychedelic experience with others alcohol experiences, as I find the two to be quite polar, but these are people whom I trust entirely and only three of them (out of seven including myself) even ended up getting "in the bag", so to speak. The most important thing for me here was that I felt safe, and I felt like if anything went wrong these people would look after me, same as they always do (I'm lucky to be part of a group of genuine people who all care deeply about each other, and who act more like a family then the majority of my genetic family does).

I took the powder straight, mixed in water, and spread the dose out over a little past an hour (roughly 4:30 PM when I finished). It probably took me about 5-6 cups to get it all down, so I used a good amount of water relative to my amount of powder, and it took a little longer than I'd hoped. The taste was not bad at all in the beginning, but I assure you I was plugging my nose and downing this sludge AQAP by the end of it. Seemed to grow more bitter with each gulp. In the end though, it was far from "unbearable". I still might consider another method of ingestion next time, as I'll be upping the dosage and would like to try to get it all down just SLIGHTLY faster...but that will come later.

By the time I finished drinking, we were at a beach down the road enjoying the sound of the waves and the sunshine. I felt slightly nauseous from all the expanding cacti powder in my stomach (my main reason for titrating the dose), and although I never had the desire to vomit, I did have some gas and had a rather gross looking, green slimy shit when I got back from the beach (sorry if that's too graphic for some tender ears, but I'm betting far worse has been said on these boards ). I was a little worried at seeing such a large amount of cacti pass through my system so quickly (all I had eaten so far in the day was a small bowl of sprouted grain cereal with milk and a small piece of fruit, which was finished around 8 AM). Oddly enough, it was when I was in the bathroom that the cacti started to hit me (this was close to 5 PM). I had been having the "glowing" sensation (best way I can think of describing very light effects, sort of like knowing somethings different but not yet knowing just what it is), very comparable to the beginning of a light mushroom trip, since about half way through finishing the powder. In the bathroom is when it really began to hit me though. No more "glowing", threshold-type effects. At this point things began to get increasingly interesting.

The shower in the bathroom was made of beautiful white and blue swirled marble. It began to crawl and seethe like a stereotypical psychedelic pattern. This effect was pronounced for the next while. Things like shadows outside were fantastic, ever shifting and undulating. The wood tiles which covered the outside of the cabin seemed to move and pulsate with life; each panel individually, but the whole house as a whole as well. This effect mingled with the effect of shadows cast by surrounding trees was just phenomenal. I began to smoke some bud (smoked small bowls from a pipe all night) at this point. This really picked up the trip a little, but did not really taint it at all either. I didn't get the typical MJ buzz I normally get, I mean it was there but no where near pronounced. Instead, I simply seemed to settle more easily into the feeling of the cactus.

This feeling was incredible. As I said, this was a light dosage, but even with this considered I can't believe just how effective this cactus was. The duration of the trip was roughly 10 hours, with the effects getting stronger and diminishing many times throughout the night. A little MJ always seemed to kick the buzz into high gear, but on its own the trip was variable over time as well. I felt different things at different points: sometimes orgasmic body sensations, sometimes dazzling (albeit brief) visuals, sometimes contemplative thoughts, and sometimes just outright hilarious good vibes (I was feeling SOOOOOOO silly all night!), but despite this variance the trip had an "overall feeling" as well. This feeling is a little harder to quantify.

I want to say that it was peaceful. It was certainly that. I felt at peace with everything, and even more appreciative of and in love with the natural world than I normally am...which is actually saying something. I felt love all night. Basically no matter what I was doing I was totally happy. My friends made TONNES of food, and it looked and smelled soooo delicious but I could barely eat, since my stomach was already full and a little logy. This really didn't bother me at all. Normally I would have felt like I was missing out. Tonight, I knew it was THEY who were missing out on something truly amazing! It seemed like nothing could bother me during this trip. I had a few "down moments" which basically involved me examining my dark side, but they always ended in positive reflections and resolutions to examine these thoughts further, as I truly do believe that seeing our biases from a different perspective is one of the most invaluable insights psychedelics can offer. A chance for change.

I'll try to wrap this up with some highlights:

The most visually pleasing part of this trip for me was something that is a well known tripping activity, yet something that (I know, MAJOR foul here) I had yet to try on other trips. I don't know why either, because it is something I love to do at all times, even when sober. This activity is cloud gazing. At about 6:30 or 7, after my friends had eaten, me and few others sat out on the front porch and smoked a few bowls. Oh my lord. It was incredible...like nothing I've experienced before. I'm REALLY amazed that I've not done this yet, but I can guarantee you that no trip will pass me by again without getting some time to just gaze at the sky (if setting permits this of course). I was loosing my shit laughing, the sky was coming to life. Mathematical, geometrical shapes were forming out of the clouds. It didn't make sense to me, but the whole sky changed. It seemed to have its center in the precise center of my vision, and then the clouds were symetrically folding out, one on top of the other from there. I don't know how to accurately describe this...after a while the vision began to fade and change, and the sky became pixelated. This too faded, and shapes like I'd never seen began to form. We've all seen shapes in the clouds, but I'm guessing that those of you who have cloud gazed while tripping have seen something more...my friends were picking out abstract shapes, and I couldn't help but stifle a private laugh because I knew what I was seeing was much, much different...it was more like a painting, precise figures and shapes, action and movement. Maybe more like a moving picture...It was incredible, folding in on itself constantly and always changing, but always detailed and sublime. I'll stop gushing about this part of the trip as I feel like I could go on forever.

Another notable point was playing chess with a friend. He is a VERY good chess player so it was a tough game (ended up in a stalemate actually), and I found concentration harder as the mescaline took a stronger hold of me, but there was something incredible about this game yet. I saw the board like I never had before. I could visually see his lines of attack, strategy and defense. Often, especially if I'm only playing casually, the chess board can look like a confusing array of randomly placed pieces to me. Not this time. It is hard to describe, but I had a new view of this game by the time our round was finished...it was like I saw action unfolding in real time, and I was rather a passive observer than a player...I was able to watch the pieces change their location, to see how it opened and closed different lines of attack and retreat, and to watch as the stage changed constantly with every move. Maybe this doesn't sound impressive, but I don't think my explanation does it justice. It was a clarity of vision I have never had when playing this game, and I think I walked away from the table with a totally revised understanding of the inner workings of chess.

Finally the last notable thing was the sensory experience. We listened to a lot of music that night, and I'll just say that I actually think I came close to orgasm (not kidding) a few times just through the intensity of these sounds. With eyes closed and ears perked it was pure bliss. Also, the small amount of food I was able to eat ranked among the best tasting food I've ever encountered, in any state. Smells were the same, and i spent a decent amount of the night with my nose buried in anything I could find, inhaling deeply like I'd never been able to smell before...

Overall I would rank this among the best trips I've ever had. Although the dosage was comparatively low, and I certainly didn't get as much personal work done as I have in the past with high dose mushy trips and the like, I still rank this as the most promising substance I've ever tried. I was apprehensive in the beginning, but by the time the trip began to set in I knew no fear. Only love. The whole trip brimmed with love and security. I studied the veins on the underside of a broad leaf and the veins under the skin in my palms and almost cried at the stunning similarity. I did cry after eating a small bite of meat (been a vagetarian for over a year), but it was only because it solidified for me instantly so many of the reasons why I choose to stop eating meat in the first place. The cactus seemed to bring my deepest emotions to the surface, but I never once felt out of control. I felt like I was being cleansed, but I also felt like I was having fun. I don't know that I could have asked for a better trip.

I know it's premature, seeing as I've got a lot more experience with other substances and only this one with Mescaline (and it was a relatively weak experience at that), but I really do think I've found something invaluable for my own personal quest in this chemical complex that is the sacred cactus. I don't want to say "favorite", because obviously I haven't had enough experience to make such a claim and besides all psychedelics are different enough (IMO) to be evaluated on their own, but I will say that cacti seems to hold the most <i>promise</i> of any substance I've worked with. I instantly feel tied to this experience, and I will be working with cactus again in the future. No doubt. I think (if this trip was at all representative of what I can expect from subsequent ones) that mescaline suits my personality and abilities almost perfectly. The way it brought me to nature is something I look for in a good trip, that grounded, earthly feeling of connectedness, while your mind is free to soar in the clouds. This felt like the real deal to me. Not to say psilly isn't (no experience with 'cid), but for some reason (and I don't think it's because of the hype...I'm not really one to buy into that stuff and as I said I don't think that one drug is necessarily better than another, they all have their own pros and cons) mescaline feels like home to me. I need to do more research and experimenting, this I realize...but I feel like this first trip put me on the path to something substantial. I suppose that time will tell.

Overall rating: +

[Shadowlord]

As someone who has only recently entered the world of cacti myself, I agree 100%. I have only experienced San Pedro tea so far but I was impressed and am getting ready to journey on some Mescaline Tar ( Iso ext. ) soon. It is all from Icaro Verde chips as well.
Oddly enough, when I was making the Tea for my first attempt, I found myself speaking my intentions and asking for healing and wisdom as I stirred and boiled the material. And as I took the tea and I went to take more in increments all went well until the last time I went to take a last sip when I felt that I shouldn't and didn't, so I definitely felt a connection to the brew/cactus.


I will be certainly be journeying w/ mescaline/cacti again.

[Mr. Clean]

sweet post peevey!

sounds like you had great ride..especially considering the small amount of cacti you ate..27 grams of dry material comes out to, what..250 or so milligrams of mescaline? i'm glad you chose to document your experience with the cacti, i plan on trying some san pedro this weekend myself..i'm working with fresh cuttings, gonna have to brew some 500g of the stuff, ugh..well, wish me luck!

and be sure let us know how your next encounter with the cacti goes..

[quack quack]

luck goes wished

[partially_veiled]

Thanks a lot SL, Clean and Quack Quack! Means a lot to me.

@ SL: Yeah man, I definitely read your reports...in fact, your experience was the final mote of dust that tipped the scales in favor of me seeking out the cactus. I have wanted to try it for such a long time now (I think I first read "The Doors of Perception" when I was like 12 or 13, I can't even really remember now), but have been VERY wary of ordering cactus flesh over the internet. Most places don't even ship into Canada, although it seems that the "incense" is techincally legal. Well, I had heard of Julio but couldn't seem to find anything recent, so your dealings with him convinced me it was safe and of good quality, and thus finally gave me the guts to go through with this. In a very real way (even though you surely had no idea) I do owe some of this trip to you. I also feel like I owe a lot to Julio (obviously), and although I still do recommend that anyone who is able to do so should support our community by using one of the sponsors, I will stand by saying that Julio is a great guy, and a pleasure to deal with...seems like this is some very nice quality cactus as well. That's a plus! Have you completed the ISO extraction yet SL? Did you do up a post for it? I know there's stuff all over this place re: extractions, but I'd be interested to follow your thread. Definitely post another trip report once you've tried your extraction, I'd love to know how it stacks up to the full-spectrum cactus effect! I will probably try some other methods of ingestion as well...1 kg is a a decent amount of goods to play with . I'm glad you've found a new ally in this wonderful plant, lord knows I can sympathize...one tiny trip and I feel like my world is all turned around! Keep the reports comin' dude!

@ Mr. Clean: Thanks again Clean. I really have no idea how many mg of mesc. this would have been, seeing as this was my first experience and I have nothing to measure it up against. Although I've heard Icaro Verde is good quality stuff, all cactus is of course highly variable. So I really don't know. I was actually not expecting much activity, since it seems agreed upon that 40 grams of dried, pulverized flesh is a solid dosage. I figured it was much better to play it safe the first time around than to take a full dose and end up somewhere that I didn't belong. Perhaps I will attempt some extractions in the future to further ascertain a more accurate dosage? I don't know, I'm sure I'll be working with this amazing plant again but I need some time and space to think about how and to what capacity, and of course I need to wait for the right tripping opportunity to arise. Based on the effects I achieved this time though, if I were dosing with straight flesh again I probably would not go over 35 grams...I am a cautious tripper when it comes to new substances, even one so seemingly lovely as cactus. I am positive you will love your experience with San Pedro (DESPITE the taste, which I've heard can be quite vile...but like I said I didn't find ingesting the straight powder in water to be unmanageable) and I'm sure it will be like nothing you've experienced yet...this was a WHOLE new world for me, even though it did have some similarities with other 'delics...it was also totally unique. I'm sure you'll love it. I wish you a happy, healthy, safe (but THRILLING!) trip. Good vibes your way buddy . You must come back and let us know how it goes too! I tend to keep trip notes for myself, so I'm going to try to start making a habit out of transcribing some of them here. Feels great to share such good experiences with such kind folks! Can't wait to hear about yours!

[Shad0w]

Originally Posted by partially_veiled

..... I am positive you will love your experience with San Pedro (DESPITE the taste, which I've heard can be quite vile...but like I said I didn't find ingesting the straight powder in water to be unmanageable)

I agree. and am very glad so many ppl are discovering cactus....

but , just so ya know, the taste seems even worse the next time around.............. that might just be me tho, my first experience was raw cactus flesh....... wasnt bad at first, slowly got more disgusting, ended up throwing up ( prob mainly due to volume in stomach, especially compared to consequent tea excursions )

So, now, everytime i even smell it........ *gag* starts to kick in.

definatly worth getting it down tho.