CO June Queer Quest

The natural world reminds us that being Queer* is both beautiful and something to be celebrated! Showing up as who we are, and with our many gifts, is a celebration of nature’s diversity and honors our deep connection to the natural world.

Many earth-based cultures recognize and honor queer community members as gatekeepers to the ‘other world’, as edge walkers and a source of connection between the community, nature and the mystery. With all the challenging and rapid changes we see in both human culture and our environment, now is the time to come back to our roots and the gifts that the queer community brings to the world. Connecting deeply to yourself, and fully accepting all of who you are, is both a radical act of rebellion against forces of hate and division, and a radical act of communion with all living things!

Join us in this supportive circle surrounded by the tallest peaks in Colorado, and under billions of stars for this ceremonial rite of passage, designed specifically for the LGBTQIA+ community. Coming together, to step all the way in to the multifaceted person you are and be witnessed by the community, is healing for everyone. Here is what others have said about the Queer Quest over the years:

"In sacred circles before, I have found an ally or two, another queer person who understands in some fundamental way some part of my story. But to sit in sacred space with an entire group that shares that common thread, that common understanding of shame and fear and celebration, that is a gift that I had no idea until I stepped into that space that my soul was craving." -Alicia B., 2014

“Every Queer person on the planet needs to do this program. This is the most important work for yourself, your community and the earth.”  -Quinn F., 2015

“The Queer Quest was like coming home to a fullness and richness of myself and community I had never known before but longed for so deeply.” -Nadya Z. 2017

“Claiming a seat in the council of fellow queer questers was empowering and affirming to my spiritual, psychological, ancestral, and physical bodies in ways I could not have anticipated. QQ gifted me what I didn't know I was missing and needing so deeply: a rite of passage to bring intention and worthiness to the journey I am on as a trans adult.” Luca T-S. 2017

“I couldn’t encapsulate the experience of my Queer Quest into a few sentences any more than I could distill down a proper explication of the sun, moon, clouds, rain, sadness, joy, life and death all onto the face of a postage stamp.” -Paul F., 2018

“As an elder cis-gendered man who now considers himself primarily gay, the opportunity to be around people of all ages and identities was a profound learning and spiritual experience.” -Steve B. 2018

If you are feeling the need to be in queer community and do deep, personal work for yourself, your community and the earth, then this program is right and the time is now. To secure your place, the first steps are to enroll by clicking the enroll button and sending a deposit either through PayPal or sending a check to the School of Lost Borders. You will then receive more information about the next steps in the process. Scholarships are available for anyone of limited means.

Program overview: The program is divided into three sections; severance, threshold time, and incorporation. The first days are a time of ‘severance’ or separation from your daily life, leaving behind what no longer serves, and a time where you will be wholly seen and witness each other’s unique queer stories while setting an intention for your solo. The ‘threshold time’ is your solo time of four days and nights out in a vast and beautiful Colorado wilderness area. Base camp will be held not far from your solo spot and you will have a ‘buddy’ nearby who will check a sign from you each day to ensure your wellbeing. Finally, the days spent after the solo time are the first days of your ‘incorporation’ experience. During the incorporation time you will share the story of your solo. The guides will reflect or ‘mirror’ your story back to you in order to bring it into the world in a concrete way. The witnessing by the group will ensure there is no doubt about the transition you have made. Finally, we will prepare you to carry your story and yourself back into the world where the incorporation will continue to unfold over the year ahead.

Logistics: We encourage people to arrive on the late afternoon/evening of the day before we officially start which means you will arrive on the afternoon of June 7th. The ceremony will end by mid-afternoon on June 20th. Before making travel plans, please communicate with Pedro so you won’t miss any important time on the land or with the group.

Practical preparation: Please plan to bring enough food and equipment to be self-sufficient. You will need to bring a tent and clothing suitable for a full range of weather. We request that all participants purchase the vision fast handbook, “The Trail to the Sacred Mountain” available from Lost Borders Press (www.lostborderspress.com) to help with preparation. If you are unable to find or need some gear, please ask as we can often help.

*We recognize and honor that the word “queer” has been used in the past as a derogatory term and is still hurtful for some in the LGBTQIA+ community. Many LGBTQIA+ organizations and communities have reclaimed the word “queer” and this has been both empowering and uniting of the multiple complex identities within the community. We use the word here as an inclusive term and shortcut for the LGBTQIA+ lettering.