Yoga, rest, walking & sea swimming
THE Wild Times in North devon27-30th october 2023
Do
Settle in before starting the retreat with tea, cake and our opening circle. Day one is all about the Earth element - grounding and resting - so we will do yin yoga before dinner and yoga Nidra after in preparation for a good nights sleep.
Saturday will bring morning yoga and meditation then a hearty brunch with fruit, porridge, eggs and more. There will be free time for long walks, sea swims or naps by the fire, lunch and yin yoga then dinner.
On Sunday there will be more vinyasa yoga and meditation, a walk to the beach and an optional wild swim in the sea. Followed by yin and a delicious feast. Monday morning will be yoga, breakfast and then checkout.
The yoga classes are themed around the natural elements to help connect to nature by embodying the qualities of the elements throughout the practice.
All activities are optional but encouraged, so you can nap, read or swim and explore - it’s completely up to you. The Wild Times is a guilt-free, judgement free zone!
Stay
Our farmhouse is light and airy and has sea views from the upstairs windows, out over the Bristol Channel to Lundy Island to the north and to the west, the Atlantic.
Most of the traditional features have been preserved. There are wooden floors, sash windows and old fireplaces in many rooms. With an open fire, a wood-burner, stacks of books and board games, it's a welcoming place to return to after coastal walks in wild weather.
There is a large south facing garden at the back of the house to enjoy in the sunshine and another smaller lawn on the west side with a sea view - spectacular at sunset.
The air is filled with birdsong and the hedges with wild roses and honeysuckle in the summer. The beach is about a 20 minute walk away. From the garden you can hear the waves crashing on the shore at high tide.
Rooms will be allocated on a first-come first-serve basis across the cottage and farmhouse. There are doubles, twins, 2 single bed rooms and one triple room for three friends available (in two twin beds and a bunk).
Eat
All the food on the retreat is lovely created by Beth the Free Range Chef, our chief Wild Times chef. It is all nutritious, wholesome and vegetarian.
Think big brunches with lots of veg, eggs, fruit and porridge, warming soups, pasta, freshly baked bread and cakes and more.
Beth uses lots of local, seasonal produce, a biodiverse range of ancient grains and pulses and takes inspiration from cuisines around the world, particularly Italian, Indian and Persian.
All snacks, non-alcoholic drinks and meals are provided. If you'd like to bring your own alcohol you can.
There will be fruit and a hot drink station for you to help yourself to throughout, with herbal teas, coffee, fresh mint, lemon and ginger.
We can cater for dietary requirements if you let us know in your booking form beforehand.
Location: Hartland, Devon Heritage Coast
The smallholding (made up of the farmhouse, cottage and yoga barn) sits on top of a small hill less than a mile from the coast (only a few minutes walk to the coast path) 3 miles outside the village of Hartland on the border between Devon and Cornwall.
It is about 4 miles off the A39 Atlantic Highway and pretty much equidistant from Bideford (Devon) and Bude (Cornwall), the nearest towns, both about a 25 minute drive away.
The local beaches are rocky at high tide, with sand and rock pools at low tide, and are excellent for swimming and body boarding for all and surfing for the more confident. The nearest beach (about 20 mins walk away) is set in Natural Trust land and is peaceful and secluded even in the height of summer.
There is also a beach and pub at Hartland Quay which is accessible by car (5 mins drive) and on foot via the SW Coast Path (40 mins). Sandymouth, a bigger sandy Natural Trust beach watched over by lifeguards, is 20 mins away by car. The nearest train station is Barnstaple. If you let us know where you'll be coming from when you book we can see about lift or car sharing between guests.
The Hartland Peninsula is a wonderful place for walks, with a landscape full of contrasts - from the wooded walks along the valleys and the North Coast, to the wild Atlantic seaboard to the West. It is in the North Devon Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty which is itself part of the North Devon Biosphere.
The clear night skies in summer are perfect for star gazing and we get magnificent sunsets over the sea, which flood both houses with reddish light on summer evenings.
Wild flowers are in abundance everywhere, with the woods full of bluebells and wild garlic in the spring, sea campions and sea thyme all along the cliffs in the summer and our own track full of foxgloves, honeysuckle and wild roses, and a glut of blackberries in the autumn.
Example Schedule:
Friday
5pm: Arrive, settle in, tea time.
6pm: Opening circle, meditation and yin yoga.
7.30pm: Dinner
9pm: Yoga Nidra
Saturday
8.30am: Vinyasa yoga, meditation
10am: Brunch
11.30am: SUP yoga or surprise workshop
1.30pm: Lunch
Free time or surprise workshop
5.30pm: Yin yoga
7.30pm Dinner, campfire.
Sunday
8.30am: Vinyasa, meditation
10am: Brunch
11am: Free time - walk, relax, swim, nap
12.30pm Lunch
5.30pm Yin yoga
7pm Dinner
Monday
8am: Vinyasa, meditation
9am: Brunch
11am Closing circle, departures
Schedule subject to change / going with the flow. Do as much or as little as you like.
What’s Included
● Accommodation in a beautiful secluded farmhouse smallholding
● All meals, snacks + drinks
● Seven x 1/1.5 hour yoga classes
● Daily guided meditation
● Optional wild swimming in the sea and walks
● Surprise workshop
● Yoga mats, bolsters + blocks
● Luxury goodie bag
What’s not included
● Transport to and from the retreat
● Travel insurance (please make sure you have your own travel insurance).