About us
Connect more deeply to yourself, to the environment and to your community!
We are Off-Grid Retreats - a California nonprofit dedicated to providing camping and other close-to-nature (and comfortable!) mindfulness retreats and experiences. Think of us as a nomadic retreat center. We've partnered with several land stewards around the Bay Area; sites are typically a 3 hour drive from San Francisco. We are proud of our scholarship fund along with our sliding scale prices related to our lodging: Large Glamping Bell Tent, Medium Glamping Tent or BYOTent / Van.
We offer retreats on beautifully rustic and intentional pieces of land depending on whatever season is best suited for camping in the area. We also collaborate with loads of local and certified teachers (i.e. meditation, mindfulness, yoga, etc) to lead our events.
No mindfulness or meditation experience is required to participate in our retreats - Just come with a willingness to learn and to respect and connect to the natural world and communities around you.
Our event and retreat programs vary based on the teacher(s) we're collaborating with. So far we've offered these two types of retreats for 4 days and 3 nights: mindfulness nature-based retreats and traditional silent retreats (but in nature). We always offer a free informational Zoom so those who are interested can learn more about the upcoming retreat's specific program and teacher along with meeting other people who are interested in attending. We are beginning to offer shorter in person events as well in various neighborhood parks in San Francisco. Some of these on the horizon incorporate mindful breathing, mindful walking, mindful birding, guided meditation and so on.
For more information and/or to ask any questions, feel free to contact us here and/or visit our website offgridretreats.org.
Upcoming events
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Joy in Nature: Resourcing Resilience Through Meditation, Ritual & Song
Shelterwood Collective, 23500 King Ridge Rd, Cazadero, CA, USLed by Lev, Ore & Jenn, this retreat is for queer and trans people of color (QTPOC) and our larger LGBTQ+ Community. By engaging with Joy as a value, and Nature as our teacher, we believe we will be more resourced and ready to show up for ourselves and our community from a place of wholeness. This retreat includes mindfulness practice, ritual, song and embodied exercises to root, play and envision more clearly the world we want to live in. Practitioners of all levels are welcome. This retreat is also dana (AKA donation) based so our fees are only set to cover the cost of vegetarian meals and lodging (indoor, glamping, camping and BYOTent).
Lev Michael Moses (AKA Fresh!) is a love and compassion activist. He graduated from Spirit Rock’s Dedicated Practitioner and Community Dharma Leadership programs. He also received coaching and leadership certifications from the Co-Active Training Institute. He is mindfully grounded at the East Bay Meditation Center. He teaches and coaches individuals, households and professional teams on secular mindfulness, non-secular meditation and diversity.
Ore Ganin-Pinto is an ordained interfaith spiritual care counselor and ritualist. They started Bones and Breath Chaplaincy to provide End-of-Life Doula services, Spiritual Counseling, and Life Cycle Ceremonies. They received ordination from the Chaplaincy Institute and a Masters of Divinity from Starr King School for the Ministry. They weave their Ashkenazi and Moroccan Jewish roots with earth-based animist and liberation practices.
Jenn Biehn has taught mindful movement practices (tai chi, qigong, etc) for the past 35 years. She serves on the Leadership Sangha at East Bay Meditation Center and co-founded several of their peer-led sanghas. She teaches Transforming White Privilege on the Path to Racial Equity and provided mentorship in Braiding Wisdom’s Leadership Training Program. She also supports younger spiritual seekers by accompanying them on side-by-side solo wilderness retreats.
Off-Grid Retreats is a nonprofit headquartered in San Francisco with the mission of connecting people to nature through a contemplative lens. We support certified teachers to bring their offerings outside so more people can access guided mindfulness / meditation / movement / etc in nature. We offer scholarships and providing sliding scale tickets to our retreats. We also coordinate a nature practice fellowship, rentals and overnights for other nonprofits.
For more info, please go to offgridretreats.org/events/april2026dharma
1 attendeeBeing Free in the Flow of Life
Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park, 101 N Big Trees Park Rd, Felton, CA, USWhether you are new to mindfulness or deepening your practice, this silent retreat is for folks interested in mindfulness, vipassanā meditation and practicing outdoors. You’ll be supported by guided insight meditation both sitting and walking, dharma talks, and meetings with the teachers Marjolein & Tanya. We’ll spend most of our time in nature, weather permitting. We’ll have access to an amazing network trails as our site borders Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park. This retreat is also dana (AKA donation) based so our fees are only set to cover the cost of vegetarian meals and lodging (glamping, camping and BYOTent).
Marjolein Janssen began practicing insight meditation intensively in 2011. She was ordained as a Buddhist in Myanmar and is currently training as a Retreat Dharma Teacher and a Nature Dharma Retreat Teacher. She is the Guiding Teacher at the Insight Meditation Community, leads online meditation for Insight Meditation Center and teaches nature retreats in the US and Europe. Her deep love for the natural world and the Dhamma form the foundations for her teachings.
Tanya Wiser, LCSW SEP, teaches at Insight Meditation Center in Redwood City, CA. She works full-time as a mindfulness-based therapist, integrating her mindfulness, compassion, and somatic therapy training with insights from direct engagement with Buddhist teachings. She draws from the teachings of her Western Theravada teachers, Gil Fronsdal and Andrea Fella who fully authorized her as a teacher in 2025.
Off-Grid Retreats is a nonprofit headquartered in San Francisco with the mission of connecting people to nature through a contemplative lens. We support certified teachers to bring their offerings outside so more people can access guided mindfulness / meditation / movement / etc in nature. We offer scholarships and providing sliding scale tickets to our retreats. We also coordinate a nature practice fellowship, rentals and overnights for other nonprofits.
For more info, please go to offgridretreats.org/events/may2026being
2 attendeesGrounded and Spacious, Earth and Sky: A Women’s Mindfulness Retreat in Nature
Bell Valley Retreat at The Toll House, 12378 Boonville Rd, Boonville, CA, USDuring these times of ecological crisis, we must set aside time for ourselves and for our community to connect outdoors. Led by Anne & Kate, women identifying participants are welcome to participate in this silent Vipassana meditation & yoga retreat rooted in nature. Spend much of each day outdoors, practicing meditation & gentle guided yoga (trauma sensitive and accessible for all bodies). This retreat is also dana (AKA donation) based so our fees are only set to cover the cost of vegetarian meals and lodging (indoor & glamping tent options).
Anne Cushman trains thousands of teachers in mindfulness meditation through guiding the MMTCP. She’s the author of numerous books and she founded the first multi-year Buddhist meditation training at Spirit Rock for yoga teachers. She mentors mindfulness practitioners and writers worldwide focusing on creativity, embodiment, connection with nature, and daily life practice.
Kate Munding is a Founding Mother and guiding teacher of Assaya Sangha, a women’s insight meditation community. To name a couple centers, she teaches residential retreats at Spirit Rock and Vallecitos Mountain Retreat Center. Fostering spiritual community and creating space for women to dive deep into their Dharma practice is a great passion of hers.
Off-Grid Retreats is a nonprofit headquartered in San Francisco with the mission of connecting people to nature through a contemplative lens. We support certified teachers to bring their offerings outside so more people can access guided mindfulness / meditation / movement / etc in nature. We offer scholarships and providing sliding scale tickets to our retreats. We also coordinate a nature practice fellowship, rentals and overnights for other nonprofits.
For more info, please go to offgridretreats.org/events/may2026grounded
1 attendeeConnect with the Earth & Discover Yourself: An Eco Somatic Nature Immersion
Black Mountain Ranch, Pt. Reyes - Petaluma Rd, Petaluma, CA, USLed by Erin Carper, embrace mindfulness and movement practices along with guided visualizations. All are welcome regardless of whether you are new to retreats, camping, meditation, etc. Our campsite is positioned on a hill, with views of rolling hills, open sky, and the lovely Black Mountain. We’ll orient ourselves by spending time hiking in the wild areas around the camp. Learn to observe nature through the eyes of a Naturalist! At the end of this retreat, you will have practices to bring home with you to connect with the environment you live in. This retreat is also dana (AKA donation) based so our fees are only set to cover the cost of vegetarian meals and lodging (camping and BYOTent).
Erin is a Eco Somatic & Rites of Passage Guide. In 2019, she completed the Somatic Ecopsychology and Wilderness Quest Apprentice Program at the TerraSoma Ecopsychology Training Institute. She is a certified Wilderness First Responder and a certified California Naturalist. She also continues to study Earth based ceremonial practices, holistic coaching, Hakomi, Internal Family Systems, and other mindfulness-centered somatic therapeutic skills.
Off-Grid Retreats is a nonprofit headquartered in San Francisco with the mission of connecting people to nature through a contemplative lens. We support certified teachers to bring their offerings outside so more people can access guided mindfulness / meditation / movement / etc in nature. We offer scholarships and providing sliding scale tickets to our retreats. We also coordinate a nature practice fellowship, rentals and overnights for other nonprofits.
For more info, please go to offgridretreats.org/events/june2026connection
2 attendees
Past events
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