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MEET MELISSA
Yoga retreat. Being in community. Like minded, friendly yoga students

Join us from May 6 to10, 2027.

Join Melissa Krieger and Laura Benson for our annual spring retreat at Stowel Lake Farm on Salt Spring Island! This incredible land holds an organic farm, a retreat centre, and a thriving community on 120 acres.

During this 4-night retreat you'll be nurtured with a variety of yoga and movement classes, delicious farm to table vegetarian meals, and time to chill out with like minded folks.

The price of the retreat includes accommodation, all meals, all classes and social activites.

If you're needing time away to restore and rejuvenate this weekend is for you!

Yoga, Mindfulness, and Movement Activities

You'll get to try several styles of yoga such as hatha, flow, Yoga4Strength, and restorative. You'll be guided through mindfulness activities such as Yoga Nidra, meditation, and pranayama. We'll be out walking around the farm and surrounding areas on most days.

The level of yoga we offer is gentle to moderate with lots of room to play and explore. Expect plenty of time on the floor to roll around and chill out. You can also count on exploring a few sun salutations, standing poses like warriors and triangle, balances like half moon and tree, gentle backbends, and seated poses.

If you are after faster paced classes the style of yoga we teach may not be for you. We don't offer fast vinyasa flows, deep backbends like wheel or poses like handstands and headstands. Not that there is anything wrong with those poses or level of intensity! It just isn't us.

The Food

Stowel Lake Farm is famous for their organic, farm to table meals. The food is fresh and 100% organic with most of the produce grown on the farm! The food not sourced on the farm is as local as possible.

Dietary considerations - Gluten free, dairy free and vegan diets can be easily accommodated but keto or paleo diets cannot. There is no meat with any meals. The food is fully vegetarian and there will be lots of nuts and seeds served in and with our meals. If you have an anaphylactic allergy to nuts and seeds this retreat may not be for you.

Stowel lake farm. organic farm. organic food. community. family owned and operated

Retreat Schedule

Thursday

3:00-5:00 pm - Check-in

5:30 pm - Orientation

6:00 pm - Dinner

7:30 pm - Opening circle and yoga with Melissa

Friday

7:45 am - Movement and meditation with Laura

8:30 am - Breakfast

9:30 am - Talk with farm community member

11:00 am - Yoga with Laura

12:00 pm - Walking meditation with Laura

12:30 pm - Lunch

2:00 pm - Walking farm tour

4:30 pm - Yoga with Melissa

6:00 pm - Dinner

7:30 pm - Yoga with Melissa

Saturday

7:45 am - Movement and meditation with Laura

8:30 am - Breakfast

9:30 am - Salt Spring Market in Ganges

12:30 pm - Lunch

4:30 pm - Yoga with Melissa

6:00 pm - Dinner

7:30 pm - Social night in the barn

Sunday

7:45 am - Movement and meditation with Laura

8:30 am - Breakfast

11:00 am - Yoga with Laura

12:30 pm - Lunch

2:00 pm - Group hike

4:30 pm - Yoga with Melissa

6:00 pm - Dinner

7:30 pm - Closing circle and yoga with Melissa

Monday

7:45am - Movement and meditation with Laura

8:30 am - Breakfast

10:30 am - Yoga with Melissa

12:00 pm - Lunch

Check-out

Meet Melissa

Melissa Krieger has been teaching yoga full time since 2005. She helps people stay active, age well and reduce stress in a fun and welcoming manner. Melissa loves facilitating retreats and is proud to have hosted groups at Stowel lake since 2016.


If you aren't familiar with Melissa you can try one of her free videos here.

Meet Laura

Laura Benson has been teaching yoga since 2012. She is delighted to teach alongside her mentor, Melissa, at the rejuvenating Stowel Lake Farm. Laura guides classes with a mix of dynamic slow flow and long holds with a focus on mindfulness which empowers you to be where you are.

If you aren't familiar with Laura you can try one of her free classes here.

Yoga class in beautiful, large, light filled room

Accommodation and Pricing

Shared Accommodations

Shared Yurt

A cozy yurt built for two. (2 beds)

To sign-up for a shared space you must have someone to share with. We are unable to pair folks.

Shared bathroom

$1499.00 per person

Plus taxes

Shared Regular Room

A room for two in the Village or Gatehouse building. (2 beds)

To sign-up for a shared space you must have someone to share with. We are unable to pair folks.

Shared bathroom

$1779.00 per person

Plus taxes

Shared Deluxe Room

A deluxe room for two in the Village or Gatehouse building. (2 beds)

To sign-up for a shared space you must have someone to share with. We are unable to pair folks.

Private bathroom

$1989.00 per person

Plus taxes

Private Accommodations

Private Yurt

A cozy yurt all to yourself!

Shared bathroom

$2149.00

Plus taxes

Private Regular Room

A room for one in the Village, Gatehouse, or Bathhouse building.

Shared bathroom

$2259.00

Plus taxes

Payment and Refund Policy

  • 5% GST will be added to the above cost.

  • This price includes your accommodation, all meals and all group activities.

  • Included in the price is a $350 non-refundable deposit.

  • The full amount of the retreat will be charged upon registration.

  • Credit card payments are accepted.

  • Payment plans available upon request.

  • For cancellations before 30 days ahead of the retreat, you will receive the balance of your payment minus the $350 deposit.

  • For cancellations less than one month before the retreat, you will not receive a refund.

  • If you are sick and unable to attend the retreat you will not receive a refund.

  • If the retreat is cancelled at any point by Bloom Yoga or Stowel Lake Farm you will receive a full refund.

friendly yoga teachers. women smiling. friends. friendship.

A note from Melissa and Laura: We recognize this retreat is expensive and may be out of reach financially for some folks. For that reason we have two bursary spots available. The bursary prices are $1359 for a shared regular room or a shared yurt. We can place you with someone to share if you don't have a companion.

You don't need to apply or fill out any forms, you just need to ask for this offer. Please reach out to me at melissajkrieger@gmail.com to request this. It will be available first come, first serve.

We also recommend visiting our friends at the Salt Spring Centre of Yoga. They have wonderful two night yoga and wellness retreats and are less of a commitment of time and finances.

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Frequently asked questions

No, we have all the props at the Gatehouse. However, if you prefer to bring your own yoga mat or any props you have you are welcome to do so.

Please come prepared for an outdoor environment and for the weather, as appropriate. Some suggestions are provided below:

  • Comfortable clothing, warm layers, rain jacket, sun protection

  • Slip on shoes are nice for going in and out of buildings

  • Rubber boots (for spring & fall retreats)

  • Slippers or indoor shoes - no shoes in indoor spaces

  • Flashlight

  • Water bottle

  • Outdoor towel (we provide indoor-only towels)

  • Bath towel only if you’re camping

  • Ear plugs , if needed

  • Toiletries including body wash, shampoo & conditioner

  • Cash for farm stand purchases and gratuities

You can travel to Stowel Lake Farm via the ferry or the float plane.

The ferry that runs the most often to Salt Spring is the Victoria (Swartz Bay) to Salt Spring Island (Fulford Harbour). This is the route we recommend. This harbour is five minutes away from Stowel Lake and the easiest one for us to pick you up if you need a ride. This ferry can't be reserved.

If you are travelling from up Island you can take the ferry from Crofton to Salt Spring (Veruvius Bay). This harbour is 20 minutes away from Stowel Lake. It's a little trickier for us to come get you for a pick-up here. We recommend bringing a car or preparing to wait a bit! This ferry can't be reserved.

There is a longer ferry (three hours) from Vancouver (Tsawwassen) to Salt Spring (Long Harbour). This terminal is also 20 minutes away from the farm. It's another one that's trickier for us to get to so we recommend driving or preparing to wait. This ferry can be reserved, it just doesn't run that often!

If you want to take advantage of the free time on retreat to explore the island we recommend bringing a car.

The closest airport is Victoria International.

There is also the option to take the float plane to Salt Spring from downtown Vancouver, Richmond YVR and Maple Ridge. The float plane arrives in Ganges and we can pick you up.

No, but we do recommend it if you want to explore the island on your downtime.

We are able to do pick-ups from the Fulford ferry and Ganges for those who take the float plane.

Yes and...the wifi is excellent in some places and non-existent in others. The wifi is great in the Barn (where we eat and chill out) and the Village building where many of you stay. The wifi is ok in the Gatehouse (where we do yoga and some of you stay in that building). The wifi is non-existent in the yurts and the Bathhouse room. The Barn is always open, day and night, so you can always use the wifi there. Consider downloading anything you need ahead of time.

There is limited cell reception but there is wifi. There is a landline on the farm if you need to use the phone.

Totally up to you! The SLF team accepts gratuities on behalf of housekeeping, kitchen and facility staff. All gratuities are pooled amongst the staff but if you would like to leave a message for a particular staff member, we will be sure to pass that on.

Yes, we serve coffee with breakfast.

CONTACT MELISSA

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