Solo Exploration

A new and transformational way to travel, guests are invited to curate their own experience with a resort stay. Whether seeking a quiet getaway to reflect and rest or an action-packed trip full of movement and adventure, Wild Rice Retreat is the perfect place to escape the everyday. Wild Rice welcomes adults and their newest little ones—ages 16 and up, with exceptions for infants under 18 months.

Your Resort Stay Includes

Scandinavian Modern Lodging
Two Fresh & Healthy Locally-Sourced Meals Served Daily (Brunch & Dinner)
Lite Breakfast Served Daily
Complimentary Daily Movement & Wellness Classes
24-Hour Sauna & Rain Shower Experience

View of a group of women doing a yoga pose outdoors

Movement

Designed to ground the mind, body and spirit. Movement classes may consist of yoga, meditation, nature walks, and more.

View of a woman painting a landscape on a canvas outdoors

Expression

Designed to nurture individual creativity. Expression classes may consist of watercolor painting, essential oil classes, and more.

woman picking some plants from her garden

Nourishment

Designed to bring wellbeing full circle. Nourishment classes may consist of gardening, foraging, and spirit-free cocktail-making classes.

view of a large wooden hall with a lovely desktop next to a window

Example Daily Schedule

Daily Class Calendar

Create your own schedule from our daily classes for the perfect blend of solitude and community. Classes are added to the calendar as soon as they are scheduled, up to a week in advance. Please check back prior to your stay for a complete look at the offerings available.

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a painting on a paper with a brush and watercolors on it

February 20-21, 2026

Winter Windows Workshop

This is a Wild Rice Retreat–hosted workshop, part of our thoughtfully curated programming. We proudly partner with skilled retreat leaders to bring guided experiences to our resort—designed to inspire, nourish, and support personal growth in alignment with our mission.

Create a personal concertina book of Winter Windows watercolor paintings inspired by the forest outside our cozy Great Room at Wild Rice Retreat.

Together we will play with watercolor paint, while we explore color and observe the winter forest views from the main Retreat Center.

Friday night we will gather, have a cup of tea and make our concertina books. Dana will show some examples to inspire and give a brief demo to get everyone started on creating their book.

Saturday we will gather in the comfort of the cozy Great Room to start filling our books. We will spend the afternoon observing the trees and world outside.

Dana will lead a demo on color and give direction to the group to work on their own unique concertina book. At the end of the session we will share what we’ve created, and you’ll have a keepsake of your weekend in the northwoods to bring home.

Bio:
Dana paints outdoors year round and works in oils, watercolor, and ink. She has a BFA in Illustration from the University of Wisconsin Eau Claire and studied plein air oil painting with Joe Paquet at his studio in St. Paul and at the Madeline Island School of the Arts. She loves books and even more loves combining painting and Bookmaking.

Most of her work starts on location. For Dana, it’s about being in that moment and immersed in a place, especially by water or in a forest. The longer she paints in one place, the more she sees.

When not painting, she works with kids and adults to introduce them to sketching outdoors, and book making. Dana lives and works on the South Shore of Lake Superior.

Socials: @danamjohnson

Registration:
For all guests on-site, the cost is $75 for the workshop. For our community members, this class is open to the public with a $75 drop in fee. Please sign up using the link here or visit us at the front desk in the Retreat Center. Contact Jenna Erickson, Assistant Retreat Director, with any questions - [email protected].

Terms & Conditions:
Your workshop cost will be added on to your lodging reservation and paid for at checkout. If you need to cancel attendance at your workshop, please call the property directly or notify the Assistant Retreat Director, Jenna Erickson at [email protected]

June 6, 2026

The 72 Microseasons of the North & The Art of Noticing

Join artist-photographer Mary Jo Hoffman renowned for her unique and personal engagement with the natural world for two Immersion classes on June 6, 2026. Best known for her project, "STILL” where every day (every single day) for over a decade, she made a photograph of found nature – no subject too small or too ordinary. For Hoffman, a former aeronautical engineer, this daily ritual cracked open profound revelations about the connectedness of all things, the importance of place, and the creative life.

Her book, STILL: The Art of Noticing–already in its fifth printing– features 275 of the most stunning photographs the author-artist has accumulated over thousands of consecutive days of daily shooting accompanied by perceptive, deeply felt, and often humorous essays illuminating the insights gained through this daily creative practice.

Session 1: “The 72 Microseasons of the North"

June 6, 2026 | 12:30 PM - 1:30 PM

Join author and artist Mary Jo Hoffman, creator of the STILL project and book STILL: The Art of Noticing, for an immersive experience celebrating the poetry of the seasons. Inspired by the Japanese concept of the 72 microseasons. Mary Jo will talk about the importance of "placefulness" as an antidote to the placelessness of life online. While Mary Jo visually presents the 72 Microseasons of the North, guests will be encouraged to create simple compositions using foraged natural materials and photograph their own “still” moments — a meditative exercise in beauty.

Session 2: “The Art of Noticing"

June 6, 2026 | 7:30 PM - 8:30 PM

In this workshop with Mary Jo Hoffman, author of STILL: The Art of Noticing, guests will participate in a guided foraging walk. Mary Jo will share the tricks she uses to see ordinary natural subjects with fresh eyes. Then participants will each be given a "selective filter" to forage by, and together we will make a large assemblage of simple foraged compositions. This is hands-on and highly interactive!

For all guests on-site these classes are included. For our community members, this class is open to the public with a $25 drop in fee or a $130 10-class pass. Please sign up at the front desk in the Retreat Center. Contact Jenna Erickson, Assistant Retreat Director, with any questions - [email protected].

Author Bio

Mary Jo Hoffman is an artist-photographer renowned for her unique and personal engagement with the natural world. Best known for her project, "STILL” where every day (every single day) for over a decade, she made a photograph of found nature – no subject too small or too ordinary. For Hoffman, a former aeronautical engineer, this daily ritual cracked open profound revelations about the connectedness of all things, the importance of place, and the creative life

Hoffman lives in Shoreview, Minnesota, on Turtle Lake, with her husband, Steve, a food writer and author.