Rooted In Winter : A Nature & Renewal Retreat

Beneath fallen leaves and quiet trees, the landscape is still alive—resting, transforming, and preparing for what comes next. Rooted Retreat is a winter gathering centered around the hidden life beneath our feet and the equally unseen changes happening within ourselves.

January 28-31, 2027

Bask Retreat Center

Limited to 20 Participants

$1200 + Accommodations

Winter invites us to look a little closer.

Together, we’ll explore the living landscape through soil ecology, mycology, mushrooms, and hands-on land stewardship.

We’ll work with bitter oyster mushrooms, inoculate fallen trees, put our hands in the earth, and discover the intricate relationships that allow a forest to nourish, decompose, regenerate, and begin again.

That same curiosity will turn inward. Through reflection, conversation, communal cooking, and time gathered around the fire, we’ll consider our own internal landscapes: What are we nourishing? What are we releasing? What is quietly taking root?

Meals become part of the experience—prepared and shared together as an act of nourishment and community. Fire becomes a gathering place for warmth, storytelling, and connection. And the winter landscape becomes our teacher, reminding us that even in the quietest season, life is moving beneath the surface.

As the days slowly begin to lengthen, we’ll look for the subtle signs of returning light—in the landscape and in ourselves.

Who’s Invited

Rooted welcomes curious adults—from their mid-20s through their 70s—of all backgrounds who want to slow down, connect with nature, and find community during the quieter days of winter.

Whether you’re a gardener, a mushroom enthusiast, a creative spirit, or simply curious about the living world beneath your feet, you’re invited to explore with us. No experience with ecology, crafting, or movement is needed—just a willingness to learn and share.

This retreat is especially for those seeking a more intentional start to the year or navigating a season of change. Through forest exploration, seasonal crafts, movement, and reflection, we’ll consider what we’re nourishing, what we’re releasing, and what may be taking root within us.

Come on your own or with someone you love. There will be opportunities to get your hands in the earth, cook and break bread together, exchange stories around the fire, and contribute to Bask’s living landscape—with space to rest, observe, and participate at your own pace.

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Led by Lex Held

Land Steward, Mycologist, and Meditation Leader

Since joining Bask Retreat Center in early 2026, Lex has brought a thoughtful, hands-on approach to connecting people with the land. With a background in sustainability, ecological restoration, mycology, and meditation, Lex has helped shape both the landscape and the practices that support it—including designing and building the Healing Garden and Bask’s site-wide composting system.

A teacher and lifelong student, Lex brings together ecological learning, contemplative practice, and human connection. Through this work, Lex invites others to approach the natural world with curiosity, deepen their relationship with the land, and explore what it can teach us about ourselves.

What’s Included

Your retreat experience brings together hands-on learning, seasonal creativity, movement, and community—with time to slow down and take in the winter landscape.

Explore the connection between plants and nourishment through Forest to Cup, a botanical beverage experience, and a hands-on community culinary gathering, where preparing food becomes an opportunity to learn, connect, and share.

Create with your hands through candle making and basket weaving, and contribute to the health of Bask’s landscape through ecological restoration, helping remove invasive honeysuckle and making room for native life to thrive.

Turn your attention inward through The Inner Hearth, somatic dance, and nature journaling. Using black walnut ink, you’ll write a letter to your spring self—a chance to reflect on this season of your life and what you hope to carry forward.

We’ll also gather for fireside stories and fire circles, sharing warmth, conversation, and moments of connection during the quieter days of winter.

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Schedule & Pricing

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$1200 + Accommodations

Our days will weave together nature discovery, seasonal crafts, shared meals, movement, and reflection—with space between experiences to rest and enjoy the winter landscape.

Forest to Cup: Explore botanical beverages and our connection to the plants that nourish us.
Community Culinary Experience: Prepare food together, share skills, and connect over a meal made as a community.
Candle Making: Create a candle to bring warmth and light into the winter season.
Ecological Restoration: Help remove invasive honeysuckle, supporting the health and renewal of Bask’s living landscape.
Basket Weaving: Spend time working with your hands and exploring the practice of weaving.
A Letter to Your Spring Self: Use black walnut ink for a nature journaling experience, reflecting on what you hope to nurture in the months ahead.
The Inner Hearth: Turn inward to explore themes of nourishment, reflection, and renewal.
Somatic Dance: Explore movement with curiosity and attention to how your body feels.
Fireside Stories & Fire Circle: Gather around the fire for storytelling, conversation, and connection.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Still have questions? Contact us.

Do I need to know anything about mushrooms, mycology, or ecology?

Not at all. Rooted is designed for curious beginners as well as those who already have an interest in fungi, gardening, ecology, or land stewardship. Come ready to learn, explore, and get your hands a little dirty.

What will we actually do during the retreat?

The weekend will blend hands-on learning with rest, reflection, and community. Experiences may include mushroom and mycology education, working with bitter oyster mushrooms, inoculating fallen trees, exploring soil ecology, communal cooking, fireside gatherings, time outdoors, and guided opportunities for personal reflection.

Will we be outside in January?

Yes! Winter is an important part of the Rooted experience. Some activities will take place outdoors so we can experience the landscape in its quieter season. We’ll also spend plenty of time warming up indoors and gathering around the fire.

What should I bring?

It’s intentionally both. Rooted combines ecological education and hands-on experiences with reflection, nourishment, community, and opportunities to explore your own internal landscape.

Is this a wellness retreat or an educational retreat?

It’s intentionally both. Rooted combines ecological education and hands-on experiences with reflection, nourishment, community, and opportunities to explore your own internal landscape.

Do I have to participate in every activity?

We encourage guests to experience as much of the weekend as possible, but Rooted is also about listening to yourself. There will be space to slow down, rest, and engage at a pace that feels right for you.

Will meals be provided?

Yes. Food and nourishment are an important part of the experience, including opportunities to prepare and enjoy food communally. Dietary restrictions and allergies can be shared with the Bask team in advance.

What will I leave with?

We hope you leave with a deeper understanding of the living systems beneath your feet, practical knowledge about fungi and soil, meaningful connections, and a renewed appreciation for winter—not simply as a season of dormancy, but as a season of preparation, nourishment, and quiet growth.

Your Turn To Receive

Your feet hit the floor, and the day begins before you have had a moment to breathe.

You spend your days giving, carrying, nurturing, and showing up for everyone else. Somewhere along the way, you may have forgotten what it feels like to simply receive. If this sounds familiar, there is a place for you at White Lilies Journey, a restorative women's wellness retreat in Tennessee created for women who are ready to slow down, reconnect, and be cared for, too.

As a woman, you lead, nurture, and pour yourself into the world. With so many expectations and demands competing for your attention, it can become difficult to tune into you: your body, your inner voice, your joy, and the parts of your life that are quietly asking to be renewed. A timeless symbol of renewal and grace, the delicate white lily carries a gentle reminder: after seasons of giving everything to everyone else, it is finally your turn to bloom.

Over This Restorative Weekend, You Are Invited To:

Rest deeply, entirely free of guilt.
Reconnect with nature's quiet wisdom and return home with new insight and a renewed sense of self.
Nourish your mind, body, and spirit through delicious meals, restorative yoga, reflection, and community.
Celebrate the magic of womanhood within a soft, supportive sisterhood.
Trade notifications, expectations, and constant motion for birdsong, creativity, and room to breathe.

The Invitation

White Lilies is your whimsical escape back to yourself. Hidden among the whispering trees and butterfly meadows of Bask, this intimate women's nature retreat asks a simple question: What has been waiting within you, just longing for your attention?

Remember Your Magic

This is not about changing who you are. It is about remembering who you have always been.

Together, we will share slow mornings, sudden laughter, nourishing food, quiet reflection, and the gentle alchemy that happens when women gather with open hearts. Whether you are navigating a transition, craving clarity, feeling burned out, or simply longing to feel more like yourself again, White Lilies Journey offers a safe place to land.

The retreat will balance guided experiences with spacious personal time. You will be invited to participate at your own pace, listen to your body, and choose what feels supportive. No previous retreat, yoga, or meditation experience is required.

This Retreat Is For Women Who:

Are ready to trade notifications for birdsong and make space for fresh creative energy.
Miss the version of themselves that felt light, playful, and fully alive.
Are ready to exhale the overwhelm and release the feeling of never being enough.
Believe that slowing down does not mean falling behind.
Are moving through a personal, professional, or relational transition.
Long for deeper connection with themselves, the natural world, and other women.
Want to attend alone, with a friend, or with someone they love.

Can I Attend Alone?

Yes. Many women attend retreats on their own. White Lilies is intentionally limited to a small group so solo guests can feel welcomed and naturally connect, while still having room for solitude, rest, and personal reflection.

Led by Aylin Ozgener

For the first time, Bask Retreat Center's visionary and founder Aylin Ozgener will personally guide this special retreat. Aylin has spent years creating spaces where others can experience the restorative power of nature. After feeling a deep calling to lead one retreat each year herself, she chose White Lilies as the retreat she knew she was meant to offer. Her intention is simple: to create a heartfelt experience where every woman feels seen, supported, and reminded of her own innate beauty and strength.

"I am listening to my inner wisdom and the integrated energies of life to lead White Lilies. This is an 'invitation' and an 'initiation' for women seeking their purpose. This will empower you for your highest calling."

A Women's Nature Retreat Near Nashville

White Lilies retreat takes place at Bask Retreat Center in Middle Tennessee, approximately 90 minutes from Nashville. Across 42 acres of protected forests, native grasslands, gardens, meadows, and waterways, the land becomes an active part of the retreat experience. Here, the pace softens. Mornings begin close to the natural world. Paths invite wandering, gathering spaces invite connection, and quiet corners make room for the thoughts and feelings that everyday life can drown out.

A Space To Come Home To Yourself

We invite you to join us for a weekend of renewal, sisterhood, and remembering. Your cup deserves to be filled, too. To preserve the depth of connection and create a truly personal experience, White Lilies retreat is limited to 15 women.

What's Included In White Lilies Retreat?

Bask is a nonprofit retreat center rooted in holistic health, education, and land restoration. White Lilies reflects that relationship between personal renewal, meaningful community, and care for the living world. The final retreat itinerary will be shared with registered guests. The White Lilies experience is being thoughtfully shaped around the following confirmed elements:

Guidance by Aylin Ozgener

A deeply personal retreat experience led by Bask founder and visionary Aylin Ozgener.

Restorative Yoga

Gentle movement designed to support grounding, ease, and reconnection with the body.

Nature Immersion

Time among Bask's forests, meadows, gardens, and quiet outdoor spaces.

Nourishing Meals

Delicious food shared in community throughout the retreat weekend.

Reflection + Renewal

Guided prompts and experiences that make room for insight, clarity, and self-trust.

Sisterhood + Connection

An intimate circle of 15 women, with space for laughter, sharing, and rest.

Spacious Personal Time

Unhurried moments to walk, journal, breathe, rest, or simply be.

A Complete Weekend Journey

Programming from Friday afternoon through Sunday morning at Bask Retreat Center.

Schedule & Pricing

Arrive Friday, November 13 at 3:00 PM
Depart Sunday, November 15 at 11:00 AM
Retreat fee is $960 per person
Lodging is additional and booked separately

Beautiful Accommodations

Specific options for this retreat and corresponding prices will be provided during the registration process. Overall space is limited to 15 women, so early reservation is encouraged.

See All Lodgings

White Lilies Journey FAQ

What is White Lilies Journey?

White Lilies Journey is a restorative women's wellness retreat at Bask Retreat Center in Middle Tennessee. Taking place November 13-15, 2026, the retreat brings women together for nature connection, restorative yoga, nourishing meals, reflection, rest, and meaningful community.

Where is the White Lilies retreat?

The retreat takes place at Bask Retreat Center in Middle Tennessee, approximately 90 minutes from Nashville, across 150 acres of protected forests, grasslands, gardens, meadows, and waterways.

Can I attend White Lilies by myself?

Yes. Solo guests are warmly welcomed. The intimate group size makes it easy to connect naturally while still having space for privacy and personal reflection.

Do I need experience with yoga or wellness retreats?

No. White Lilies is designed to be accessible to first-time retreat guests and women with a wide range of movement, meditation, and wellness experience. Participation is invitational, and guests are encouraged to honor their own pace.

Is White Lilies a religious retreat?

No. White Lilies is not affiliated with a specific religion. It is a holistic wellness and nature retreat that welcomes women from a variety of spiritual, cultural, and personal backgrounds.

Are accommodations included in the $960 retreat fee?

No. The retreat fee is $960 per person, and accommodations are additional. Available lodging options and prices will be shared during registration.

What should I bring?

Registered guests will receive a complete packing list. Comfortable layers, walking shoes, personal toiletries, a journal, and weather-appropriate clothing will likely be recommended.

What makes White Lilies different from other women's retreats?

White Lilies combines an intimate group of just 12 women, personal guidance from Bask founder Aylin Ozgener, restorative practices, and a deeply immersive natural setting. The experience is intentionally spacious, gentle, and rooted in remembering rather than reinventing yourself.

Your Cup Deserves To Be Filled, Too

White Lilies Journey is an invitation to step out of the noise and into a restorative weekend rooted in nature, sisterhood, and the quiet magic of returning to yourself. Join us at Bask Retreat Center in Middle Tennessee from November 13 – 15, 2026. With space for only 12 women, this intimate Journey is designed to feel personal, heartfelt, and deeply renewing.

Come as you are. Leave rooted, renewed, and ready to bloom.