Bowen Island, Canada
600 Rivendell Dr
N/A
+1 6049470077
Wheelchair-accessible car park
Rivendell is an excellent venue for anyone in need of a spiritual retreat or simply an overdue dose of peace & quiet. The calm serenity of this place cannot be adequately described. Bonus: it’s only a short bus & ferry trip from Vancouver too! The centre is a beautiful 3 storey lodge located at the top of Cates Hill, and the rooms are very comfortable & well-kept. There are many opportunities for forest hiking/walking nearby, but a word of warning: the driveway of Rivendell is VERY steep! I also highly recommend a turn (or many) around the nearby Labyrinth. Accommodation is by donation and the set-up is akin to a traveller’s hostel: Bring your own food, cook your own meals, make your own bed, clean up after yourself. If one is of mind and physical ability to do so, you can offer help around the centre. I took opportunity to water some of the garden. :) Although nominally Christian, Rivendell welcomes everyone, regardless of belief system and the twice daily prayer/sacred times are open to all. I’d also like to offer a well-deserved shout-out to the hosts of the time, Dave & Wilna. I mostly walk with a cane, so getting around can be slightly challenging. Both of them went above & beyond, offering lifts to the nearby Artisan Square or to Snug Cove, which enabled me to venture further afield than walking would have permitted.. Thank you both! :)
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Nice quiet place for retreat. Accomodation by donation. Need to bring your own food. Feeling safe while hiking around the premise. Be sure to visit the Labyrinth, it is more elaborate than you think, follow the rocks.
And incredible place for rest and restoration. Close enough to Vancouver yet feels far away.
Superb location on top of Cates Hill provides a community based, inclusive, peaceful retreat. I adore the people who host and those I meet on my trips.
We've been coming here for 14 years. A wonderful place for contemplative retreat- as a group (book waaay ahead) or as a personal retreatant (again book ahead but also waitlist if you want a specific time - it may open up). Great private rooms with washrooms- wonderful shared rooms with fireplaces. Prayer rooms are centring. Labyrinth is a favourite (books in Hawthorne library 2nd floor describe it, and staff will help too). Trails for walking. Optional prayer times for guidance. Volunteer staff are so nice. Have become good friends over the years. Not sure where I'd be without Rivendell. (Enjoy finding out about extras like the big bathtub and farther afield- the hermitage!)
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