The Retreat

The first part of the morning will be spent learning to read the landscape, peering back through the mists of time to see how different ages have left their mark. Once you start to see the layers of living history unfold, the countryside starts to make sense, and that is so grounding. Although you might not fall through time in the Bronze Age stone circles we visit, you can travel back 4,000 years in the shoes of our ancestors as we ponder the original purpose of these enigmatic monuments.

After morning coffee/cacao, we invite you to walk the grass spiral to our own standing stone and think about your intention for your stay at Dalherrick, maybe just a complete rest and wind down? After which we’ll settle to a couple of short, gentle meditations to relax and calm the mind.

The afternoon is dedicated to some complete ‘me’ time, with a range of complementary therapies to choose from our menu of treatments, including reiki, Indian head massage, holistic facial and holistic back massage provided by local therapists. While your partner or friend is in their session, you could relax in the hot tub or at the summerhouse where you can drink in the view.

Our morning foray will be a walk along local tracks and lanes. Along the way we’ll learn the medicinal and culinary uses of some of the wild plants that we see and delve into the history of the landscape around us.

After morning coffee/cacao, we’ll enjoy a session of T’ai Chi, provided by local practitioner Anneke. T’ai Chi is a meditative exercise that comprises slow flowing movements that facilitate mental focus and relaxed body alignment. It is a notably safe, low-risk activity; it is widely used to aid recovery and to improve balance and mobility. It can be relaxing, rebalancing and reenergising.

In the session we will be practicing a selection of Qigong, breath and relaxation work, grounding and centering, gentle partnerwork and the beginning of the slow movement form.

After lunch we’ll do two yoga nidra meditations, starting with a shorter one to relax the mind, followed by a longer one to bring deep rest to the nervous system.

We’ll finish the day with a relaxing sound bath of singing bowls, provided by local practitioner Tanya of Serenity With Sound. Sound therapy works through resonance and vibration, producing frequencies that interact with the body’s natural vibrations, potentially influencing brainwaves, nervous system regulation, and cellular function. Sound bath participants are “bathed” in sound waves that can induce deep relaxation and meditative states.

In the morning we’ll venture a little further afield, first to admire the glorious view from nearby Suie Hill across to distant moorlands and the distinctive Tap O’Noth hill, once a large Pictish settlement. Coming down into nearby Rhynie we’ll ponder the mystery of the enigmatic carved beasts and symbols on the Rhynie Pictish symbol stones.

Our last stop is the wonderfully peaceful and beautiful Leith Hall Gardens set within majestic woodland, where time seems to stand still. After a mindful stroll through the garden we can sit and just ‘be’ a while at the tree seat in the wildflower lawn. Thoughts often peacefully flow here bringing with them new perspectives and ideas.

In the afternoon we’ll enjoy the short yoga nidra meditation, followed by the long yoga nidra, after which we’ll walk the Dalherrick spiral again, revisiting our Day One intentions to see what new horizons might have emerged.

We’ll finish with afternoon tea and lots of chat, then close the retreat listening to the Great Bell Chant, sending out love and wonderful energy to the world.