A Gateless Writing Retreat for the Salmon Spawn

A Gateless Writing Retreat for the Salmon Spawn in the Coastal Mountains of Oregon

Vernonia, Oregon

YogaFarm is a 1.5 hour drive from the Portland Airport (PDX). Please plan to arrive at the farm by 4pm on Thursday to get settled in and unwind. Dinner will be served at 6pm. Retreat will end after lunch on Sunday. (Departing flights after 4 pm will be safe.)

A 4-day Gateless Writing Retreat in the coastal mountains of Oregon, timed for the majesty of the Pacific Northwest salmon spawn, one of the most magnificent and sacred passages of any creature, in a part of Oregon that will stir you to your bones. Each year, salmon make this journey from the open ocean, upriver, against current, to almost the exact location of their birth. Home. They make this journey to spawn their eggs into the very same waters, and then they die. A cycle of life before our very eyes, a miracle of instinct, sacrifice, and memory.

We gather together to write our own journey. To touch the deepest centers of home, to deposit new life onto the page, to let die what needs to die, to give ourselves to the right rhythm of cycles. Autumn is nature’s call back to itself. Inward. Downward. Homeward. To self. To soul.

We will spend these days together, nestled into the handmade elegance and serenity of YogaFarm, a private retreat center and home, surrounded by three sides of fresh river and creek, 1st and 2nd growth trees. A handbuilt farmhouse to hold us, blazing fire and warm hearth, 3 writing sessions a day, luscious and relaxing bodywork from the magic hands of Liz Wiig (brought to you all the way from Colorado), nourishing meals around a loooong wooden farm table, walks on the land, a luxurious sweat in the dry sauna, your own practice in the in-home yoga-studio, laughter, depth, and community…all to court your muse on the page, celebrate its unique voice, and stoke the fire of your creative drum.

You will walk away nourished and smitten, vibrant and with sturdy faith in the spirit of the words and art that move through you.

Learn more about Gateless Writing here.