Open Practice: A Nature-based Long Weekend (Residential Only)

This retreat is supported by Hildur Palsdottir and Shemaleiah Geremia-Smylie.

Open Practice Weekends offer both beginner and experienced meditators an opportunity to deepen their practice while attuning to the natural beauty of the season at Wonderwell. We invite you to join us for this three-night retreat over the Summer Solstice weekend. At the height of light and the turning of the year, this is a time to settle into meditation, connect with the rhythms of the natural world, and deepen your relationship with your own experience.

Please join us to:

• Deepen your practice within a supportive community
• Connect with the land through outdoor and walking meditation, sky-gazing, and quiet presence
• Rest and reflect in Wonderwell’s many peaceful nooks, with access to a rich library of Buddhist texts

This retreat includes optional dharma talks and meditation sessions, with opportunities to practice outdoors on Wonderwell’s new porch and to engage in silent walking meditation through the woods and fields. Lama Liz will offer an opening teaching, and the weekend will conclude with a hybrid Dharma Sunday from her Forest Teachings series, exploring the interwoven nature of mind, form, and relationship—inviting us to recognize our inseparability from the living world.

Held over both the summer solstice and Juneteenth weekend, this time offers a natural threshold for reflection—on cycles of light, history, and our shared belonging within a larger field of connection.

You are welcome to follow the offered structure or create your own rhythm of practice and rest. 

This residential retreat includes vegetarian meals for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, as well as access to tea and snacks throughout the day. Held on Wonderwell Mountain Refuge’s verdant campus in New Hampshire’s Upper Valley, the land itself becomes a companion in practice—offering space, beauty, and steady support for your time of retreat.

The retreat will conclude with a hybrid Dharma Sunday offering: Forest Teachings, Part Seven — Your Mind as a Celestial Star Map of Interconnection, taught by Lama Liz.

Typical Retreat Schedule

(All times are Eastern time zone)

First Day — Opening session begins around 7:00 pm.

Full-Day Schedule — Optional morning meditation 7:00 am; Breakfast 8:00 am; Lunch 12:00 pm; Dinner 5:30 pm. Optional evening session 7:00 pm.

Last Day —The retreat ends at 12:00 pm after Dharma Sunday and will be followed by a light potluck lunch.

These times are just for reference. A detailed schedule will be provided upon arrival. 

Important Health Information

COVID-19 testing is no longer required. Masks are optional and encouraged if you are at higher risk. We encourage you to stay at home if you are symptomatic to protect others.

Scholarships

Cancellation Policy

We understand that personal circumstances may require you to cancel your registration. In these cases, please contact us right away at register@naturaldharma.org. Cancellations affect our ability to offer rooms to others and create additional work for our staff, therefore we charge the following fees to help mitigate these costs.

For cancellations (based on program start date):

• > 45 days: 100% refund minus a $75 admin. fee.
• 31-45 days: 50% refund of the required deposit; or 75% refund if registration paid in full.
• 21-30 days: 50% refund of total registration cost
• < 21 days: nonrefundable

If you must cancel due to an emergency or extenuating circumstances, please contact us at register@naturaldharma.org.

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