JOURNEY INTO AWE

with Lisa & Florence Williams

• WHERE? An hour from Denver International Airport and 10 minutes from Loveland, Colorado, at Sylvan Dale Guest Ranch.
• WHEN? May 19-22, 2024. (More specifically, from 5 p.m. on Sun., May 19 thru 10 a.m. on Wed., May 22, 2024.)
  
• HOW MUCH? $2,190 early bird rate through Jan. 6. Starting in the wee hours of Jan. 7, the price increases to $2,390.

You may have heard science writer Florence Williams talk about her “showstopping” book Heartbreak with Terry Gross on Fresh Air. I’ve known Florence for decades. We cemented our friendship well before the age of cell phones, in kayaks, on Colorado’s Yampa River. After that, we wrote for the same newspaper (the fabulous High Country News,) embarked  on river trips in both the West and the East, and even traveled together to Ireland and Mexico. We stayed close through our growing writing careers and our marriages (to brothers!) “Staying close” is a bit of an understatement: we have pretty much never stopped talking.

Just about the only thing we haven’t done together is teach a retreat that draws on our mutual belief that both the outdoors and writing are portals to a nearly magical  amounts of healing and joy. We’re so excited to work together, using these practices to help women  process their emotions and reframe their lives.

During JOURNEY INTO AWE, we’ll each stay in our own cabin (with private bathroom!) at Sylvan Dale Guest Ranch, a beautiful family-owned 3,200-acre dude ranch on the banks of the Big Thompson River in the red rock canyons and foothills west of Loveland, Colorado.  We’ll eat sumptous food prepared by the ranch chef in the retro-western dining room, and have Florence lead us on tried-and-true nature practices that calm our nervous systems and feed our spirits. These will take place in short walks, as well as some time with the ranch’s horses, including an optional trail ride. There’ll be free time each day to rest, journal, or wade in the river. I’ll lead a daily guided heart-opener of a writing session, and after dinner we’ll share our thoughts and writings around a roaring fire.

Florence and I consider the Rocky Mountains our natural habitat. It’s where we’ve poured our hearts out to each other in about a thousand hikes. We’re excited to see you in the foothills this fall!

So you don’t consider yourself a writer, a rider, or particularly outdoorsy. Is this retreat still for you?

Absolutely! No experience or expertise is required or necessary. We won’t be scaling any mountains or polishing any manuscripts. We’re imagining our time together as a time to play and to open ourselves to both nature and our own creativity. If something feels like too much, you certainly don’t have to do it.

OUR COVID POLICY We ask that you’re vaccinated and boosted, to agree to take an on-site test if we decide it’s necessary for group safety, and to isolate if you have symptoms or test positive.

OUR REFUND POLICY  Once you’ve paid in full, your place is confirmed. This place is like a ticket to a concert — once you’ve bought it, you own it. If for some reason, including Covid, you can’t come, you are welcome to pass on your place to someone else. (If we have a wait list we may be able to help you with that.) Once we’ve determined that this person is a match for our retreat and they pay up, you can indeed have a refund, minus a $50 processing fee. We strongly suggest you get travel insurance.

HOW DO I PAY? First, please contact me at lisa AT lisajonesteaches.com or (303) 47six-076five so we can set up a brief chat to see if we’re a match.

WANT AN EXTRA DAY OF WRITING? Here’s an optional day-long addition for writers who’d like to use some great scenes from literature to introduce their character in the most vivid way possible, be she fictional or nonfictional. I’m offering a program called HOW DID I GET HERE? That’ll help you ground your character squarely in her dilemma, Monday, May 23 from 9-3 at my home, about 40 minutes from Sylvan Dale. Click HERE for more information on THAT offering! I’m also full of ideas on where you can stay on Friday night — there are Air BnBs on my street, and hotels close by. All you have to do is ask!