Embracing Change
3-10 May 2025
7-Day Scottish Highlands Retreat
Enjoy a week in the Scottish Highlands learning to love change
and see growth everywhere.
This May, for the first time, Mindsprings is running a retreat in the spectacular new Dundreggan centre close to the shores of Loch Ness in Scotland.
I visited this Trees for Life project in 2024 and was blown away by the beautiful ambition of the scheme: rewilding the great Caledonian Forest that used to stretch across the whole of the Highlands. But also, from a meditator's point of view, I was excited by the gorgeous meditation space they had created and the comfortable accommodation and delicious food!
I decided that this would be the most wonderful place to run a 7 day residential meditation retreat and this course in May is the fruit of that vision.
And what better focus for our first Dundreggan retreat than growth and change.
We live in a rapidly changing world and often that slippery sandcastle-in-the-tide feeling can make us feel anxious and upset. But one of the great things that meditation has taught me is that change (or impermanence) can also be held in the most positive of lights.
Seeing the changes that Trees for Life are creating in a landscape that we have 'fixed' as treeless and barren, is proof that change can be positive when we embrace it.
That's the focus of our retreat this May: embracing the life-enhancing and anxiety-busting power of change in our inner life and in the outer world.
What the retreat at Dundreggan involves
This is a retreat for everyone.
You don't need any previous experience of meditation or Buddhism. Only an open and interested mind willing to explore the miraculous qualities of human consciousness.
Over the course of the week we will:
learn to relax and soften the body-mind through gentle yoga, breathwork and somatic meditation
enter into open and curious nervous system states that allow for delicate inner observation and awareness
strengthen our 'awareness muscles' to be able to see how change permeates every layer of our healthily functioning body mind
embrace the positive aspects of impermanence (growth)
acknowledge the painful aspects of impermanence (loss)
practice in the beautiful meditation hall watching the unfolding Spring beyond the windows
practice outside in the newly planted Caledonian forests
connect outwards into the social and environmental patterns of change around us
As well as plenty of time to practice meditation in the hall, this retreat is also a change for us to restore our mental and physical batteries by spending time in nature and (if you chose) helping with the wonderful restoration work that Trees for Life carry out in Dundreggan.
Alongside delicious vegan food and comfortable rooms, there is an option to help out at the tree-planting nurseries and to explore the amazing forest and loch landscapes all around.
About Dundreggan
The Dundreggan Rewilding Centre is one of restoration and regeneration. It's the gateway to a flagship rewilding estate and tree nursery, where Trees for Life grow tens of thousands of trees each year, including rare and hard-to-grow species.
Located just eight miles from Loch Ness, the estate has been rewilded by Trees for Life since 2008, recovering from centuries of damage caused by sheep, goats and deer grazing. By allowing the forest to regenerate naturally, they have expanded important fragments of Scotland’s Caledonian forest, providing a habitat for over 4,000 species of plants and animals, including golden eagles and black grouse.
When you come to Dundreggan you can now explore ancient pinewood and unique juniper forest, discover centuries of Gaelic history, and connect with a landscape undergoing transformation through rewilding. Our Rewilding Centre provides a space for a larger, more diverse audience to enjoy the wonders of nature and the heritage of the Scottish Highlands.
Take a look at their video below:
What to expect from a Mindsprings Retreat
Mindsprings retreats are famously friendly and relaxed. This is a chance to relax and regenerate, not a iron-fisted discpline marathon. We're especially keen that people connect with their bodies and the natural world for a week.
This May's retreat is lead by Alistair and Kirsty.
We will gather on Saturday 3rd May and begin with an opening session in the evening after soup at 7.30 pm.That will give us plenty of time to arrive, settle into our rooms and get our bearings.
From Sunday 4th till Friday 9th the rough schedule is as follows:
7.00 Gentle Yoga in the hall
7.30 Silent Meditation
8.00 Tai Chi in grounds
8.15 Breakfast
9.30 Meditation Practice
1.30 Lunch
2.30 Free practice outside / Tree Nursery
5.00 Meditation Practice
6.00 Soup
7.30 Meditation Practice
10.00 Lights Out
We will having a Closing Session on the Friday evening. And an early morning sit on Saturday 10th before packing up to travel home Saturday morning.
About the teacher
Alistair is a broadcaster, psychotherapist and meditation teacher.
He's worked for the BBC for more than 20 years and works as a UKCP-accredited therapist in East Sussex. Since 2004, he's run Mindsprings, his therapeutic meditation organisation which teaches body-based and Buddhist solutions to many of our everyday problems.
Mindsprings offers popular meditation-based courses on many subjects:
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helping people with anxiety, dissociation, stress.
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working with mental health in the LGBTQ community.
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exploring the growing field of embodiment and somatic practices.
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teaching Buddhist practices for mental health and well-being
Alistair teaches in England, Wales, Scotland, Belgium, Ireland, Sweden, Iceland and the Netherlands.
Food, Accommodation and Pricing
The cost of the retreat is £580 which includes breakfast, lunch and supper for six days and the teaching. Accommodation has to be booked separately.
Dundreggan is a brand new centre with 20 en-suite rooms and some dorm accommodation. There are four accessible rooms. And there are Standard sized and more spacious Plus sized options. You will need to book your accommodation directly with the centre where you can specify your needs.
To ensure a good number of places, we have booked the following options, the prices are all VAT inclusive and per night. We'll be in Dundreggan for six nights:
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Dorms: 6 singles and 6 bunks (£30pp = £180 for the week)
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Ensuite Single Standard x 3 (£75pp = £450)
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Ensuite Single Plus x 5 (£95pp = £570 per person)
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Ensuite Double Standard x5 (£85 for two = £510 or £260 per person)
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Ensuite Double Plus x5 (£105 for two = £630 or £315 per person)
PLEASE NOTE: Dundreggan are closed until th 8th January so you may not be able to book you accommodation until then. Please call on +441320340380 or email them to organise the room you want. Make sure you let them know you are part of the Mindsprings May retreat as we have negotiated special rates. Don't use the booking. com link on their website.
Don't let money stop you coming on retreat...
Mindsprings would like people to practice even if they are struggling financially, for whatever reason. We offer a limited number of partial bursaries for these retreats.
Getting to Dundreggan
Dundreggan is near Inverness. So if you're travelling from far afield that's going to be your key destination. The centre website has some detailed information about getting here.
There is an airport and a mainline train station at Inverness and we are in discussion about running a mini-bus on the arrival and departure days for those who need transport. Stay in touch for details of that.
If you're coming under your own steam, the centre is around an hour’s drive from Inverness, Kyle of Lochalsh and Fort William. It is situated on the A887 Skye road, six miles west of Invermoriston.
By car: From Inverness, take A82 south for 30 miles to Invermoriston, then turn right onto the A887. From the west, follow the A87. From the south, follow the A82, then turn left at Invermoriston onto the A887.
By bus: The Scottish Citylink 917 bus passes the Rewilding Centre. Please note, this is a request stop on the opposite side of the road to the Rewilding Centre.
Dundreggan Rewilding Centre, Dundreggan Estate, Glenmoriston, Inverness IV63 7YJ
01320 340380
Frequently Asked Questions
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My login doesn't work anymore. Can you help?This new site needs a one-time signup. If you have a email/password combo from the Mindsprings School (Beingfulness, Anxiety courses etc.) then I suggest using the same one. But you will need to sign up one time only to access the site (use those same details if you like) and then you'll be able to access everything with that login the next time you visit!
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Where have my online courses gone?All the online self-study courses are still on the Mindsprings School. You can access this under Courses > Self Study on the navigation bar. I'm trying to find a way to synchronise the school with the new site - but everything is safe and sound there for your perusal.
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When are the live online classes starting again?I'm starting to teach online three times a week from the 20th October 2022. You can find out more and book your classes here.
