Retreat Program Overview

With Buddha, Dharma and Sangha as our guides, this retreat explores re-cognizing and re-membering ourselves as part of a living, intelligent Earth. By practicing to know ourselves differently, we uncover a sense of reverence for the Web of Life that opens us to the sacred, self-regenerative capacity of the biosphere we belong to. By not rushing to find answers and learning to trust the healing recalibration of the Earth acting through us, unexpected insights emerge.

In this retreat we will co-create a safe container that explores different ways of engaging with our being, supporting us to realize a deeper sense of community with all of life. From this renewed sense of relationship a natural appreciation of accountability and care become available to in-form our next steps on the Path.

Practices offered include Dharma reflections, guided meditations, chanting, sharing and exploratory circles. You are invited to bring a capacity for body awareness in meditation and an open heart-mind for looking at your life and world differently.

Practitioners of all levels are welcome; no prior meditation experience is needed.

Retreat Site & Lodging

This retreat will reside at Shelterwood Collective, a Black, Indigenous, and LGBTQ-led community forest and retreat center. Comprised of 900+ acres, Shelterwood Collective is nestled above the Russian River in Sonoma County, CA, on Unceded Kashaya and Southern Pomo territory.

The majority of retreat practice will take place outdoors. There many gathering spaces in nature near camp. There is a loop trail that starts / ends at camp too. This trail is 3 miles on gravel and takes about 1.5 hours. There is another hike up to a natural clearing that looks out on neighboring ridgetops and a couple that meader along the creek. All of the hikes all require decent mobility. For more accessible paths, individuals are able to walk around camp and/or along the winding path for cars.

There are a couple lodges and a few smaller cabins that surround the camping meadow at Shelterwood. Each building has a fireplace, wood stove or portable electric heaters. And there are hot showers (indoors & out!) along with ADA accessible bathrooms. Participants in glamping and camping tents will need to walk to access bathrooms (less than 1 minute away).

Inside the Main Lodge, there is a commercial kitchen and a spacious meditation hall. Starting with dinner, we’ll enjoy 3 vegetarian meals / day along with access to snacks, tea and coffee throughout each day. The meditation hall faces large sliding glass doors that connect the space to the outdoors. If need be or after the sun sets, practice may be held indoors here. During nature retreats, weather and temperatures vary so we also provide a packing list to ensure comfort and safety.

Our sliding scale lodging options are listed below. Unless specified otherwise, lodging is all inclusive with a bed, bed frame, bedding and pillow. Visit our registration for more - Available Feb '26

• Fully private single cabins with bathroom & kitchenette

• Single bedrooms in shared cabins with bathroom & kitchenette

• Single pre-built glamping bell tents (w/ elevated cot, sleeping pad, sleeping bag and pillow)

• Twin bed in large shared bunk-room with bathroom (up to 3 ppl / room)

• Twin bed in large shared bunk-room (up to 4 ppl / room)

• BYOTents or Vans (participants to bring their own sleeping amenities - cot, pad, sleeping bag and pillow)

Retreat Cost

Our retreat fees only cover basic costs: food, cook, site fee, administration costs, and other incidental expenses. These fees are priced on a sliding scale (based on the lodging you choose) to allow each participant to pay for what is most appropriate for themselves. We also provide a scholarship option for those who are unable to pay our lowest sliding scale fee. Visit our registration for more - Available Feb '26

Retreat fees do NOT include compensation for Ayya Santacitta (time spent planning & teaching) or for Off-Grid Retreats (time spent organizing). On the final retreat day, you will be invited to share dana (AKA to donate) to the Retreat Teacher and to Off-Grid Retreats.

Dana, the Pali word for generosity, has supported Buddhist cultures for 2500 years. In Asia, monks & nuns offer teaching and lay people fill their begging bowls each morning as they walk through the village on alms rounds. It is a beautiful exchange in which the hearts of both giver and receiver are opened in joy and gratitude.

Cancellation Policy

If you request a refund before May 28, 2026 we're able to provide you a full refund minus an administrative fee (less than $100). If you request a refund between May 28, 2026 and August 28, 2026, we'll provide you with a 50% refund minus an administrative fee (less than $100). We’re unable to provide refunds after August 28, 2026.

To keep the retreat as affordable as possible, our retreat fees are set to simply cover the expenses of putting on the retreat—renting the venue, compensating retreat staff, etc. When someone drops out, we still incur all of those expenses. For this reason, we are unable to make exceptions to our cancellation policy—even when you have a very good reason for canceling. Thank you for your understanding.

Retreat Teacher - Ayya Santacitta

Venerable Santacitta Bhikkhuni began practicing meditation in 1988 in the forests of South Thailand. Her first teacher was Ajahn Buddhadasa, who sparked her interest in Buddhist monastic life.

In 1992 Ayya Santacitta joined Amaravati Buddhist Monastery near London, in the lineage of Ajahn Chah of the Thai Forest Tradition, where she trained for over 16 years as a nun. Another important influence was Shechen Rabjam Rinpoche, a Dzogchen master in the lineage of Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche, whom she first met in 2002. The splendor of the Tibetan tradition brought a new energetic quality to her practice, after cultivating a strong foundation in the Theravada tradition.

In 2008, a new door started to open when, on invitation of the Saranaloka Foundation, Ayya Santacitta co-founded Aloka Vihara in San Francisco, CA. After leaving the Ajahn Chah lineage in 2011 she took full ordination as bhikkhuni with Ayya Tathaloka as her preceptor. Over the years, the books and teachings on Early Buddhism by Analayo Bhikkhu have been a source of clarification for Ayya Santacitta's practice, supporting a return to the simplicity of the essence of the Buddha's original instructions.

In 2014 Aloka Vihara relocated for about eight years to the forests of the Sierra Foothills near Sacramento, CA. Since early 2023 Ayya Santacitta has resided at the Aloka Earth Room in San Rafael ~ a contemporary temple-space weaving together Dharma, Earth Awareness and art. Ayya Santacitta teaches retreats at Spirit Rock, IMS, Cloud Mountain, Big Bear Retreat Center and more as well as online groups and daylong retreats.

Ayya Santacitta may lead an abbreviated retreat teaching. Email asha@offgridretreats.org for Zoom info.