DEEP WINTER RETREAT
Moose Point Cabin, 100 Mile Wilderness, Maine
FEBRUARY 22-25, 2008 (Fri-Mon)
$550 (Deposit: $150)

The sparkling beauty of northern Maine's winter, with its deep quiet, calls us into retreat. Join us for this weekend of cozy indoor practice (yoga, meditation, sharing around the wood stove) and all the outdoor exploration your heart desires, on ski or snowshoes, or just your boots. Outdoors, we'll track coyote and fox and snowshoe hare, discover the winter birds and the winter stars. Indoors, we'll sit with the simple truth of each moment, just as it is, allowing the silence to call to us.

We meet in Greenville on the morning of the 22nd and will be taken in by snowmobile to the cabin. The cabin has a full kitchen, woodstove and bunkbeds and is tucked into the woods beside Moose Pond.

Limited to 6 participants.

GUIDES: Anne Dellenbaugh, Sharon Sandstrom
MEET: Greenville, Maine-- Fly 2/21 to Portland, depart 2/26

DESERT SPRING RETREAT
Stillwater Canyon, Green River, Utah
APRIL 19-26, 2008 (Sat-Sat)
$1450 (Deposit: $150)

Come celebrate spring in the desert! We’ll canoe through spectacular Stillwater Canyon on the Green River, from Mineral Bottom to the confluence with the Colorado River. This is some of the most beautiful canyon paddling in the country. We’ll rise at dawn for meditation and yoga, paddle, hike, rest and swim, do more yoga before dinner, then sit by the fire in the evening and close the day in Noble Silence. Beginners are most welcome and no experience (in canoeing, yoga or camping) is necessary.

We depart from Moab, Utah on Saturday morning, April 19th and return to Moab (up the Colorado from the Confluence, so you’ll see both gorgeous rivers!) on Saturday the 26th. Travel days (to and from Moab) are the 18th and the 27th, unless you choose to extent your trip to allow time for visiting any of the gorgeous national parks that are nearby: Arches, Canyonlands, and Capitol Reef. The trip fee of $1450 covers all river gear (canoes, paddles, life vests, safety gear), all group gear, shuttles, guides, and scrumptious vegetarian meals.

Limited to 8 participants.

[ General Trip Details ]

GUIDES: Anne Dellenbaugh, Karin Spitfire, Sharon Sandstrom
MEET: Moab, Utah -- Fly 4/18, depart 4/27

NORTHERN RIVER EXPLORATION: A Yoga and Canoeing Retreat
Allagash River, Maine
JULY 13-19, 2008 (Sun-Sat)
$1150 ($1100 if paid in full by May 1)
(Deposit: $200)

The Allagash Wilderness Waterway is one of the finest canoe routes in the Northeast. We'll start our week on Eagle Lake, giving us a couple of days of lake travel before we enter the river at Chase Rapids. From there we wend our way north to Michaud Farm. Flatwater is interspersed with sections of Class I and II whitewater. It's a "forgiving" river and a great place for both novice and experienced paddlers alike, easy enough for the novice to enjoy while still challenging a more experienced canoeist. We'll paddle with moose, be serenaded by loons and likely catch a glimpse of shooting stars. We go north to remember ourselves, to hear the rhythm of our own breath, to listen to water flowing at the river's edge and to bask in silence. We'll rise at dawn for meditation and yoga, paddle, hike, rest and swim, do more yoga before dinner, then sit by the fire in the evening and close the day in Noble Silence. Beginners are most welcome and no experience (in canoeing, yoga or camping) is necessary.

Limited to 6 participants.

[ General Trip Details ]

GUIDES: Anne Dellenbaugh, Karin Spitfire, Sharon Sandstrom
MEET: Millinocket, ME -- Fly 7/1 to Bangor, HWS shuttle to river, fly home 7/9

CARIBOU BASE CAMP
Gates of the Arctic National Park, Alaska
August 21-28, 2008 (Thurs-Thurs)
$3600 (Deposit: $600)

Spend 7 days living in the extraordinary wilderness that is the Gates of the Arctic National Park. Just to the west of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Gates includes most of the central Brooks Range. Our base camp beside a shallow river high in the mountains, close to the continental divide will afford us long days of spectacular wildlife viewing and picture perfect trail-less hiking in the gorgeous colors of the late fall tundra. We've scheduled this trip to coincide with the migration of the western caribou herd through the Brooks Range.

We’ll meet in Fairbanks, take a bus up the Dalton Highway to historic Wiseman, where we'll spend our first night in the old dance hall-turned-B&B. We leave early the next morning to go down to Coldfoot where we'll meet our bush pilot for the trip into Gates of the Arctic. We'll spend the next week wildlife tracking, birding, hiking, and just being in this stunning country. The landscape is huge and wild, like nothing I've ever seen before coming here. The caribou migrate through the high passes and along the river corridor; there are bears and wolves and eagles and foxes and ptarmigan and more. We will also follow loosely many of the practices that are part of all Wild Song trips: times of silence, daily yoga and meditation, evening gatherings. In late August, the arctic summer with its long hours of daylight and stunning, prolonged sunsets is already giving way to autumn--the land is blazing crimson and there's just enough dark for the first of the aurora borealis. This means the weather can be warm and sunny or downright cold. The bugs are gone.

We meet in Fairbanks on the 20th for orientation, gear check, last minute shopping if necessary and leave on the bus early the next morning. We are scheduled to fly back to Fairbanks on the 28th. Trip fee covers all transportation from Fairbanks, guides, all group gear, including meals, snacks and safety equipment. You bring your own clothes, sleeping bag, tent and personal gear. Some gear is available for rent.

A river trip will be scheduled for 2009. Let us know if you want to be on the list to hear details as soon as they're out.

Limited to 6 participants.

[ General Trip Details ]

GUIDE: Anne Dellenbaugh
MEET: Fairbanks, AK -- Arrive Fairbanks 8/19/08, depart 8/29/08 (or later: it is best to schedule your return flight a day or so after the trip in case we can't fly out as scheduled)

FALL RETREAT
Flagstaff Lake, Maine
2008 dates coming soon.

Come celebrate this holiday weekend with HER WILD SONG.

Tucked away in the western mountains, with Bigelow Mountain rising from its southern shore, Flagstaff Lake is one of Maine’s gems, especially wonderful at this time of year when bright colors are seeping into leaves and yet it is still warm enough to enjoy a swim in these beautiful clear waters. This is a base camp retreat, perfect for those who want or need wilderness with little strain. We will meet in Kingfield and drive together to the put-in where we’ll load canoes and paddle to one of Flagstaff’s secluded campsites. From there, we will find plenty to do, or plenty of time for doing nothing. There is Bigelow (one of Maine’s premier mountains, 4,090’) for those who want to hike, islands and coves to explore, wildlife to sit in stillness and observe, and abundant beauty to be enjoyed without ever leaving the campsite.

In addition to our dawn practice of yoga, meditation and chanting and evening fire circles, this trip offers participants the opportunity to delve more deeply into the teachings and practices that form our retreats (Anusara-Inspired Hatha Yoga, Body-Mind Centering, and meditation, or QiGong, for instance), and to reflect together on how these experiences inform our lives.  This retreat is appropriate for women facing life challenging illnesses.

[ General Trip Details ]

GUIDES: Anne Dellenbaugh, Karin Spitfire, Sharon Sandstrom
MEET: Kingfield -- Fly 10/4 to Portland, HWS shuttle to motel and put-in; fly home 10/9

GENERAL TRIP DETAILS

WHERE WE MEET
All trips begin early in the morning of the first day listed. Usually we will meet you at a designated motel in the rendezvous town. We recommend that participants arrive the night before and stay in that motel. Lodging for that night is not included in the price of the trip. In the information given for trips "HWS shuttle" indicates that we will arrange for someone to meet you at the airport and return you there on the last day of the trip. There is an additional fee for the shuttle. Detailed information about logistics and gear is sent upon receipt of your reservation.

WHAT WE PROVIDE
HER WILD SONG provides all canoes and camping gear, including tents and tarps, cook set, stoves and food. Our mostly vegetarian meals are delicious, hearty and nutritious. We use local, organic food as much as possible, and natural sweeteners. Even backpacking trips include cakes or fresh breads baked right in camp. You need only provide your own personal gear, including sleeping bag and backpack (if necessary).