Can't access all areas

[Hummingbird]

In several places on the maps, mostly along roadsides, you have to find some short stairs to be able to access the layered grass areas. I have mostly been able to get onto all those in Aleroth, but in the Dark Forest I can't seem to find a way up onto them. If I look at the area maps, the swampy areas remain blacked out and also quite a bit of the layered grass areas. The best I seem to be able to do is sort of run along side them and then the blacked out part of the map clears a bit, but there are herbs and mushrooms further in that I can't get to. I noticed some movable "boulders" around the areas and placed them next to the edge thinking I could step up onto one, but that didn't work either.
Is there some secret to getting into those areas?

[flix]

There are a lot of places in the Dark Forest that are inaccessible, even though herbs and sometimes enemies spawn up there. This includes the big lake, most of the elevated areas (especially along that path south of the elven encampment), the mountain areas (except for the deserted castle) and the area in the southeastern corner across the river.

I remember reading long ago on the Larian forums that these areas were meant to be accessible and populated with quests and enemies but they weren't implemented because they ran out of time. It's the same with the wastelands map in the endgame.

If you have the special move (as a wizard) that lets you swap place with an enemy you can get up there that way. But you may get stuck, so leave a teleporter stone behind for escapes.

[toughchan]

well, I don't know about herbs or mushrooms but I think you can probably get to that place using the Teleport Stone. Just grab the two stones inside your pocket, throw 1 over the "blackened" place and then use the other one to teleport to the first stone's destination. I remember using this trick to get into many normally inaccessible places in the game like the Castle or some shops.