The honeysuckle and jasmine all around the Hostel and in the Secret Garden are filling the air like magical elixirs and intoxicating us with their heaven-on-earth perfumes. Thanks to the constant dedication of our gardeners Zachary and Carlyn and all the help thrown down by the rest of the staff and guests, the garden has fully shaken off the sleep of winter and as new beds have been cleared and old beds upgraded, our summer crops are almost entirely planted now. Colorfully stained hands is the newest fashion trend around the Hostel thanks to the wild raspberries and blackberries that are springing up all over the place, and we are still patiently awaiting the ripening of our blueberries. I hope you all have been practicing your blueberry baking recipes. Speaking of recipes, if anyone knows any good chicken dishes, we still have some hens we need to let go of. Just joking! Seven of our chickens have been adopted by our neighbor Floyd who owns a petting zoo where they are being taken great care of and children and adults alike are enjoying them. If you are interested in owning a Hostel chicken, you can still email us or stop by.

Since Carlyn and Zachary have joined the Hostel team, we have been blessed to have yoga classes in the Glass House almost every morning as these two share their knowledge and practice with us. Jonathan has been exploring and teaching how to make didgeridoos and other instruments from natural materials. We are always finding new ways and means to enable, educate, and enlighten on all things environmental, cultural, and spiritual. ‘Everything important is already known, the only thing is to rediscover it,’ so said the mysteriously unknown Greek philosopher Anon. We are very interested in getting some grants written for the development of our infrastructure and our continuing development as and educational ecocenter. David and Natalie from Atlanta and Lauren from Tallahassee have given us some great advice so far. If you have any advice or skills in this area, we would love your help.

May The Forest Be With You…

This week, both the lake garden and the secret garden have received some good good lovin’, both of the human and the insect kind. While the bees have been busy making flowers, the beetles have been busy eating the cabbage. If anybody knows any advice they can offer that is an organic, earth-friendly and people friendly way to deal with this problem, we would love to listen.

Since the throes of spring break have finally ended and things are staring to slow down, the staff has been able to take more recreational time lately with the guests. On Wednesday night we took a field trip into Babylon for some bowling, where a new game was created, soon to be all the rage at an alley near you. With every round of the game, a new pose must be chosen, and every bowler must throw from that pose. While the yoga lotus pose and bowling through you legs from behind both work well, the yoga tree pose and spinning around 5 times before bowling we still need some practice on. Thursday night we had another garden party, this time with salad and bass freshly speared from the lake by Jonathon. Sunday night we had an evening concerto as Devon from Montreal played the violin on the screen porch, and the sounds echoed off into the woods to blend with music of the animals. Every night the sky is lighting up in a spectacular show with fireflies so thick against the black forest it’s hard to tell them from the stars against the black sky. The flickering of lights amongst the trees I like to imagine as Morse Code for the lesson taught by Crowfoot, chief of the Blackfoot First Nation in Canada, with his last words: “What is life? It is the flash of a firefly in the night. It is the breath of a buffalo in the wintertime. It is the little shadow which runs across the grass and loses itself in the sunset.” If life is so beautiful as such things, what fear should we have of the end…

Now for a note of business, we have a chicken situation on our hands. There are simply too many ladies for the roosters to look after, so we are going to have to relocate a few hens. If anyone is interested in owning a hostel chicken and already has a good home for them and promises that it’s not in the oven, then contact us and we can work something out.

Until next time,

May The Forest Be With You…

This week we welcome another two staffers into the Hostel family. Carlyn from Tallahassee has come to grace the garden with her presence. Trey, former kitchen manager / compost technician / forest dweller extraordinaire, has also found his way back into the forest from Tallahassee. That makes four staffers here now who have called Tallahassee home. Keep ‘em comin’ Tally!

The secret garden has been quite the hot spot these days. With four gardeners on staff now, plus all the other helping hands that have gone into that hallowed patch of earth, it is looking just as beautiful as ever. New beds are being cleared and planted, and the spring crops are blooming. Thursday night there was a garden party under the bright moonlight. What is a garden party? you may ask. Well, take one large bowl, some forks, some dressing, maybe throw a little salmon in there on the side, get pickin’ some lettuce, and that’s what you call a garden party. We invited the spirit of Ricky Nelson to come, but he already had other plans. “You see, ya can’t please everyone, so you got to please yourself,” is what was on the RSVP. If this quote is over your head, go turn on the oldies station for a little while.

We had our full moon sweat lodge on Sunday this week. Everything went well, and the sweaters all came out of it hot and happy. We are blessed to have the facilities to perform this sacred tradition, and as always thanks to Tom for leading it and all the staff who put, literally, their blood, sweat and tears into the ceremony. Aho!

Until next time,

May The Forest Be With You…

We welcomed two new folks onto staff and work exchange here at the Hostel this week. Zak from Miami arrived Monday to come WWOOF in the garden, and Laeo from Asheville came back Saturday to help with grounds maintenance projects. The chickens are happy to have their shaman back, and we are all happy to see an old friend and welcome a new face. On a sadder note, Jennine, our beautiful kitchen manager and garden gnome is leaving us to venture on a great North American bike adventure. We wish her the best of luck and safe travels as she is meeting with MikeJoe for the ride. She went out with style and a bang, and we will all miss her.

This past Tuedsday we had an exceptional cause for celebration. James, a former staff member and lifelong friend to the Hostel (who did the stained glass for the compost toilet and made the stained glass guitar in the common room), and his beautiful fiancee Karina changed their titles to Mr. and Mrs. in the Glass House. They had a very small, intimate ceremony, but the love and the positive vibes surrounding the event were felt larger than life. At circle of thanks on Monday, between the families of the bride and groom and the rest of the guests at the Hostel, we had four languages spoken – English, French, German and Spanish! “Every time we remember to say “thank you”, we experience nothing less than heaven on earth.” I only wish I knew the author of this quote to properly give my gratitifude for the chance to share it with you.

As the swell of spring break guests is starting to slow, the rush of spring creatures is steadily climbing. All sorts of crawling, slithering, running, skipping, flying, swimming, dancing, calling, buzzing little beings have been popping up and performing all kinds of little antics around the Hostel, all to the entertainment and wonder of the guests and staff. Step outside, step back, and take a moment…Ahhhhh spring. Doesn’t that feel nice?

May The Forest Be With You…

This past weekend, we had our annual spiritual retreat. Friday evening after dinner we talked with Sky Schultz, or I should say Professor Oops, about the dark and light sides of our spiritual journeys on this cosmic floating planet. Then thanks to Rob Jacoby, we had a luminary lit labyrinth walk. Saturday morning we got up bright and early and did some yoga with Lucy Lynch from Ireland. Then we talked with Rob about love and the law of attraction, and did a breath of fire meditation that was out of this world. Afterwards, we hiked the T-trails with Tom and made our way back to his writing cabin for some tea and poetry. Saturday evening everyone got a chance to reflect and express on the day as Whitney led a Tibetan prayer flag making skillshare. Saturday night we had a bumpin’ dance party up in the common room, as DJ Rob pulled out the turntables and strobe lights and mixed up some jams.

We were all taught a lesson or two on break dancing by Max, age 8, who made sure to let us know that “Man, breakin’ it down is hard!” Sunday morning we began again with yoga with Lucy, and once we were warmed up we did some sacred dance with Shakti Rowan. The last workshop of the day was Practical Spirituality 101 with Jonna Rae, where we explored our own psychic capabilities. Eric from Savannah made a wonderful brunch for the group on both days.

Everyone enjoyed themselves and truly opened up to the experiences, and we all were left feeling a little bit lighter with the spirit of the forest. If you missed out on the fun, just remember, there’s always next year….

May The Forest Be With You…

As numerous as the seas of leaves in the canopy above, so have been the reasons for celebration here at the Hostel. We had St. Patrick’s Day, the vernal equinox and the full moon, a birthday and Easter Sunday all in one week. The trees outdid us all on St. Patty’s, displaying a kaleidoscope of every shade of green on earth. This Friday was time for our monthly full moon sweatlodge ceremony, and due to the overwhelming number of guests that wanted to participate, we poured two sweats, two nights in a row, both with much success for those who were involved. On Easter Sunday we had a Hostel style banquet, complete with smoothies and chocolate cake, with the help of Blythe from Philadelphia and all the other guests who are always helping out in the kitchen. One of the guests, Nick from St. Petersburg, was foolish enough to let us know that it was his birthday, so in accordance with Hostel tradition we had no choice but to chuck him in the pool. On a side note, we will be cleaning all the green pond scum and dead things out the pool from this past season of being out of use sometime in the near future as the weather warms up.

The circle of thanks on Saturday night was one of the best ever at the Hostel, in my plebeian opinion. Instead of holding hands, we made a massage circle. Thirty-eight folks got friendly and rubbed each other in all the right ways, and a few of us were lucky enough to be standing in front of some massage therapists. The gardens got in on the lovin’ action too this week as Amanda and Lima from West Virginia weeded the herb garden and planted two basil plants and some parsley and thyme. They also added tomato, cayenne pepper and jalapeño plants to the veggie garden. “Gardening requires lots of water – most of it in the form of perspiration,” said the late artist Lou Erickson. The gardens here serve as a constant, humble reminder that you’ve got to give love where you get love. How else could we enjoy the veggie culinary creations fit for kings that we so frequently dine on?

May The Forest Be With You…

While spring has been bringing us an array of fresh flora and fauna, love has been blossoming amongst the trees here at the Hostel as well. Last week we had a couple that visited us for their honeymoon, and another couple surprised everyone by eloping while they were here. The night before the wedding there was a party in the kitchen as the wedding cake was baked. Wine, beer, strawberries, and chocolate were flowing, and, no surprise at the craziness that ensues here, some dreadlocking was going on too. We had a group of young folks that rode their bicycles all the way from Tallahassee to visit the Hostel, and they joined in on the celebration and helped bake the cake and also created some great artworks that are now displayed in the kitchen. The party continued after the ceremony as the reception ran on until the wee morning hours. Cheers for love! Here’s an old wedding toast for the couple, though it could be said for me or you, “May thy life be long and happy, Thy cares and sorrows few; And the many friends around thee Prove faithful, fond and true.”

Lately we’ve had some guests stepping up and cooking some stellar diners for the whole Hostel. Chad and Marissa from Atlanta bought and cooked an amazing Italian feast one night, and Brandon and Greg from St. Augustine brought three salmon flanks to feed everyone. These folks pulled out all the stops, and all of our bellies were very grateful. And speaking of eating…

The chickens have been getting quite bold since the dome is gone and the deck is open for them to run around on. More than one breakfast has mysteriously, or more often brazenly disappeared from the plates of the guests and staff. In order to break this officious habit of theirs, we’ve bought some water guns to squirt them with when they get too close. We feed them well, but apparently they’re jealous because their oats and eggshells aren’t as gourmet as the delicious palate we partake in. There’s a new law in town, and its name is Super Soaker.

Until next time,

May The Forest Be With You…

This week we say goodbye to Mike Joe, our itinerant gardener with the infectious laugh. Safe journeys to you, Mike Joe, and thanks for all that you’ve done here and all that you will do in this world. (If you’re even reading this, as you rarely look at the world online.) We are anticipating a new WOOFer in a few weeks to continue rocking out the garden, and in the meantime our new staffers Jonathan and Paige, from Maine, are blissing out in the sun and worshipping the dirt out there in the garden. This week has also shown an upwards shift in s’mores cooked out on the back fire. The Hostel staff encourages this trend.

March is the most intense month here at the Hostel, the greatest volume of travellers and the hardest work for the staff. If you are a licensed massage therapist with plenty of experience and a variety of modalities, we’d like to extend a trade opportunity for you to come here and massage our hardworking staffers in trade for a room in a treehouse. Please call the Hostel and speak with the manager to arrange details – this must have manager approval in order to work out for all of us.

Thanks for everything y’all travellers bring through the Hostel.

May The Forest Be With You…

This past week at the Hostel, the labyrinth got a little tender lovin’ care from some of the guests and staff as Emily, from Japan, led up a project to define the path of the dirt section. The helpers dug up mud from the beavers’ crossing in the duck pond, and transported it to the labyrinth where they built walls to mark the walkway. While they were building it, one piece of a wall started to crawl away. It turned out to be a little two inch long baby tortoise, whom, after being admired and photographed by the paparazzi, was relocated back to the duck pond. The labyrinth looks amazing once again, and now the chickens can’t scratch around and mess up the paths so quickly.

Speaking of baby creatures, we’ve had a lot of young children running around the forest lately. To share another quote from the kids at circle, 6 year old Eli from soon-to-be Asheville said, “I’m someone. I’m from somewhere. And I’m thankful for something. Now I’m thankful it’s my turn. And now I’m thankful it’s no longer my turn.” Ambiguous… or brilliant?

Whitney has continued her art skillshares, as many folks learned how to make Tibetan prayer flags this week, while some folks still learned how to make dreamcatchers. The next project is going to be tie dye and T-shirt altering, so start scrounging around your closets for old clothes that need a new face, or wait and get your own Hostel T-shirt and tie dye it yourself!

The annual spring spiritual retreat is coming into bloom. We’ve got a steady schedule being fleshed out, and rooms are starting to get booked. This is a great opportunity for you to come and exist and be and be at peace and BREATHE! Check out the website for details and don’t miss your chance to make reservations today before we become booked up.

Until next time…

May The Forest Be With You…

This week, we are sad to announce that the time has come for our manager Joey to move on to Asheville. He has done a loving, fantastic job of keeping this place running smoothly, and we are going to miss him terribly. But, as every change brings new blessings, Asheville has sent us Poppy instead to step up to the plate to be the next Hostel manager. We are thankful and happy to have him here in the forest family again.

Jennine’s sourdough workshop went deliciously well on Saturday, and Whitney has continued with her dreamcatcher making skillshares. Be sure to check out the new page of photos for all the workshops we do here.

Last night at the campfire, a little girl spoke about how she didn’t want to grow up. She said that “age” and “years” were made-up human concepts, and that they aren’t as relevant as the trees and the rocks. Wise words from a young mind. So ask yourself, as baseball Hall of Fame player Satchel Paige did, “How old would you be if you didn’t know how old you were?” It’s never too late to be young at heart.

Until next time…

May The Forest Be With You…

Spring is in the air and the weather has been gorgeous! The lake has been quite the popular hangout as more and more folks are braving their way to canoe and swim out to lie on the dock in the sun. There’s even been a few sunburns around here… crazy, right? Our crawly cold-blooded lizard friends have been spotted out sunning themselves as well, and the frogs and crickets have rejoined the evening symphony of the forest. The garden has been getting a little extra tender loving care as we begin planting season again, and more blueberry bushes have been transplanted around the lake.

The guys (and Jennine!) have finished fixing the roofs over the main dome. Thanks to their hard work now hopefully we can still squeeze a few more good years out the old Mother. And speaking of new things, the next compost container has been completed before it was scheduled for, which as everyone knows doesn’t happen often around here.

On Sunday, some of the staff and guests traveled to the Bamboo Farm & Coastal Gardens in Savannah for the First Annual Winter Bamboo Festival presented by The Southeast Chapter of the American Bamboo Society, with a lecture by our Hostel friend Matthew. The Hostel was gifted with some timber bamboo and another noninvasive ornamental bamboo from the workshop. On Sunday night Candice from Atlanta came and taught us some water and energy conservation tips and ways to build and use environmentally friendly and sustainable homes and businesses. Our resident artist Whitney has been teaching dreamcatcher making skillshares, and several guests have left with beautiful new artworks to hang in their homes.

Well folks, if you happen to find yourself longing for the Hostel but can’t make it out to spend some special time with us, you can always look to the words of author Dale Carnegie. “One of the most tragic things I know about human nature is that all of us tend to put off living. We are all dreaming of some magical rose garden over the horizon-instead of enjoying the roses blooming outside our windows today.” Take the time to stop and smell the roses….

Until next time…

May The Forest Be With You…

This past week we have been lucky enough yet again to hatch some baby chicks, for a total of twelve little fluffballs in all now running around. The next generation of chicks is here, so the old girls (and guys) are going to have to step it up because the new competition for featured chicken is in town!

Spring is peeking its leaves out now from under the winter chill. The flowers are blooming, the pollen is decorating the spider webs, and the bees are out living it up. It’s getting close to that time for the Spring Spiritual Retreat. If you are interested in leading a workshop, we still have openings.

On Wednesday on the New Moon we had a small sweat lodge just for the staff. Everyone who participated truly enjoyed it, and it was a great chance for the staff to bond and build community amongst each other. It was the last sweat for that lodge, so for the next Full Moon sweat we will build a whole new lodge.

This weekend we had quite the circus and art fair going on. Wade from OBX brought his slack wire, and a few folks learned how to juggle while some of the staff stepped it up a notch in their own juggling prowesses. Whitney did her printmaking skillshares, and Victory from SCAD brought a twenty foot canvas that everyone painted with mud in the true spirit of Hostel artwork. Keep it coming guys; we love it when y’all bring fun stuff for everyone to share. Or, to quote actor David Niven, “Keep the circus going inside you, keep it going, don’t take anything too seriously, it’ll all work out in the end.”

On Sunday we had an impromptu fermentation workshop, led by Jeremy and Jennine. We learned about kim chee and its history and benefits for the human body, and then we made some big batches of it with fresh picks from the veggie garden. It’s going to be delicious no doubt, and if you’re planning a visit soon you might be lucky enough to get some while you’re here. And speaking of delicious…

We are counting down the days until blueberry season. The gardeners have been at work in the blueberry patch, and have transplanted some young bushes to new growing locations all around the Hostel (to make blueberry grazing more convenient, of course!). Keep practicing those pie recipes folks, you’ve got until May…

Until next time…

May The Forest Be With You…

We have some new members to welcome into the Hostel family this week. After nearly escaping becoming an accidental breakfast, six little baby chicks have hatched! Two are black, and four are yellow and spotted. All are in good health and staying cozy with the hens in the coop, learning how to be chickens and peck for food and at each other.

The garden crew, with the help of Emiliano, has also planted thirteen new fruit trees in the orchard, for a total of twenty five fruit trees located around the lake. We can’t wait until they’re old enough to fruit so we can taste some delicious home grown fig, pawpaw, apricot, peaches and pecans. Better start practicing on your pie baking skills now so when they’re ready you can come and bake us some great deserts!

Recently we had a guest come through who is completing a world tour on his bicycle. Charlie was kind enough to repair some of the bikes here, so we are pleased to announce that the Bumble Bee and the Forest Cruiser are once again up and cruisin’.

The boys have been very busy around here being the burly men that are. They succeeded in moving the giant lumber pile from the fire break to the lake, where it is safer to be left out. When they weren’t hauling around heavy wood, they were high in the sky risking life and limb to put a new roof over the main dome and kitchen, which is coming along nicely and should be finished soon. They used the lumber that was cleared from around the Mystic Oak and milled, thanks to Karl, to rebuild the roof. Inspired by their ceaseless efforts, one might call to mind a quote by the late French painter Eugène Delacroix. “What moves men of genius, or rather what inspires their work, is not new ideas, but their obsession with the idea that what has already been said is still not enough.” Food for thought, eh?

Until next time…

May The Forest Be With You…

While the Hostel was closed to guests from January 7th thru 14th, we were busy worker bees performing various maintenance tasks and projects at The Hostel. During the reconstruction project, the action of “reduce impact and reuse!” was in full force. Tar paper, asphalt shingles, and painted plaster became Hostel Road patches. Windows, doors, and lumber have been stashed for future projects. Rotted cedar shake shingles were gifted to the Forest as compost material. Those with nails are sparking roaring fires. Also, a limited and very select 100 of these beautiful cedar shakes, are being preserved for you. Many of us, motivated by unique reasons and love unbound, treasure the Dome and our experiences within that particular space. Whether stimulated by nostalgic associations, design appreciation, or lingering echoes of laughter, you may be interested in contributing to this key transition at the Hostel. We gratefully encourage your participation and involvement with the Dome Revival. For more information, please read this page.

We have also recently continued the sustainable practice of milling some of the large pines, cleared to allow more sunlight to nurture the Mystic Oak and this has provided us with a plentiful supply of much needed lumber. Much gratitude goes out to Karl for his remarkable insights and skills (and his mill!) and Stephan who was visiting the Hostel from Germany and gave so willingly of his labor.

Another fairly recent development, is Entwine, a compilation cd recorded by one of our earlier managers, Rob Jacoby. This musical journey is now available, with proceeds going to support the Hostel. To purchase one, please follow this link.

Starting this week we will be conducting ‘skill share’ with our artist in resident Whitney and we look forward to more weekly art events to be announced very soon.

Until next time…

May The Forest Be With You…

We are grateful for the best year ever! Especially for the inspiring individuals who travel through here, helping hands, loving hearts, lush moments celebrating life, laughter echoing amongst the Forest, and the Hostel’s vibrancy. We look forward to spiritual, emotional, social, and edible growth, seeking to continue raising awareness, reducing questionable impact, extending the sustainability of our lifestyles, and exploring thru joyous adventure.

Recently, rain is fortunately more frequent. Moist late nights and early mornings, in addition to the gardener’s nurturing touch and attention to the lunar cycles, our gardens continue to thrive. Fresh leafiness continues to become delicious salads with zest. Recent sunset harvests have included arugula, collard greens, sorrel, bok choy, and a lettuce mix. Soon enough we’ll be munching carrots and other such root yumminess.

Simultaneously, from the Glass House to the boardwalks, the Labyrinth, and countless nooks ‘n crannies, the Hostel is shining like it’s never shined before! We are so very thankful to all those involved in nurturing this space. Enthusiasm intermingled with proactive focus is quite influential. Thank you for stirring the energy and stimulating transformations.

Please keep in mind that the Hostel will be closed January 7th thru 14th for repairs. We are asking parents to explore elsewhere with their lil ones during the entire month, since the projects will extend beyond these days.

Until next time…

May The Forest Be With You…