Align with nature and discover the path to embodied transformation
Reawaken the connection between your inner landscape and nature through the practice of the wilderness quest. Step onto the trail, slow down, and open all of your senses to the wild and engage in this powerful opportunity for growth and healing.
“
The time alone on the land was beautiful, restorative, and contemplative, and the return time with Erin helped me draw special insights and meaning from what I'd experienced.
- Miki Johnson, Coach, Facilitator, Guide
The arc of a wilderness quest is an ancient and pan-global tradition. The journey begins with laying the groundwork, gathering needed equipment, and clarifying what is calling you to the quest. On the day of, you will engage in mindfulness and movement practices that invite slowing down and turning inward, shifting your inner rhythm to that of the wild.
The practice of council creates a safe place for you to speak any question or challenge from your heart, and all is held with respect and loving kindness. Time alone on the land moves you from a state of doing to a state of deep listening, allowing impulses from nature to arise and flow.
Your time on the land is witnessed and reflected, bringing deeper meaning and insight to your experience. At the end of the day, you will bring messages and insights back with you as you step off of the trail and rejoin your life.
As humans, we are at a crucial moment when we connect to each other mainly through electronic portals. The pace that we take in and share information blurs our sense of who we are, making it difficult to find a reflection of our authentic selves on a screen. You might experience this as anxiety or depression, impulsivity or edginess. Perhaps you feel numb and disconnected from where you stand and where you are going.
When you spend time alone in the wilderness, you enter a different state of consciousness.
HELLO & WELCOME
I’m Erin,
I am a wilderness rites of passage guide, deeply informed by the healing power of nature and the wisdom of the body.
Growing up in Virginia, I had the gift of spending time by the Chesapeake Bay, playing in the sand and watching crabs. Among the woods and creeks of the Appalachian Mountains, my Grandmother taught me respect for native plants and elusive wildlife.
My time in nature was full of wonder and curiosity, and these moments sank deep into my bones.
Early in life, I was given the opportunity to explore self-expression through dance, and pursued the path to become a professional classical ballet dancer. At the height of my career, I suffered a severe injury and arrived at a crisis of identity and purpose. Slowly, I recreated my relationship to dance and my body, embracing new forms of movement through Body Mind Centering® & Authentic Movement. Rehabilitating with the powerful methods of Pilates & GYROTONIC®.
What at first was the ending of a dream opened a doorway to growth, healing, and possibility.
Following over two decades studying the body in motion, I am returning to my roots, to my embodied connection to the wild. In 2019, I completed the Somatic Ecopsychology and Wilderness Quest Apprentice Program with Amy Beisemeyer, MFT and Dave Talamo, MFT, of TerraSoma Ecopsychology Training Institute. I am a certified Wilderness First Responder through the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS), and continue my studies in Earth based practices, holistic coaching, and Hakomi mindfulness-centered somatic therapeutic skills.
Now, I dedicate myself to humbly walk beside others on their healing path as they awaken to their interconnectedness with the land, the waters, and all beings.
“I am moved to guide others to find inner ease and expansion through the healing power of nature, supporting transformation their lives and impacting how they touch the lives of others.”
Pick Your Experience...
Solstice and Equinox Day Quests.
Spend the entire day outdoors, honoring the changing of the seasons and reflecting on your journey through the arc of the year.
Gather together to share your intentions for the day, followed by group movement practices and meditation in preparation for time alone out on the land.
The invitation is for you to slow down and deeply listen to your inner impulses. Included in this program is a post-quest integration call.
Custom Rites of Passage Ceremonies.
Are you embarking on a new journey in your life, and are seeking a meaningful way to celebrate a milestone? Are you welcoming a new baby into your life, and wishing for a unique way to recognize this moment? Are you at a turning point, looking for guidance and clarity? Do you feel loss and grief, and long for a container to hold it with you? Marking the major turning points in life, known as a rite of passage, is an ancient and pan-global tradition that brings deeper meaning and insight to these transformative moments. You as an individual, couple, family, or a small group will spend time together and individually in nature, co-creating an experience honoring this important moment in your lives. This custom program is personalized and takes place on the lands of the San Francisco Bay Area and beyond.
One on One Nature Centered Guiding.
Like the cycles of the seasons, our lives continuously move through periods of growth, change, release, death, and rebirth. Engaging with the wisdom and power of the natural world offers a unique opportunity to meet life’s challenges and transitions with nature’s enormous capacity to hold all that is alive within us.
Ecotherapy is for you if…
You are called to deepen your connection to the natural world and seek how to do so with support.
You wish to slow down your inner mind chatter and bring your system into a state of calm.
You want to bring your life’s questions and challenges to receive insight and reflection.
You wish to mark a significant transition in your life (birth, death, marriage, parenting, coming of age, retiring) in a meaningful way.
These unique sessions incorporate Hakomi, mindfulness and movement practices, song, Earth-based ritual, and integrative art practices. I invite you to set up a complementary discovery call below to learn more.
Sessions take place in person, on the land, and over video conference.
“My time under Erin’s guidance was spiritually rejuvenating. It was also a stunning reminder of how important it is to balance the demands of daily life with opportunities to take time out to focus solely on yourself without distractions in nature. Erin created a safe environment in which I was able to address ingrained emotional and mental patterns in myself and press reset.”
- Margaret Tappan, Certified GYROTONIC®, GYROKINESIS® and Pilates Instructor
* All programs welcome participants of any gender identity, culture, race, religion, sexual orientation, and economic circumstance.
I acknowledge that this program is located in unceded Lisjan Oholone territory, now known as Oakland, CA.
I honor with gratitude the land itself, and all of its ancestors: ancient, present, and yet to be. To learn more, click here.
“It may be that when we no longer know what to do,
we have come to our real work, and when we no longer know which way to go, we have begun our real journey.”
~ Wendell Berry
Contact Me.
Do you feel the call? Reach out, and let’s explore together!
If you prefer to send me an email directly, contact me:
hello@erincarper.com
I look forward to connecting with you and supporting your path to transformation.
Peace-
Erin