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Vitamin N (Lake District)

What is it?

An opportunity for 12 young people to join 2 experienced wilderness guides for an unforgettable 5 night camping experience in the Lake District, above Coniston Water, from Tuesday 18th – Sunday 23rd August 2020. As an small community we will top up on Vitamin N (‘N’ is for nature), reaping the benefits of deepening our connection to nature, and having a lot of fun along the way. By connecting to our wild side for a week, we feel empowered to live our most joyous lives.

What will we do?

As a group we will base ourselves at a remote campsite next to the lake, and together we will spend the week living together in the wild, cooking over the fire, swimming in the pristine lake, hiking through stunning mountains and taking part in a 24-hour ‘nature solo’ (more info on this below!).

A lot of this experience is about letting the magic of the mountains do it’s work on us! We adventure into the unknown, into the wild, to see who we could become, who we really want to be.

Who is it for?

15-20 year olds. You don’t need to have any previous camping experience. This experience is the perfect antidote to the pressures of modern teenage life and can be huge step in becoming a full independe. It’s a chance to go out and experience the world in a new way, learning about our own potential and seeing what’s possible in life. Participants often grow in confidence, make new lifelong friends, develop useful life skills and enhance their physical and emotional health. Some bits might be outside of your comfort zone, but that’s the whole point! It’s in doing things that feel a little edgy where we learn the most about ourselves and, more importantly, it’s where we grow! 

What will a typical day be like?

Each day will include an invigorating balance of adventures, personal enquiry and reflective practices that lay the foundation for participants to go out on their ‘nature solo’ – an important threshold that helps us to be the best version of ourselves.

We keep the schedule quite free and include a whole range of activities, that include hiking, lots of laughter, moving, swimming, art-making and creating, gentle scrambling, nature games, mindfulness practices, check-in circles, journaling, telling stories and connection to nature practices. We explore a whole range of topics over the course of the week, including individual purpose, identity, relationships, empathy, and leadership.

What is a ‘nature solo’ all about?

At the heart of the programme is this ‘nature solo’ – an opportunity for each participant to camp alone in the wild for 24 hours. This practice is inspired by traditional the rites of passage and ‘vision quests’ of many human cultures dating back millennia. This process helps individuals cross over the threshold into young adulthood, supporting a feeling of greater independence, self-reliance and ambition for life.

Each participant will pick a spot in nature, typically 36 feet in diameter, away from the others and spend an overnight in solitude, normally without shelter and without food (all by choice of course). This emptying out of modern distractions creates a valuable space for reflection and to simple ‘be’ and to see what emerges. It can be quite challenging but the benefits can be profound! This process can really help an individual to find their purpose in life, their role in society and feel more connected to the world around them. The following morning, each participant returns to rejoin the group, where we share their stories, and support each other to begin to incorporate their experiences into life after the programme.

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Why spend time in the wilderness?

Did you know there is such a thing called “The Wilderness Effect”, which has been backed up by scientific study. It states that after 3 days immersed in a wild environment our bodies start to relax and the restless energy we carry around with us slows down.

Spending time in nature has been a very normal part of every culture throughout history. However, modern life in the UK has meant that adolescents spend an increasing amount of time in front of screens, on technology or simply indoors, away from the wonders of the outside world.

Our programmes give participants a real-life adventure that develops a whole range of social and emotional skills, and strengths of character, that are often go under-developed in classroom-based education.

This programme will help participants develop skills such as creativity, problem solving, collaborative skills, empathy, leadership. Vital skills to tackle the challenges we currently face in society.

What is often missing is support around our emotional wellbeing, our mental as well as our physical health. Our brains get a lot of work in school, but often the rest of us is overlooked. All too often, we aren’t supported to develop the emotional resilience and skills to overcome life’s challenges.

Spending time in nature with a community of peers is a wonderful antidote to all this. It helps us to feel joyful, a sense of wonder towards the planet we live on and gives us self-belief to go out and live the kind of life we dream of.

What are the benefits?

After returning home from a Wilderness Programme and going back into everyday life, participants often notice how much they have grown as a result of this journey. They share that they feel;

  • More grounded, more centred, more mature
  • More confident
  • Happier
  • Have more self-acceptance
  • Less stressed
  • More motivated and driven
  • Developed leadership skills and independence
  • Have made new friends
Transport and Logistics

Camp Duration: Tuesday 18th – Sunday 23rd August 2020

Arrival
We will meet at Oxenholme train station on Tuesday 18th August 2020.

The optimal way to arrive is via train. From those coming from the south of the UK, there is a direct train from London Euston to Oxenholme (<3hrs).

Return
The programme will finish on Sunday 23rd August 2020 and we will return to Oxenholme train station at 12 noon for onward travel.

Don’t worry if you don’t know what to bring, we are here to help you to prepare.

Key Information

Date
Tuesday 18th – Sunday 23rd August 2020

Location
Coniston Water, Lake District

Cost
£595 per participant
On each programme we offer 4 bursary places, beginning at £365. Please email us at hello@thevisionaries.org.uk if you would like to discuss your eligibility for these.

Registration
Due to the nature of this programme, we require each participant to have a call together with a guide to ensure it is the right fit for you. To join the programme please fill out this form and a Visionaries guide will be in touch shortly.

About Us

10 Kendrick Mews

London

SW7 3HG

Contact email: hello@thevisionaries.org.uk

Reg. Company No.: 11748205

From Twitter

  • Amazing Mars (Sound On ) https://t.co/6ZGc6bLBrN
    February 18, 2021

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