Important Information & FAQs

What’s included in the price:

4 night stay in luxurious and cozy rooms
All meals, snacks and refreshments
Private photographer capturing the weekend’s beauty (including you!)
Locally sourced food, farm to table style
Gift box with specially curated items
6 yoga classes & 3 lectures/workshops
Optional activities which include, cold plunges, movie nights, hikes, games, and therapeutic treatments.
Complimentary shuttle to/from Fulford Harbour or Ganges Harbour

Add-ons

There are highly skilled practitioners on the Salt Spring Island whose offerings include massage, hot stones, acupuncture, tonal sound vibrations & aromatherapy.

What’s not included:

Transportation to and from the venue.
Any drinks and snacks you may want to snuggle up to in your room, or outside the pre-determined meal times.

Quick & important notes about the retreat:

Location – Stowel Lake Farm is at 190 Reynolds Road on Salt Spring Island. Retreat guests will need to make their way to Salt Spring Island by foot, automobile, ferry, or airplane
Breathtaking Facility – Stowel Lake is a thriving and productive organic farm. Food and plants are grown with the intention of regenerating and restoring the land and between the Gatehouse and the Barn there is a well established and beautiful perennial garden. The farm team is excited to share more about the farming practices through interactive farm tours that can be provided during your stay.
Forest Bathing – Salt Spring Island has incredible hiking year round, so bring your hiking shoes and get ready to move your body.
Soothing Yoga Space – This building has high, curved ceilings, cherry wood floors and large windows that allow panoramic views of our farm and the natural environment. The space is warm, light and beautifully handcrafted by local woodworkers.
Cozy Bedding – Each bed has a very comfortable mattress, duvet blankets and inviting pillows that make you want to stay in bed all day.
Ample Downtime – Jump in the ocean, take a nap, read a book in the forest, write in your journal, go for a hike, or bring an art project to work on. We want you to feel pampered, so the real question is, if you had nobody to please or to care for, how would YOU spend your time?
Delicious meals – I have always loved cooking with friends and for friends. Expect deliciously baked goods, protein and vegetarian selections.

The Retreat Centre:

Stowel Lake Farm is a unique location to hold a wide variety of wellness retreats. As an established community of people who have lived and worked together for many years, the Farm team welcomes retreat groups to experience the beauty of the land and community living. During retreats, guests are free to roam the property and organic gardens, but time will mostly be spent in the guest accommodations, the Gatehouse, the Barn, and the Village Building.

The Yoga Space – The Gatehouse

Within the Gatehouse building is a welcoming entrance, three bathrooms, two rooms for accommodation and our studio space. The Gatehouse is an inspiring space to hold a variety of wellness activities including yoga, dance and meditation. This building has high, curved ceilings, cherry wood floors and large windows that allow panoramic views of our farm and the natural environment. The space is warm, light and beautifully handcrafted by local woodworkers.

Where will we eat and relax as a group? – The Barn

The Barn building houses our custom kitchen and dining area. The 40 year old Barn was beautifully renovated preserving original timbers and is both comfortable and lovely. The upstairs is a spacious area for dining with tables and chairs and a cozy area with couches and a wood-burning stove.

Although the Barn is beautiful and modern, its bones are historic . The original Barn was built by Lisa when she moved to the farm and started raising lamb and then boarding horses. Renovations and structural upgrades, with a touch of creativity, have turned it into the beautiful space that it is today.

Accommodations:

Accommodations for retreat guests are in the Village Building, the Gatehouse, the Bath House and the Yurts. There are 34 beds in total, including the retreat leaders. There are a variety of accommodations ranging from private suites to shared rooms. Guests will enjoy clean, comfortable bedding with duvets and towels. To support guests in having a true respite, Stowel Lake Farm does not have phones or TVs in any of the rooms.

FAQs

Can I bring my pet with me?

There are many domestic and wild animals on the farm – please leave pets at home.

What activities can I do during my free time?

Nap, take a long bath, read a book in the forest, write in your journal, go for a hike, or bring an art project to work on. We want you to feel pampered, so the real question is, if you had nobody to please or to care for, how would YOU spend your time?

What will the food be like?

The standard cuisine at the farm is vegetarian with the menu changing daily to incorporate ingredients from the gardens. Chefs prepare each dish with care and attention to detail. Daily meals are wholesome, nourishing and beautiful. Organic whole grains, local dairy and fresh baking complement the vegetables and fruits fresh from the farm. Healthy and delicious meals are a significant part of the retreat experience at Stowel Lake Farm. Once you’ve signed up for the retreat, we’ll reach out to you for any dietary restrictions you would like to be incorporated. Generally speaking, all meals will be Paleo in nature with local ingredients where possible. And of course, we’ll be serving meat proteins for dinner.

In previous years participants helped with meal prep and clean up, is that still happening?

Not this year. We hope this will give everyone more time to rest and get to know each other.

Who’s this retreat for?

You day dream about being pampered
You occasionally swear
It’s been a long time since you paused and let yourself bask in stillness, laughter and self care
You’ve got the type of life where you sometimes cram yoga into it
You enjoy good food
You love good conversations but get nervous about meeting new people in groups
You’re open and willing to make new friends who are probably more like you than you know

Do I need to be good at yoga?

YES, just kidding. Come as you are, however you are, but please be curious about trying out different styles of yoga when you are here. Like a sampling menu, you’ll get a little bit of everything.

What kind of yoga will you be teaching?

Meditation, community discussion, slow vinyasa, and restorative yoga (with lots of massages during class).

Will the yoga classes be sweaty?

Many of you are accustomed to the hot room, so the room temperature yoga classes might make you feel cooler than usual. It’s possible you’ll get warm during the vinyasa classes, so bring loads of layers. I’d recommend bringing a hoodie and long socks for each class.

Can I bring alcohol?

Not all folks who attend these retreats have the healthiest relationship with alcohol and oftentimes feel pressured to have fun with those who are drinking. And for this reason I’d like to encourage everyone to leave the alcohol at home for this retreat. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for honouring this request.

I don’t sleep well, will there be quiet hours so folks aren’t up all night gabbing?

Yes. All indoor spaces are quiet as of 10:30 PM each night. This doesn’t mean you can’t relax in the living room and visit with your friends. It just means if you want to play music, and have louder conversations it would be lovely if you could cozy up outside down at the fire, and you can stay up as late as you’d like.

Will I be able to connect to the outside world?

Of course! Your phones will have cell phone reception and all the buildings have great internet connection.

What do I need to bring?

Yoga mat
Bolster if you have one
Journal or book if you wish
Clothing for yoga classes that is loose fitting and layered.
Warm clothing to get cozy in
Rain gear and boots if you know you want to explore regardless of the weather
Any foods that you can’t live without (all meals will be provided for you, but sometimes it’s nice to have something for the late night munchies. Oh, and you’ll have access to a fridge).
Toiletries

Do you have a payment plan?

Yes, there are few ways to pay:

Full Amount Up Front – You can pay for your spot by selecting one of the rooms and putting the amount on your credit card. You can also e-transfer the full amount to [email protected] and and then email me to let me know which room you have selected. Please remember to add GST to your room rate.
Deposit & Scheduled Payment Dates – You can pay $500 to hold your spot. From what is left owing, 50% is due June 1st and the final 50% is due no later than October 1, 2024. In this scenario, you’ll email [email protected] to let me know which room option you want. From there, I’ll confirm the room you want is available. Once confirmed, you can e-transfer $500 to me and I’ll send you an invoice to show the payment history. This invoice will also include the dates and amounts left outstanding and when they are due.

Do you have a sliding scale Option?

We don’t at this time. However, the facility does have the capacity to host folks wanting to stay in tents. While we aren’t advertising this as an option, if you would like to reduce the cost of your retreat, we can look into this as an option. Please let me know if this is something you are interested in?

CANCELLATION POLICY:

What happens if I have to cancel?

If you are able to give us enough notice that we can fill your spot with somebody else, we’ll refund all but $250 of whatever you have paid to go on retreat. In situations where you can’t provide us with enough notice where we can fill your spot, your $500 deposit will not be returned.

CONTACT:

Have questions that I didn’t cover here? Email me at [email protected] and I’d be happy to respond.