2025 Program Schedule Rites of Passage offers multiple wilderness quests throughout 2025, allowing participants to choose a time and setting that works best for their needs.
-- For over 45 years, Rites of Passage has been guiding individuals through transformative wilderness experiences that serve as meaningful rites of passage in the modern world. Founded in 1977, this organization offers programs that bring people into deep encounters with the natural world to awaken, heal, and transform their lives. Their signature nine-day Wilderness Quests continue to provide powerful opportunities for personal growth and renewal throughout 2025.
The Philosophy and Approach
Rites of Passage draws on pan-cultural ceremonies and teachings to create experiences that help participants navigate life transitions, heal old wounds, and discover deeper meaning and purpose. Their programs, with their "challenges of solitude, fasting, and exposure to nature, help us to face our fears, affirm our inner strengths and capacities, and listen to our inner truths." The organization provides a welcoming space for people of all backgrounds, embracing diversity while honoring the universal human need for meaningful transition rituals.
The wilderness quest tradition addresses fundamental questions that remain relevant today: How does one move through life's changes with intention and purpose? How does one mark significant transitions in ways that honor their depth and meaning? Through immersion in nature and carefully designed ceremonial processes, participants find their own answers to these essential questions.
2025 Program Schedule
Rites of Passage offers multiple wilderness quests throughout 2025, allowing participants to choose a time and setting that works best for their needs:
Spring Wilderness Quest: May 10-18, 2025 (Inyo Mountains, California)
Early Summer Wilderness Quest: June 21-29, 2025
Mid-Summer Wilderness Quest: July 12-20, 2025
Fall Wilderness Quest: November 15-23, 2025
Additionally, the organization offers specialized programs, including:
Winter Men's Program: January 20, 2025
Fall Online Program: October 14 - November 18, 2025
Winter Intensive: December 4-8, 2025
The Wilderness Quest Structure
While each wilderness quest has its own unique character based on location, season, and group dynamics, all follow a time-tested three-phase structure that characterizes traditional rites of passage across cultures:
Severance
The first part of the journey involves separation from everyday life and preparation for the solo experience. Participants learn about safety, form a supportive community, explore their intentions, and prepare both practically and spiritually for their time alone.
Threshold
The core of the wilderness quest is the solo experience—typically three to four days alone in nature, usually involving fasting or minimal food intake. This powerful threshold time creates space for deep reflection, connection with the natural world, and insight into one's life direction.
Return
The final days focus on integration—consciously bringing insights from the wilderness back into everyday life. Participants share their experiences, receive reflection and witness from guides and other participants, and prepare to return home with renewed clarity and purpose.
Core Elements
Five essential components distinguish the Rites of Passage approach:
1. Solitude: Time alone away from everyday distractions
2. Immersion in Nature: Deep connection with the natural world
3. Fasting: An ancient practice that opens the mind and heart
4. Pan-cultural Teachings: Drawing wisdom from diverse traditions
5. Community Support: Safe container for sharing and witnessing
Participant Experiences
Those who have participated in Rites of Passage programs consistently report profound and lasting impacts. As one participant shared, "This really was a rite of passage for me. I feel re-born and know who I am." Others describe the experience as life-changing, heart-opening, and transformative in ways they couldn't have anticipated.
The wilderness quest experience speaks to a deep need in modern society—the need for meaningful rituals that mark important life transitions and reconnect people with both their inner wisdom and the natural world. In a time of increasing disconnection from nature and community, these programs offer a rare opportunity to step away from daily life, reconnect with what matters most, and return with renewed clarity and purpose.
For those seeking information on specific programs, preparation requirements, or registration details, the Rites of Passage website (https://wildernessquest.org/schedule/) provides comprehensive information about each offering. The organization also provides pre-trip preparation approximately one month before each quest begins and follow-up support afterward, ensuring that participants receive guidance throughout their journey.
Contact Info:
Name: Mike
Email: Send Email
Organization: Rites of Passage
Address: PO Box 8454, Bend, Oregon 97708, United States
Website: https://wildernessquest.org/
Source: NewsNetwork
Release ID: 89159074
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