BIOPHILIA
April 3-5 in West Marin
Arrival: between 2-3pm on Friday
Departure: Sunday afternoon
Basecamp: Olema Campground
What does it mean to practice love with a mountain or creek or valley? To belong to a forest when smoke hangs on the horizon?
How can we hold the grief of unimaginable loss with the wonder of being alive on Earth now?
When all certainties seem to dissolve, how might intimacy with the more-than-human world become a radical kind of compass?
We warmly invite you to join us in the enchanting homelands of the Coast Miwok people for a weekend ceremony exploring the expansive notion of biophilia...
What is this, you ask? We don’t entirely claim to know — only that its limbs are wild and branching and it arrived like a lightning bolt wanting to be walked with and sung to.
Rooting this invitation in the complex soil of these times, over three days we will support one another in asking the courageous and even impossible questions that wait at the thresholds of our hearts. Through counsel, mirroring, and spacious time on the land, we will weave a collective web that can hold us as we step across the threshold.
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On Saturday morning, will wake in silence and travel a few minutes down the road to Point Reyes National Seashore. Together, we will construct a threshold that will transport us into a day-long wander (or dance or draw or sit!) with the land.
Your solo time is the beating heart of this ceremony — an opportunity to enter into conversation, in whatever way calls to you, with the more-than-human world. We’ll share ideas for creative ways to engage your time “out there” when we’re together — including doing nothing!
On Saturday at dusk, we will reunite for a cozy dinner and campfire under the stars. On Sunday morning, we will gather to share stories from the land and mirror the gifts of one another’s experiences.
Threshold + Solo
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If this is your first time joining us — hooray!! Expect an enthusiastic welcome, nourishing time in community, and ceremonial time with yourself in a land of blooming irises and verdant wonder...
We invite you to come with whatever is on your heart — the ceremony can hold it all.
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These gatherings are co-woven by everyone involved. Do you have a beloved song to share, a somatic-something, a delicious poem, a favorite ritual, or a creative gift for the group? Do you have knowledge of this place’s first people or plants or geography, or know what’s happening in the skies right now? Your voice is so welcome (but also not required)! Reach out to us if you have something you’d like to weave into the ceremony.
You’re also invited to bring items to add to our Spring altar (non-traditional altar items welcome!)
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“The soup is always amazing…” And there is always soup! 🍲
Please come prepared with an easy dinner for yourself for Friday night.
To break our fast after our Day Walk on Saturday, we will be creating a big Stone Soup for us all to share. Please bring your extra veggies, cans of yummy soup-stuff, etc. Let’s keep this vegan and gluten-free.
We also welcome contributions of bread or other fun snacks to eat along with soup.
Other Meals:
Please arrive having eaten a hearty lunch on Friday. We will be in counsel on Friday afternoon until dinnertime.
On Saturday morning, we will be waking in silence, enjoying hot morning beverages, and then fasting (if desired) until dinner. If you’d like to eat on Saturday, come prepared with snacks / meals to take with you in your daypack. We will be away from camp most of the day.
Please come prepared with breakfast and lunch for yourself for Sunday (at camp) as well. We will be concluding our time together on Sunday the early afternoon.
We will have group stoves, pots, and basic cooking supplies that everyone can use at our campsite.
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A suggested packing list (with a poem!) is linked to here. If you don’t have an item you need, please reach out — we likely have extras and will be glad to share.
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Please arrive between 2-3pm on Friday, April 3rd to set up camp before we begin the ceremony. Bonus points for arriving early as we will begin our time together promptly at 3pm.
Departure: We will conclude our time together on Sunday in the early afternoon.
Our campsite has space for only four cars, so we will be asking some folks park nearby and carpool.
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April days can be pleasantly warm (highs in the upper 70’s) and can also be very cool, gusty, and even rainy.
Point Reyes National Seashore can also experience high winds. Please come with ample warm layers, including a rain fly for your tent. We also recommend a big blanket to put over your sleeping bag as nighttime temps could be in the 40’s.
We will be building campfires both nights.
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Camping fee: To cover the cost of our group campsites, we’ll request $50 as a camping fee from everyone (including ceremony co-weavers). If this poses a financial hardship, don’t hesitate to reach out — there are many forms of creative reciprocity available (fire tender! dish fairies!) we are always down to get creative.
These gatherings are donation-based and no one is turned away for lack of funds 🩵
If you are able to donate, we deeply appreciate your support! We spend many hours planning these gatherings, and your donation makes possible communal food purchases and supports future participants in need of gift funds.
We welcome sliding scale donations of $75-$375 (in addition to your camping fee). You can pay this on the sign-up page (see button below) or in person.
10% of all collected donations will be gifted forward to support the Alliance for Felix Cove, an organization advocating for the protection and restoration of the only remaining 19th century Tomalko (Coast Miwok Tomales Bay)-built home at Felix Cove (known as Laird’s Landing), part of Point Reyes National Seashore.
This donation is one form of reciprocity — we'll discuss more ways to engage when we're together.
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Q: Can I invite more friends?
A: Check in with us! We are limited to 12 humans at our campsite, though may have several local friends joining us who are sleeping at home.
Q: Can I bring my dog?
A: Though Olema Campground allows dogs (on leash), the area where we’ll be going for our Day Walk does not. Believe us, we’re dog people, but probably best to leave your furbaby at home this time (or if you’re local, have them join us while we’re at camp and leave them at home on Saturday).
Have more questions? Don’t hesitate to reach out to us at hello@midnightsunjourneys.com
Ready to dive in?
