Guide Training Immersion 4-Days
USA, California – Whispertree – May, 2025
- May 19, 2025
- to
- May 23, 2025
- Enrollment Open
An opportunity to connect with other guides from other cohorts and learn from the shared experiences.
If you have completed at least module 4 and submitted the corresponding assignments, of the six-month remote Forest Therapy Guide Training you’re eligible to apply. Completion of this immersion and the six-month training fulfills the requirements for full Certification. When space is available, ANFT-trained guides who have completed training in any past cohort can also participate. Please note that priority goes to students who need to take the immersion to get fully certified. Therefore, when you apply, you’ll be put on a waitlist until three weeks before the start of the immersion.
A 4 day in-person gathering, with 1 or 2 trainers, and people from different cohorts where you will have the opportunity to apply what you learned, experience in-person forest therapy walks and simply connect and share experiences and stories with other guides.
In this immersion, you will:
- Get a hands on experience of what you learned
- Get to know trainers personally
- Get to know other guides and connect
- Learn from shared experiences with other guides
- Deepen into the practice
- Get the opportunity to ask specific questions that might come up
Once you complete this four-day immersion, your certification will be moved from provisional to permanent. You have two years after you complete the six month core training course to complete an immersion. It will help to give you a sense of the community of guides that has grown and is active throughout the world.
About the Venue
Whispertree
The 600+ acres of land at Whispertree covers two peaks and a valley known by western settlers as Bell Valley. The diversity and resilience on the land is palpable to observant visitors. As a sub-watershed feeding Soda Creek and the larger Navarro River Watershed, the land supports fir forests and towering old oaks. Each of the oak trees, in both savannah and forest settings, hosts over two thousand species of more than human life.
Animals on the land include the more commonly recognized deer and turkey, bobcats, hare and seasonal packs of wild boar. Above the valley, turkey vultures and red-tailed hawks commonly survey the land accompanied by kestrel and the rare bald eagle. At lower elevations, you’ll find families of California quail trotting in packs across the road, scrub Jays and acorn woodpeckers eager to farm acorns in trees and buildings.
The rich plant diversity of Bell Valley, including several perennial native grasses, is unparalleled for the area, giving visitors a robust sense of aliveness and beauty leading visitors to describe Whispertree’s land as “magical.”
Lodging
Prices below are the total for 4 nights, including the celebration dinner on day 3. All the other meals are not included (see below)
Tier 1: Private Room in the toll house with Private Bathroom- $880
Tier 2: Either shared room in either The Bunk House or The Barn or a private bell tent, all tier 2 options are with shared bathrooms- $640
Please contact Ben Page at info@integralforestbathing.com to make arrangements for accommodations.
Participants must stay on-site.
Meals
Participants are responsible for cooking their meals
The venue provides several kitchen facilities
The BARN primary catering kitchen is fully equipped and located on the back patio of the Barn.
The TOLL HOUSE kitchen is perfect for smaller groups
ADDITIONAL KITCHENS:
Additional non-commercial kitchens are available for guest use in the Bunkhouse and Upstairs Barn.
An additional outdoor kitchen under the shade of a large oak is available on the Knoll for those in the tents.
Transportation
Fly into San Francisco or Sacramento- from either location approximately a 2.5-hour drive
We will provide a spreadsheet to facilitate ride-sharing among participants
Schedule Details
Arrival
Arrival and registration: after 4 pm
Welcome circle: 19 May 2025, begins at 7 pm.
Departure
Program ends at 12pm
General Notes
Cancellation Policy (for the venue)
Full refund if canceled 60 days before the event
50% refund if canceled 59-30 days before the event
No refund if canceled less than 30 days before the event.
Tuition
The tuition for the four-day immersion is 495 (USD). Wait to pay until you are ready to register for a specific immersion. You will have two years from the completion of your core guide training to do the immersion.
Immersion tuition does not include transportation, lodging or camping fees and food. These expenses are separate from the program costs for the four-day immersion and are the responsibility of the trainee.
IMPORTANT: Please wait until you receive enrollment confirmation before booking travel and lodging.
Tuition figures are subject to change.
Trainers
- Ben Page
- Ben Page is a Forest Therapy Guide, global advocate for the practice and the author of Healing Trees: A Pocket Guide to Forest Bathing. He is the founder of Shinrin Yoku LA and Integral Forest Bathing and has been guiding Forest Therapy walks since 2015. During his tenure as a trainer and mentor of guides, Ben has trained hundreds of guides around the world. From 2017-2020, he also served as the Director of Training for the Association of Nature and Forest Therapy Guides and Programs, specializing in curriculum and pedagogical design. Ben also teaches several Professional Development courses relating to Forest Therapy, including Language of Invitation: Reimagining the Possibilities, The Art and Practice of Story Weaving, and Find Yourself In Nature: Find Nature In Yourself. Since his practice began, Ben has been featured in such publications as Women’s Health, USA TODAY, Good Morning America, The Washington Post, and WebMD. Ben is also a co-founder of The Open School, Southern California’s only free democratic school. He holds a B.A. in religious studies from Carleton College and an M.A. in human development and social change from Pacific Oaks College.
- Manuela Siegfried
- Manuela Siegfried was born and raised in this beautiful, bio diverse country called Costa Rica. Having a biologist as a father, Manuela experienced contact with nature as an intrinsic part of her life. This passion led her to work as a naturalist tourism guide and in the tourism industry for 15 over years. She came across the concept of Shinrin-Yoku and the Association of Nature and Forest Therapy and immediately felt inspired and related to it. Manuela was trained and certified in 2018 and has been guiding very actively since then. As a trainer she has trained and mentored people from all over the world. She enjoys the underwater world, scuba diving, freediving, camping and long hikes in remote wilderness areas. Manuela offers forest therapy walk for an addiction rehabilitation Center and also works in close collaboration with different wellness retreats and hotels. She has also been successfully offering retreats of various duration, that include forest therapy and other modalities as a way to support people in their holistic wellbeing. Currently she is the Training Director for the Association of Nature and Forest Therapy.
Certification Pathway
STEP 1
6-Month Remote Training
You will start with a 6-month remote training, covering the content on live calls with the support of your trainers, fellow students, a very user friendly learning platform, many self exploration and nature connection activities that are done outside. After completing this training you get a provisional certification as a Certified Forest Therapy Guide. To view the available trainings scroll down
STEP 2
4-Day In-Person Immersion
After completing module 4 you can apply to attend a 4-day in-person immersion, for hands on forest therapy guiding experience with trainers and fellow students. You have two years time to complete this step.
STEP 3
Get Your Certification
After completing the 6-month remote training and the 4-day in- person immersion, you will receive your permanent certification as an ANFT Certified Forest Therapy Guide and be part of the largest Forest Therapy Guide Community Worldwide.