2024 Dates
Vision Quest #1: June 15–22
Vision Quest #2: July 6–13
Vision Quest #3: July 20–27
Vision Quest #4: Sept 7–14
Mount Desert Island, Maine
You are sitting in stillness… taking in a waft of fragrant pine trees… on the edge of a glacier-cut mountain… looking out at the sky blue ocean… hearing the waves gently licking the shore… and noticing a harbor seal popping her head up, blinking and asking you what you are seeing…
And this is just the first day of four… days of uninterrupted solitude in nature where you get to reflect on your biggest questions and listen for what Soul wants to share with you…
Each evening you will come back to our cottage on the ocean for quiet contemplation in silence and/or optional integrative, listening spaces with the coach, Sandy Wilder… and deep rest… Can you feel the breakthroughs that are awaiting you in this sacred space? Are you being called to join us? We are ready to help you embrace this experience and make it life-transforming….
The Vision Quest Process
Traditional Vision Quests include three stages: Severance, Threshold and Incorporation. Our Severance stage will include questions Sandy will send you as soon as you commit to the Acadia National Park Vision Quest. The questions are about your intention and what you hope to release through this experience. You will then email Sandy your answers.
Next we will have a conversation about your responses. You will have the opportunity to share your intention with other vision quest participants, the evening before you start your solos.
The Threshold begins on your first morning in nature and continues for four days. It includes optional 30-minute meetings with Sandy each night to help you integrate and deepen your vision quest experience, as well as sharing your experience with each other after your solos are complete. The Incorporation begins as soon as the Threshold ends and continues forever.
Acadia Vision Quest ParticipantsTestimonials
Within the first hour of the first day of the Vision Quest overlooking the ocean I realized there would be more to my experience than sightseeing. Without technology and no food to distract my thought I developed a relationship with a voice within me that continues to serve as a companion to this day. A companion that loves me unconditionally and treats all of my questions and complaints with gentleness and humor.
The courage I gained from my first encounter within during this Vision Quest as well as the successive dialog provided an opening in my heart.
It is in the wilderness that a voice was heard. I’m not sure this communication would happen for me without the preparation and support Sandy provided. It could well be that this experience served as a prerequisite for what comes next , but first I needed to come home to myself.
Chris Hatch
White Salmon, Oregon
I attended my very first Vision Quest in 2021. Two friends, who had previously gone through a Vision Quest, encouraged me to attend. I went with lots of excitement as well as apprehension- new state, all new people, and a huge Unknown for me regarding four days of silence.
Sandy welcomed another participant and me at the airport, and we made our drive to the most beautiful quaint town nestled inside of a fairy-tale National Park! It was all Grace from the start. The four days of the Vision Quest challenged me more than any other condensed retreat I have been on. During the Quest, my mind told me I could not survive it, that I could not do it- I must give up. Sandy met me at that place of fear, with a gentle presence, a childlike smile and a firm assurance that Grace would see me through.
Sitting around the table at the closing of day four, all of us having completed the Vision Quest, it was the sweetest sense of peace. We celebrated, together!
So for you reading this- ask your soul if it’s time for you to go. The unimaginable awaits you. The creativity of the Universe is infinite, and if you’re looking for support and inspiration to follow the Great Mystery- go. Maybe I’ll see you there ?
Haley Edmiston
Houston, TX
I have done four vision quests in my life. Two were wilderness quests with backpacking and complete fasting. Two have been with QL (Sandy). QL’s vision quest offers flexibility, support, insight, and acceptance.
As a 62 year old, the backpacking just doesn’t work for my body anymore. I so appreciate that there is an alternative and with such a caring and loving guide. QL gives you so much flexibility.
You can do a complete fast, you can do a small snack in the morning, which is what I do, and fast the rest of the day/night, or you can eat light meals. He does not judge! Fasting is preferred, but it is up to you to do what is right for you. I really appreciate that.
QL’s insights really helped me focus more during the fasting, or threshold, time. While it is your decision whether you want to do an evening debrief, it can be so helpful to understand what transpired during your day out in nature and to give you suggestions on areas to focus on your next day.
If you find the vision quest calling to you, you have a wonderful guide to help you through the experience!
Cindy Gabriel
Leominster, MA
It is difficult to express what the Vision Quests have meant to me. The experience, all five times, was profound on every level – physical, emotional, and spiritual.
The personal knowledge that I gained was quite extraordinary and unexpected. Being alone in the beauty of nature every day is an experience I have never had before. The thoughts that came to me were illuminating and they had a penetrating effect which still resonates.
The optional meetings with Sandy at the end of each day were revealing in a way that I can not explain except to say that they made me think about everything in a new way. I wish everyone I know could go on the Vision Quest. It is the very definition of amazing.
Shane Ann Younts
New York, NY
2024 Schedule
Friday
- If you can arrive on Friday (a day early )to begin to settle in, there is no extra lodging fee.
Saturday
- Begin to slow down
- Shop for last minute necessities and/or light food
- Join us on a short walk to a near-by causeway and take in the ocean and mountains
- Meeting on logistics and mapping possible solo spots in Acadia
- Visit possible solo spots in Acadia
- Dinner at Thurston’s Lobster Pound
Sunday
- Continue to slow down
- Visit possible solo spots in Acadia
- Dinner with participants out or take out
- 7:00: Opening Meeting to hear everyone’s intentions for their Acadia Vision Quest and to decide where you will spend your first day
- Begin silence
Monday
- 6:30—10 a.m. Drop off at your solo location for the day
- 4:00–7:30 p.m. Pick up at your pre-determined location
- Continue fasting, or dinner on your own in silence.
- By 8:00, choose your time and spot for the next day.
- Evenings: Quiet contemplation in silence. Optional session with coach.
Tuesday
- 6:30—10 a.m. Drop off at your solo location for the day
- 4:00–7:30 p.m. Pick up at your pre-determined location
- Continue fasting, or dinner on your own in silence.
- By 8:00, choose your time and spot for the next day.
- Evenings: Quiet contemplation in silence. Optional session with coach.
Wednesday
- 6:30—10 a.m. Drop off at your solo location for the day
- 4:00–7:30 p.m. Pick up at your pre-determined location
- Continue fasting, or dinner on your own in silence.
- By 8:00, choose your time and spot for the next day.
- Evenings: Quiet contemplation in silence. Optional session with coach.
Thursday
- 6:30—10 a.m. Drop off at your location for the day
- 4:00–6:30 p.m. Pick up at your pre-determined location:
- 7:00 p.m. Break-the-Fast Meal
- Begin to prepare whatever you would like to share with the group the next day. Optional session with coach.
Friday
- Morning: Breakfast at local restaurant
- Debriefing of individual Vision Quests with the group
- Lunch: On your own or take out from local restaurant.
- Afternoon: Continue debriefing of individual Vision Quests with the group
- Dinner out, take out, or lobsters in the cottage
Saturday
- Departure in the morning
Location
Wilder Cottage: Southwest Harbor, Maine 04679
Housing
We have a four-bedroom cottage with 2 ½ baths. Total Lodging Fee = $245 for the week in the cottage or $140 camping on the lawn or in the woods by the ocean. Your options are:
- Sleep in the cottage, (Two doubles and a single)
- Camp in a tent on the lawn or in the woods by the water, or
- You can also choose a nearby Hotel or Bed and Breakfast (Their fees begin at $840 for the week) 3/4 mile from the cottage
Food
In traditional vision quests participants fast. This is recommended but optional. If you are going to eat during the vision quest then we will want to keep it very simple. Not a lot of preparation and clean up. We will have lots of water for you to always have with you. We will have some fun “Maine” meals before and after the Acadia Vision Quest, not during. We are happy to open this up more with you if you have questions or concerns.
Transportation Options
Note: If you are flying from distant parts of the country, you may want to consider coming in Friday instead of Saturday.
1. Drive to Southwest Harbor, Maine (24 hours from St. Louis, 8.5 hours from New York City, 5.5 hours from Boston
2. Fly to Boston, rent a car and drive 5.5 hours
3. Fly to Portland, Maine, rent a car and drive 3 and 1/4 hours
4. Fly to Bangor, Maine, rent a car and drive 1 1/4 hours, or be picked up ($60 fee each way for being picked up and dropped off at the airport).
5. Fly to Bar Harbor, Maine, rent a car and drive 20 minutes or be picked up ($25 fee each way for being picked up and dropped off at the airport).
Participants
Maximum: Three–Five depending on the Vision Quest
Registration: To register for the Acadia National Park Vision Quest, click the button below.
The Educare Unlearning Institute has a discounted sliding scale for all our offerings in an effort to keep our courses affordable to a wide range of people. We set forth no criteria and trust that each individual will pay what he/she feels is appropriate.
The discounted sliding scale for the Acadia Vision Quest is $1,025—$1,375. The fee includes the communication, meetings, facilitation, and a one-on-one call before the vision quest.
The fee for the lodging and as much Acadia Spring water as you desire is $245 for the week. Camping fee including bottled water, showers, bathrooms, and kitchen use is $140 for the week. All food is at your expense.
Transportation Fees to and from the airport are $60 each way from Bangor and $25 each way from Bar Harbor.
Payments can be made at this link: http://educareunlearning.com/donations/
Payment plans over four months are available.
Cancellation Policy: If you cancel more than one month before the program date, your full paid fee will be refunded, less a $50 processing fee. If you cancel two—four weeks from the program date, 50% of the program fee will be refunded. If you cancel within two weeks of the program date, the full program fee is nonrefundable and non-transferable to another date.
Educare Office in Southwest Harbor, Maine.
