The Village At The Edge Of The World (27 July - 1 Aug)

A week-long mountain adventure in the UK wilderness for those wanting to gain confidence and guidance from nature and community.

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(Apply here for a bursary place)

Dates: 2pm, Saturday 27th – 2pm, Thursday 1st August 2024

Location: A wild mountain basecamp in the Southern Lake District, near Grizebeck, Kirkby-in-Furness, LA17 7XN (exact location provided on sign up)

Age: There is great value in a diversity of life experience and age is part of this. We welcome everyone over 18 + years to take part.

No. of participants: 12 (+ 4 staff)

Join to discover what happens when we tune in to the wisdom of nature, when we choose to put our phones away and give ourselves time to notice our bodies in the present, our stories of the past and our dreams for the future.

When we do this together, being witnessed and witnessing each other, listening to and learning from the land, helping each other to be our most authentic selves, we connect with how a more liberating and just future might feel!

Participant Testimonials

My heart is still so full and I’ll be holding this feeling for a while I believe. Thank you so much for you patience, understanding and encouragement. For the first time in a long time I could see, feel, touch, hear and smell a life I’ve envisioned for myself.
Hafsa2023 participant
Throughout the experience, I felt supported in a way that I'm not sure I've felt supported by before. Leaving the "The Village '' brought mixed emotions. I felt happy to have had so much fun and started some beautiful friendships but I was also sad to leave the group and not be unzipping my tent to take part in another extraordinary day.
James2022 Participant
"If you are in a rut, struggling with mental health, issues at home, feeling lost, unsure of your purpose do The Village! Take a risk, come for a week, challenge yourself, meet new people similar but different to you, you wont regret it, you will leave with a fresh perspective on life, a fresh mind and how you truly feel inside. The Visionaries gave me the best support that they could give, a safe space, you invited you into everything we do, considerate of your needs, encourage and create an amazing community. Their work is creating a legacy in our world."
Charli2022 Participant
"An activity that had an incredibly profound impact on me was the nature solo. We were sent into the wilderness alone - no phones, no books, no pens, just ourselves. I went into the vision fast with the affirmation, 'I trust in my path'. Out there in the wilderness, there were no distractions. There was nothing external to me influencing my thinking. While I was out there, I felt like I could own my thoughts, own my time, and own my 'self'. I had some candid revelations about where and how I hold myself back. I held a ceremony for my mum, who died when I was five - it just so happened to be her birthday that day. By the time the fast ended, my affirmations were 'I am on my path', 'I am true to my heart', and 'I have a beautiful family'."
Nadège2021 participant
“I have struggled to capture my experience on The Village at the End of the World as it is something that breathes within my dreams. The time in nature brought me closer to myself and to a community of people who I am now blessed to call friends. Each time I feel the wind or marvel at a falling leaf I feel a part of it and despite what storms I may be trying to conceal within my body I am kinder, understanding that Earth has its well placed seasons we all must weather.”
Georgia2022 participant

Check out the Village Video Playlist

The Village Video Playlist

✅ THIS EXPERIENCE IS FOR YOU IF YOU…

  • Want to develop your relationship and connection to yourself, to others and to the more-than-human environment
  • Want to connect to new people and feed your imagination and creativity
  • Want to learn new skills and practices to support your wellbeing
  • Want to slow down
  • Want support with your ongoing self and personal development journey
  • Want to acknowledge your dreams, speak, embody, share and support other people's dreams
  • Want to hear the voices of other people with different stories and dreams than you
  • Want to be part of a community on a hill, tending to the fire and to the dreams of each other
OK, I’M INTERESTED. SO, WHAT CAN I EXPECT?

➤ Community living – you’ll be getting a chance to live, work and form real human connections with like-minded people. Shaping the way you want to live and coexist for the week.

➤ Space to grow and be yourself – In addition to community living this change of pace from your day-to-day life will give you:

  • Time to enjoy some solitude
  • Space to reflect on your purpose/place in the world
  • A change of scenery to help inspire your journey of self-discovery

➤ Resourcing and sustaining your mental health – Navigating modern life can take a toll on our mental health. During this one week adventure we’ll provide you with guidance, tools and practical ways to maintain your mental wellbeing in your daily life.

➤ Connecting with nature – Whether its a mountain walk, the nature solo (see below), wild swimming or sitting round the fire, you’ll get a chance to be closer to nature than ever before, learning about the environment we inhabit and the best ways to take care of it.

➤ A  ‘Nature Solo‘ – You are invited to embark on an optional ‘nature solo’, where you will find a private spot in the wild away from the group to spend a day or in solitude in nature. You will go without any of the usual modern distractions, (including food!, to create space to notice, be present and connect more deeply with life.

This is an ancient practice that has existed in different forms in almost every human culture throughout time. We will spend the week preparing for this experience and feedback tells us it’s often the most transformative part of the week (see Nadège’s quote below). You can also read more about the WHY and HOW of nature solo’s here.

➤ Develop ideas for the future – As part of this adventure we would like to encourage you to step into your visionary self: exploring the edge of what we know by developing ideas that’ll positively help the world, and figuring out how to execute them.

Image Gallery

BASECAMP

Our basecamp is nestled in the mountains with scenic views over the Southern Lakes. There are two compost toilets on site and a beautiful fire-powered outdoor shower. A central camp tent provides an outdoor kitchen and social space for us to gather.

We can walk directly into the mountains from the campsite as well as being a short drive from some of the bigger mountain climbs and lakes. The campground is large enough for each person to find a quiet spot away from the group or to camp together.

Check out the site Here

YOUR GUIDES

The retreat is delivered by two Lead Guides with support from two assistant guides, from our network of trained and trainee facilitators.

All guides are DBS checked and are experts in taking groups through deep transformative journeys in the wild. We ensure the diversity of the group is represented in our guiding team as much as possible.

LEAD GUIDES

Katie Rowan

Katie began working with people in nature in 2005 following an unlikely ‘vision’ in New Zealand that showed her, a city girl up until that point, guiding people in nature. This experience acted as a golden thread and lead her to nature based education. Training as a forest school leader on returning to the UK.

Working with young people unveiled a grief in the lack of positive, guided rites of passage experiences within the dominant culture. Whilst simultaneously seeking her own wild healing and navigating life’s initiations Katie followed the thread to the vision fast ceremony and went to California to train as a vision quest guide with the School of Lost borders in California in 2015, enabling her to support threshold experiences in wild nature. She has led groups of children, teens and adults in nature and land based education for many years now, including 4 years at Embercombe in Devon and four years as the co- lead on the Wild Time programme, a rites of passage journey for teenage girls.
Katie loves putting on her pack and being immersed in wild places, marking the seasons, foraging and making. She is passionate about developing community and its role in honouring the important thresholds of our lives. Katie loves sitting around a fire with people sharing songs, music and stories.

Amy Cooper

Amy is Rural Vibrancy Facilitator. What does this mean? Well… hard to put in a box, Amy is a food grower, facilitator, shape-shifter, creator, dancer, mentor, companion, friend, critical friend, editor, provocateur, nurturer, activator, producer, fast learner, adapter, explorer. She is an incredible nature guide and activator of people, their skills, their confidence, connection and their projects.

Amy supports meaningful progress, effective process, wellbeing and health amongst people and the natural resources we rely on to live. Amy has been running The Village for 2 years and working with The Visionaries since we started.  She has made a nature documentary, run a restaurant with children under 14 years old, facilitated countless workshops through movement and so much more. You’re in good hands!

TICKETS

Tickets are available at different four price points. Please be mindful that if you purchase a ticket at the lowest end of our sliding scale when you can truthfully afford a higher ticket price, you are limiting access to those who truly need a bursary place. Thanks for your help promoting economic justice!

! Figure out how much to pay by using our sliding scale guide !

➤ Pay it Forward : £600 (pays for you & funds a bursary place thus widening access to those in a less financially privileged position)
➤ Standard : £550
➤ Supported : £300
➤ Bursary* – £50 To apply, see here

🎫 Bursary tickets

We believe nature belongs to everyone and making it more accessible is one of our main priorities.

Spending time in nature is proven to significantly increase our mental and physical wellbeing. But those who stand to gain the most from nature are often systemically deprived of it.

More must be done to overcome barriers to nature access – and financial barriers are one place we can start. Our aim, by providing these funded places, is to help support an urgent transition to a more nature-connected life, for everyone.

If you’ve experienced marginalisation and want to reap the benefits of spending a week immersed in nature, please apply today!

Click here to apply for a bursary place.

Book Now

❓- Frequently Asked Questions

➤ Yes. Doubt is a totally normal, healthy and human response to any new opportunity. This course has been designed with beginners and those early on in their environmental and education careers in mind. You will get all of the support and time you need from us and your peers. We believe anyone with an open mind and a collaborative attitude can easily complete this training.

➤ Consent is key for us – we will never make you to do anything you don’t wish to and you will be supported to meet any challenges gently and in gradual stages .

We ask participants to organise their own travel, and to meet us at Ulverston train station at 2pm on the start date of the camp. We will travel to the campsite from the train station together, which is about a 15 minute drive.

Travel is at your own cost so we advise if you to book early if you are getting the train, and to use a railcard if you have one!

If you are travelling by car, please meet us at the train station at 2pm and let us know if you have space for others as this may be helpful to the group!

➤ Great, we’re here to help you get experienced!

➤ We have camping gear that we can lend as necessary and will teach you how to use confidently.

➤ The things I feared most going into the camp and thought I would find most challenging, like the rain and cold, bats, slugs and bugs, and using an outdoor shower and toilet, ended up being the things I most appreciated. I faced my fears in a gentle and supported way, which has enabled me to see myself in a different, more capable way. So grateful to The Visionaries team for allowing me to be a part of this life-changing experience.” – Nadege Rene, past participant with The Visionaries*

➤ We recognise that camping and the countryside can feel less familiar and sometimes daunting for many. AND all of our ancestors, no matter who we are, lived closely to the land. This is an opportunity to reconnect with that lineage.

➤ We know it can be challenging. As an organisation, The Visionaries have been successfully leading diverse groups on positive trips into the wild for 4+ years. As a course Faculty, we have 80+ years joint experience. We’ve got your back 🙂

➤ Everyone should be able to enjoy the outdoors, no matter what their experience or ability. If you have limited mobility, or are a wheelchair user, you will know that outdoor access can present challenges. We are committed to partnering with anyone in this position to try to maximise inclusion, and we will make necessary adjustments and do whatever we can to help you to participate.

➤ Wherever possible, the course takes places in fully accessible venues with disabled toilets – please see the course dates section for details. Please feel free to contact us to discuss specific details of the sites we will be using: hello@thevisionaries.org.uk

➤ If you are a wheelchair user who has never previously camped we would advise you against applying to this course this year. But please do feel free to contact us to discuss – and to come on one of our public camps to start your journey.

Absolutely! This is a practice we are deeply passionate about. You can read what it’s all about here. There are different ways of holding it, but at it’s core it’s a three phase process – preparation, threshold, return. The intention is to provide a ceremonial container within which all kinds of magic can stir up within and around you. It creates space to tune into questions such as ‘What are my gifts? What is the world asking of me? Who am I?’

We prepare you, physically, practically, emotionally, psychologically and spiritually to spend 24-hours alone in a spot of your choice in a wild place. The invitation (adn we do mean *invitation*) is to fast, to be with stillness and to go with as little distractions as possible – no phones, no notepad, no music, no food. Simply taking what you need to stay physically safe (e.g. a tarp, sleeping bag, some water and warm clothes). Tuning out of all of these things allows you to tune in to the wisdom in nature, something we rarely do.

Check out our testimonials

We can provide subsidised places to those who need it thanks to generous support from the Ramblers Worldwide Outdoor Trust, who are also committed to getting more young people engaged in the outdoors.

Pre-camp – It’s important to us that you feel prepared and well supported arriving at camp. So we will have a pre-camp onboarding call with you so you can meet one of your guides and ask any questions you might have. This is also a great chance for us to hear your intentions for joining.

Post-camp – we have a growing calendar of events, taking place across the country. Villagers often get together at our events or they organise their own meetups. We also offer a post-camp 1-2-1 debrief with one of the guides, to help integrate the experience back into your everyday life.

Please don’t hesitate to get in touch:

hello@thevisionaries.org.uk

Still can’t decide? Why not check out our Instagram to see more photos and videos from previous Village camps.

ABUNDANT TICKETFor those who can pay-it-forward£600

  •  I never struggle to meet my basic needs*
  •  I own my home or property OR I rent a higher-end property
  •  I own a car
  •  I am employed OR I do not need to work to meet my needs
  •  I have access to savings
  •  I have expendable income**
  •  I regularly buy new items
  •  I can easily afford more than one holiday a year
Buy TICKET

STANDARD TICKETFor those who can pay the cost of the service£550

  •  I am comfortably able to meet all of my basic needs*
  •  I may have some debt but it doesn’t prohibit the attainment of basic needs*
  •  I own my home or property OR I rent a higher-end property
  •  I own a car
  •  I am employed OR I do not need to work to meet my needs
  •  I have access to savings
  •  I have expendable income**
  •  I can afford to buy new items
  •  I can afford an annual holiday, or to take time off work
Buy TICKET

SUBSIDISED TICKETfor those in the middle of our sliding scale£300

  •  I may stress about meeting my basic needs but still regularly achieve them*
  •  I may have some debt but it does not prohibit my attainment of basic needs*
  •  I rent a mid-level flat/property and have stable housing
  •  I own or lease a car
  •  I am employed
  •  I might have access to financial savings
  •  I have expendable income**
  •  I am able to buy some new and second hand items
  •  I take a holiday annually or every few years without financial burden
Buy TICKET

BURSARY TICKETfor those at the bottom end of our sliding scale£50

  •  I frequently stress about meeting basic needs + don’t always achieve them*
  •  I have debt and it sometimes prohibits me from meeting my basic needs*
  •  I rent a lower-end flat/property or have unstable housing
  •  I do not have a car or access to a car
  •  I am unemployed or underemployed
  •  I qualify for government assistance
  •  I have no access to savings
  •  I have no or very limited expendable income**
  •  I rarely buy new items because I’m unable to afford them
  •  I cannot afford a holiday or to take time off without financial burden
APPLY FOR IT