Her Wild Ways: Awakening Ancient Knowings

Western Scotland ~ April 17-30, 2027

An Intimate Pilgrimage for Six Women Who Are Ready to Encounter Her

Monette Chilson will guide you on this journey into the story beneath the story we’ve been handed about our spiritual heritage. Monette has spent the last decade and a half in devotion to the integration of our herstory into our deepest spiritual knowings, authoring books on sacred feminine archetypes including Sophia and Lilith, anchored by her 30+ year yoga practice. She has led workshops, shepherded an online community and written curriculum to support this work. After spending a month in Scotland each year since 2022, she has developed a deep reverence for the Celtic and Druidic influence on Scotland’s earth-honoring spirituality that lingers even in its Christian manifestations. The friendships she has forged during this time will give us unique access to sites and experiences not available to the public.

 April 17-24: Isle of Mull

Flying into Glasgow the morning of the 17th (some prefer to fly in a day early), we will wait for all of our group to arrive and will be transported by private driver to Oban, the coastal village in Western Scotland where we will have lunch together and take the ferry to the Isle of Mull. My co-leader on Mull, Katja Clowes, a dear friend and crofter who runs a bed and breakfast on Mull with her husband David, will meet us at the ferry and take us to our two houses. Half of us will stay at Katja’s Mornish Schoolhouse and half at a beautiful farmhouse near an art gallery/cafe just a mile down the road in Calgary Bay. The farmhouse has a large living area and kitchen which will serve as a gathering spot for all of us, regardless of which house we’re staying in.

After a day of traveling, we will settle into our houses and have a short opening circle before we head to bed. . Our first full day will be spent at Lochbuie in southern Mull gathering in a remote late Neolithic/early Bronze Age stone circle, touring 15th century Moy Castle (not publicly accessible due to restoration) and lunching at the waterfront Old Post Office Cafe. In addition to seeing the sights, we will be exploring the mythology within each of them, from legends of initiatory rites at Moy Castle to the lore of the stone circle as nine maidens turned to stone on the Sabbath for dancing. We will be there on a Sunday, and we will dance. Oh will we dance!

Highlights of our week on Mull will include a visit to Dervaig’s Kilmore Church, home to a stained glass window depicting a pregnant Mary Magdalene with her beloved Jesus; an expedition to either McKinnon’s Cave or Nun’s Cave for a candlelit ritual in its depths; a day trip by boat to Fingal’s Cave (known in Gaelic as “Uamh-Binn” or The Cave of Melody for its unique acoustics) and Lunga where we will get up close and personal with the adorable puffins. Fingals Cave was created 60 million years ago by the same ancient lava flow that also created the Giant’s Causeway in Ireland directly across the sea and shares much of its mythos.

April 24-29: Isle of Iona

After a week in the wilds of Mull, we will take the short ferry ride over to Iona, known as the birthplace of Christianity in the West and a hub of Celtic and Druidic spirituality before that. Here we will integrate and deepen the knowings we co-generated in our time on Mull.

We will spend our first night at Martyr’s Bay Hotel and will stay in the lovely Argyll Hotel, a charming waterfront inn. While on Iona, we willl traverse the small island by foot. There are few cars on the island, lending to its sense of otherworldly serenity. From the pebbly beaches on the south side (where we will ask the rock treasures meant to go home with us to find us) to the white sand beaches on the north side (rivaling the Caribbean), magic abounds. We will visit one of the few surviving sheela-na-gigs in Scotland, located in the ruins of the 12th century nunnery. I will let you loose and see who can find it first! We’ll spend time in the ancient St. Oran’s chapel (also 12th century) singing together and ascend Dun I (“dun” is hill in Gaelic and “I” is a traditional reference to Iona) to find Brigid’s well, sipping from it or splashing our faces to honor the transformation that has been initiated on our pilgrimage.

April 29-30: Oban (goddess-themed inn)

A very special addition to this year’s West Coast pilgrimage is our final night spent at the magical Glencruitten House in Oban, with room imbued with Celtic Goddess themes and folklore. After traveling by two ferries, a bus and a driver from Iona, we will have high tea together at Glencruitten and tap into the rich stories housed in this whimsical inn in our closing circle before retiring to our rooms which will include the Cailleach and the Selkie Haven. The next morning, we breakfast at Glencruitten before our driver picks us up for our two-hour drive to the Glasgow airport. Which goddesses will you be taking home with you? Only time will tell.

Images of Glencruitten House where we’ll spend our final night:

What’s Included

• 13 days & nights immersed in sacred inquiry in the wilds of western Scotland

• Curriculum guide full of context and curiosities about the lands, the legends and the sites we’ll be exploring

• A pre-pilgrimage Zoom gathering (or two if we need them)

• Private transportation for our group from Glasgow Airport to the coastal town of Oban

• Ferry from Oban to the Isle of Mull & back

• Private transportation for our group from the ferry landing to our houses on Mull

• Local guide and driver for the week on Mull

• Private visit to Moy Castle (not open to the public)

• Boat trip to Fingal’s Cave & Lunga for puffin experience and exploration.

• 7 nights accomodations in private rooms spread between two charming homes on Mull

• Breakfast of homemade and locally sourced items each morning in our homes on Mull

• Three dinners locally prepared and eaten at our farmhouse and one special dinner out

• Ferry to the Isle of Iona and back

• One night stay at Martyr’s Bay Inn on the Isle of Iona upon arrival

• 4 nights accommodations (private or shared) at The Argyle Hotel, a waterfront inn on the Isle of Iona

• Breakfast at our hotel each morning on Iona

• Entry fee to the Abby on Iona.

• Bus to meet our ferry for the return to the mainland

• Driver to Glencruitten House in Oban

• High tea send-off at Glencruitten House

• One night’s stay in a private room in the bespoke Glencruiteen House in Oban

• Rituals and practices around the sites and their lore to help us excavate & integrate Her.

What’s Not Included

• Roundtrip airfare from your home to Glasgow

• Lunches

• Many dinners (3 dinners catered in at our house included)

• Spending money

Investment

$6,000 (standard room rate)*

$6,500 (upgraded room rate)**

Payable by check or credit card

$100 discount if paid by check/Venmo ~ $100 discount for bringing a friend

$50 discount for my paid Substack subscribers ~ $50 discount for Mt. Shasta Goddess Temple members

* Standard room rate includes a private room for all seven nights on Mull and choice of a small private garden view room OR a shared sea view room on Iona.

* Upgraded room rate includes a private room for all seven nights on Mull and an expansive,private sea view room on Iona, as well as priority in room assignments on Mull.

$1,000 deposit due upon registration to secure your spot (payable by check or Venmo)

Wondering why this trip is more expensive than our east coast trip? We will be in a much more remote area of Scotland & the logistics of moving around the island (Mull has a one-lane road and takes two hours to drive the perimeter) and between islands requires more cost and coordination. Accommodations on Iona, reached by ferry from Mull, are booked a year in advance at the island’s three hotels. Our hotel, The Argyll, is a stunner, as is the magical Celtic Goddess-themed inn for our last night in Oban!

Questions? Email Monette here.