Upcoming
Retreats
Whether you are looking to be nurtured by nature or like a challenge, we have a retreat for you.
Awaken your wild
April 27th - May 4th, 2025 | Ojai, CA
Embrace the vibrant springtime bloom of the Los Padres National Forest on this all-inclusive 6-day retreat. Journey along the meandering Sespe River, where each climb and descent unveils spectacular vistas and secluded natural hot springs. This retreat is designed to rekindle your spirit and awaken your senses, offering a full package of accommodations, meals, and expert guidance for a transformative personal growth experience.
Alpine Ascent
June 24th - 28th, 2025 | Mammoth Lakes, CA
An all gender backpacking retreat in the Eastern Sierras, CA. This retreat is an opportunity to sharpen your backpacking skills, strip away distractions, and step fully into the wilderness with confidence. You’ll be responsible for bringing your own gear, food, and getting yourself to the trailhead—but you won’t be doing it alone. You’ll be guided through the essentials and receive support every step of the way so you can leave this experience feeling empowered, capable, and deeply connected to the land.
Boundaries & Beyond
August 9th - 16th, 2025 | Boundary Waters - Ely, Minnesota
A women’s canoeing and camping retreat held in the beauty of the Boundary Waters. With a 3:1 participant-to-guide ratio, this immersive experience blends self-inquiry with adventure, guiding you to navigate not just the winding ways of the Boundary Waters but the depths of your own inner landscape.
Autumn Alchemy
September 21st - 27th, 2025 | Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, Michigan
This 6-day retreat blends the thrill of backpacking with the depth of therapeutic practices. Guided by professionals in therapy and healing arts, you’ll explore both stunning trails and the contours of your inner landscape. The journey includes comprehensive support from preparation to reintegration, ensuring every step enriches your path to personal revival.
About our retreats & Workshops
How To Pick The Right Retreat For You
>daylong retreats
>3-day “glamping” nature retreats
>Weeklong Backpacking Retreats
>Weeklong Kayaking Retreats
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We hold retreats all over the U.S. (and BC, Canada coming soon!)
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Our retreats are anywhere from 1-day to 8-days long
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Generally the group sizes are small between 8 - 15 people.
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Low - Camping in one place
Medium - Backpack 4-6 mile to camp
High - Backpack 6-8 miles daily
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Low - Minimal outdoor skills taught
Medium - Some backpacking skills taught
High - Advanced backpacking skills taught
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Low - Mindfulness weaved throughout
Medium - Some guided meditation
High - Daily guided meditation practices
Research Shows
after just 3 days in nature, our brains perform 50% better at problem solving tasks.
When you spend time in nature you feel better. Your head gets clear, your nervous system starts to settle, and things seem to fall into perspective.
Given the constant demands on your attention, and effort it takes to stay grounded, some time to disconnect and check in with yourself would be nice.
Whether you are looking to forge a new career path, heal a broken heart, or build a community of nature lovers, we got you.
If what you want is to feel more confidence and clarity, extended time in nature is a great place to start.
What To Expect On Every Retreat
GATHERING IN CIRCLE
The practice of gathering in circle is ancient. Staring into the fire or gazing at a blanket of stars as you listen from the heart and share from the heart can be soul replenishing, and is often a highlight for people.
This is a time to explore questions you are turning over in your head, not necessarily to come to an answer, but to offer them up to the expansive landscape of the earth, and practice the art of listening for the reply.
Noble Silence
One of the truly magical elements of retreat is the 24 hours you’ll spend in silence — dropping in and listening as you immerse yourself in nature.
You will be invited to let go of conversation with others and enter into a deeper connection with yourself and the world around you.
Throughout the solo you will be guided in setting your intentions and processing your experience, so you can engage with nature in solitude, knowing the group is there to support you along the way.
SKILL BUILDING
At Wild Minds, we're all about honing both "soft" skills like patience, kindness, self-compassion, and communication, and "hard" skills such as backpacking, kayaking, and wilderness cooking.
These two sets of skills, soft skills and hard skills, enhance each other beautifully. Embracing a beginner's mindset as you learn to set up camp can cultivate patience while extending kindness to yourself as you climb a steep hill at your own pace enhances the triumph of reaching the top. It's all part of the enriching journey.
Wild Minds is For You If…
You’re an outdoorsy type, but you value a curated experience with others where everything is taken care of.
You want to feel more confident and competent hiking, camping and backpacking.
You love personal growth, and want your time in nature to be more intentional.
Sipping your morning coffee around a fire while sharing openly with other humans sounds scrumptious.
You’d like accountability and support in sticking to your goals.
You want to feel more comfortable facing challenges and taking risks.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
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If you book and cancel the trip within the sign up period you can receive a full refund minus $100 processing fee.
If you cancel after the deadline to sign up, March 8th, there are no refunds.
This is because the trips are very small in size and arrangements are made based on group size on the final day of sign ups.
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We will be hiking between 4-8 miles a day, with weight.
If you have never backpacked before, it’s challenging, but that’s part of the fun! You get to work with your mind as it resists hiking uphill, and know what it’s like to push through.
Leading up to the trip it is a good idea to go on some longer hikes with a weighted backpack to get your body ready for the trail. I will offer suggestions for how to train if you don’t live somewhere you can easily access hiking.
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We provide backpacking meals that are lightweight and easy to cook in a group.
Once the group is formed we will work together to pick meals that are within different peoples food requirements.
Don’t worry if you have restrictions, we can work with you to figure out what you need to feel good on the trail.
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The follow backpacking gear is included upon request. Make sure to have your requests in by the deadline.
Backpacking Gear
backpack
tent
sleeping bag
sleeping pad
The rest will be your personal gear which you will be responsible for. I will share a packing list that will include things like water wicking hiking clothing, a hydration pack, and warm jacket. The most important thing will be making sure you have good hiking boots that are broken in.
Hiking Boots
One of the biggest medical issues that shows up while backpacking is blisters.
This can be reduced by breaking your boots in early and going for hikes with weight before the trip.
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The great outdoors! Don’t worry though, I will teach you everything you need to know in order to have a 5 star bathroom experience while backpacking.
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There will not be service where we are going.
Part of this experience is going completely offline. During our group calls we will talk about the value in going offline and ways to prepare for the trip and integrate back to cell service and email after the trip.
For safety I will have a gps tracking device which I can send and receive messages on in case of an emergency. Included in the videos is information about safety and communication.
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The group calls are a really important part of this experience. For this reason, I will send out a survey to find days & times that everyone can commit to.
On these calls you will get a chance to
connect with the other wild women
practice mindfulness and self-compassion techniques that you will use on the trail
plan how you would like to prepare mentally and physically
ask questions about packing and gear
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This is a substance free trip. There is a focus and emphasis on deepening your relationship with yourself and the land. It is also an opportunity to expanding your capacity to be with the ups and downs without turning to substances.
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ACCOMIDATIONS
If you are traveling from out of town I suggest flying into LAX and booking flights for the day before the trip and after the trip.
The evening before the trip…
I have reserved a few double bed rooms at a local inn for the evening before the trip. This will allow you to arrive and settle in so you can be at the trail early the day the retreat starts.
The evening after the trip…
I rented an Airbnb close to Ojai so you can come off the trail, shower, do laundry, and relax before heading home.
TRANSPORTATION
We will help coordinate transportation and connect you with other participants who are traveling from out of town.
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The group is small and intimate so I want to make sure this is the right trip for whoever signs up.
On the interest call we will talk about what you want to get out of retreat, the challenges that might arise, and if this is the right trip for you.
It is also a time for me to answer any questions you might have.
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This trip is for those over the age of 18. There is no age limit on who can come on this trip.