Queer* Kinnection

LGBTQ2IA+ ages 14 - 18 | July 12 - 19, 2024 | Return to Youth Programs

A basecamp centered experience on a private, remote property on the Wild Middle Fork of the Nooksack River, just below Mt. Baker. This is not a backpacking journey.

Program Details | Sample Itinerary | Skills Introduced | Outcomes | Other Programs

Teens have a tough job these days.

Entering adulthood is more complicated than ever. Queer Kinnection offers queer youth the support, challenge, and mentoring that they are yearning for to be able really grapple with the questions that matter to their emerging spirits: “Who am I, beyond my roles, relationships, or vocation? Where do I stand in the world? Where and with whom do I belong? What will I contribute to this world?

One of the most crucial ways that people come to know themselves more deeply is to get reflections of themselves that allow them to see more about themselves than they’ve known before. Queer Kinnection offers three powerful mirrors:

The mirror of the group: living together in the wilderness is one of the most powerful social experiences humans can have. When you truly rely on one another to fulfill your basic needs, where all choices and contributions truly matter to the lived experience of everyone, you learn a LOT about yourself and others.

The mirror of Nature: Nature doesn’t care about any masks we wear, it is always asking “Who Are You REALLY?” It doesn’t play games, it just gets right down to what’s real. Reality check is a phenomenally important part of developing an authentic sense of power and place in the world.

The mirror of solitude: Being truly alone with yourself is essential to discerning, developing and sometimes confronting the stories we tell about ourselves, the narratives that shape who we think we are, and how we think we should be in the world. It also creates the opportunity for us to receive guidance from the mysterious world beyond ourselves and the people in our lives.

Family Participation

Rites of Passage aren’t just for the youth moving from childhood toward adulthood. Just as the youth must come to understand themselves as being more than who they have been, so too the families and communities of those youth must let go of that younger person, and make room for a new, fuller person to arrive. Queer Kinnection begins and ends with ceremonies that allow parents and community to bid farewell to the old self, and to welcome that new self that arrives at the end of the trip.

*We use the term queer to include the full breadth of the LGBTQ2IA+ communities, and to powerfully claim the crucial importance of queer as part of healthy, vibrant and diverse human societies. We acknowledge that the term queer has been used in the past as a derogatory term, and is still hurtful to some in the LGBTQ2IA+ community. We are joining with the many LGBTQ2IA+ communities and individuals who are reclaiming the word queer as an empowering and uniting expression of the many complex identities within the community.

Read Journeys' statement on gender

Please inquire for financial assistance if needed.

Queer Kinnection will be held at River Root on the Wild Middle Fork of the Nooksack River. See information below.

PROGRAM DETAILS

Ages: LGBTQ2IA+ ages 14 - 18

July 12 - 19, 2024

Location: River Root Farm
Program starts/ends in Deming, WA

Tuition: $1495; $400 non-refundable deposit

Financial Aid is currently available

We invite all interested applicants to pre-register today!

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Program Outcomes

Finding a sense of belonging in the world: embracing nature as a mirror
Learning to trust one’s self: listening to one’s intuition
Owning the gifts of one’s queerness: cultivating a positive image of self and one’s role in the world
Developing leadership styles and teamwork skills: building self-confidence in service to others
learning to love one’s self: developing physical strength, personal resolve and emotional resilience
Embarking on a wholistic path through queer adolescence toward adulthood
Knowledge of our Queer ancestors and their roles in nature and the human world
Knowledge of the natural history of the Pacific Northwest
Knowledge of how to spend time in nature using low-impact camping techniques

trip description

Queer Kinnection is an exploration of self and community, nestled in the mountains and valleys of the North Cascades. It is basecamp centered experience on a private, remote property on the Wild Middle Fork of the Nooksack River, just below Mt. Baker. While it is not a backpacking trip, It is a journey of discovery, inquiry and adventure. We begin with a community witnessing and celebration of our journey.

Preparations | To begin, we say goodbye to our familiar world and enter the timeless realm of the ancient forest. We begin with a ceremonial separation from our normal lives, and step into a timeless camp on the Nooksak River, where we set up our village for the week. During the day, we will explore, play games, and discover what the river and the forest have to show us. In the evenings, we will gather by fire to sit in Council, exploring our deeper questions of Self and World, and bear witness to each others’ stories.

The Solo | At the mid-point of our Journey, we will create the opportunity for an overnight Solo Vigil. These Vigils are an opportunity to be fully with ourselves, to consider our unique callings, and to receive guidance from the wild world.

Reintegration | After returning from the Solo, we will take time for mindful integration of our experiences, return to our friends and families and the rest of our lives. We conclude in celebration and welcome with the family, friends, mentors and community who sent us off. They will be eager to hear our stories, and excited to welcome the new understandings and intentions that we carry forward from this experience.