Mid-Winter Vision Fast
Feb 16th, 2026 - Feb 27th, 2026 | Death Valley, California | Petra Lentz-Snow, Nick LaHaise
“Deep within we know. No matter how much dissociation and trauma we may carry, we still know. We know in our bones when life has grown stale and the skin around us begins to itch and crack. We know when our restless desire to break free, to open, to come out, to wake up no longer can be denied.”
Initiation is not a concept. It lives at our core. And no matter how orphaned we may feel from any sense of true connection with the source, the call to remember ourselves into the wholeness we were born from and for is innate in us – and stubbornly insistent.
Modern culture doesn’t know what to do with change. And yet, the evolutionary necessity of change is woven deeply into the ancestral fabric of our humanness. Sitting into the wicked and vital questions of what is truly true for us, what is our calling, how life wants to use us, who we are now and who we are no longer is indispensable, not only for ourselves but for our families, our communities and the living earth.
At their core, Rites of Passage Ceremonies are simply that: a container to let go of (die to) the old and step in (birth) anew, so that life can renew and continue. In the meta crisis of this moment, they may well be stealth acts of resistance.To do nothing for four days. To expose oneself to all weather, internal and external, in an unprecedented chance to meet what is, moment after moment, without a way out. To empty, to let what is no longer true fall to the ground and decompose. And from there, to take up the full breadth of our belonging – that life may take shape whole in us.
Come as you are. If you feel the call to join us, you are welcome here as we make space for the broad, and diverse experiences of what it is to be an initiated human in this moment in time.
Who this offering is for: We welcome all cultural identities, women and men, transgender, and gender non-conforming people as well as all forms of gender identity and expression to this ceremony. We see diversity as a gift to the whole.
Overview: The twelve day ceremony involves four days of preparation, four days and nights of solo time, and four days of incorporation. The Mid-Winter Fast will be held on the ancestral, and present day homelands of the Timbisha Shoshone, in Death Valley National Park (Tüpippüh Valley). We will gather and camp as a community for the first few days of the ceremony, honing intentions, introducing the Four Shields of Human Nature) as well as in the last few days as we sit with the stories that came back from the mountain with you.
Preparation: Your preparation begins the moment you decide to come, and perhaps it has been happening long before that. Upon enrollment you’ll receive our official welcome letter with more direction on next steps. Preparation is an essential part of the ceremony (and we recommend enrolling 6-8 months ahead of time.) In its own way, ripening toward the ceremony is as important as actually being in it. While not always outwardly active, the intention of severing from patterns or parts of ourselves that may want to be shed in the solo threshold on the land is a vital part of the ceremony
Threshold: Your guides will maintain a safe perimeter around the area while you are alone. Another participant’s solo site will be within walking distance. The two of you will partner each other by leaving assurance of your well-being at a stone pile erected along the borders of your respective areas once a day. This will be your only daily task and tether to your community during the precious four days and nights that you are out on the earth in ceremony. The only rule is do no harm to self or other. And come back to us safely!
Incorporation: You will return to human companionship and a break-fast feast. In council we invite you to articulate some of what happened in the vastness of the threshold. If for no other reason than to say ‘this really happened’, to honor the new medicine that is returning with you. As guides, we will listen, confirm, reflect and empower you — to live the life you have earned forward. When all the stories have been told, we will celebrate together before you return to your life and your community.
Program Questions Contact: Petra Lentz-Snow at [email protected]
Submit Waitlist form
This program is full; however, you may add your name to the Waitlist by clicking the Waitlist button below.
Submit enrollment form
Please fill out and submit the enrollment form and then pay the program deposit below. Before you pay the deposit, please read deposit section below, all deposits are non-refundable and non-transferable. After your enrollment form is complete, please submit all health and liability forms.
Pay program deposit
Deposits: This deposit signifies your commitment to the program and is deducted from the tuition balance. All deposits are non-refundable and non-transferable. They cover the work of the specific course you signed up for, including all communication involved as well as the fee that guides pay to the school administration for the course accounting.
Additional Deposit: Some programs require a second deposit to help us affirm commitments. Last minute cancellations make it hard to fill openings and incur a loss of income to the School and the guides.
Tuition Balance: Balance of tuition can be paid before or upon arrival. Simply deduct any deposits made from the amount you’ve chosen on the sliding scale.
Additional course details & Materials
The Mid-Winter fast is held as a 12-day immersion program in the wide open expanse of Tüpippüh Valley (Death Valley National Park), where we will hold camp among creosote bushes, ancient rock and sweeping vistas. We will meet at 9 AM on Feb 16 at Panamint Springs Resort in Death Valley and then drive out to our base-camp as a group. The program will conclude by 2pm on Feb 27. CA ADDITIONAL FEES: National Park Entrance ($30 unless you hold a valid Park Pass) and $70 for camping.
You will be responsible for bringing your own food and equipment, though we can provide some gear if needed. We ask everyone to come prepared to live self-sufficiently. You will need to bring shelter and clothing suitable for a full range of inclement weather.
All participants must submit the required health questionnaire and liability form.
If you have questions about the enrollment process contact us at [email protected] or call 760-938-3333.
Tüpippüh (also known as Death Valley) is home of the Timbisha people and is the name of their ancestral and contemporary homeland. Miners came to this area in 1849 and the Timbisha’s land was stolen to create Death Valley National Monument in 1933. The Timbisha were allotted a 40 acre reservation in the park and also forced onto other reservations and into towns in the area. The guides have a practice of donating a portion of our proceeds to the indigenous communities on whose land we gather and work. For this program, a portion of the tuition received will be gifted to the Timbasha Shoshone Tribe of Death Valley.
To learn more about our commitment to regenerative relationships please visit Cultural Relations.
