Moon Valley Retreat

2025 Build Season Volunteering

Thank you for your interest in coming out to visit and support at Moon Valley this summer. To be honest, I had a really hard time asking for volunteer support the first year of building because there are so many factors out of my control that it all just felt too overwhelming (and receiving help is an edge for me ;) ) But I made a promise to myself that I would do whatever it took to make it happen this year. I appreciate you deeply.

First, here’s the important stuff for you to know…

  • It’s impossible to time projects out in the Valley. Everyone moves on their own time aaanndd this is my first time doing anything like this.. so I really have no way of knowing what type of support will be needed when you come. There could be alot to do, there could be nothing to do because we are waiting for someone else to do something. Come prepared to be in a flexible flow and alot of mystery :) 

  • It’s also likely that I will have no idea what I’m doing and we’ll be learning together as we go or maybe watching youtube videos to figure it out! On that note, it’s ok if you have no experience (I don’t have much either!) and if you DO - great! Perhaps I can learn from you :) 

  • I’ve learned that I need a lot of alone time to recharge my battery so I may not always be around to hang out in the evenings and down time, so it’s best to come with a buddy so you can adventure together and share company (this also relieves me from the pressure of feeling like I need to constantly be “hosting” and caretaking). 

  • We currently have a covered outdoor camp kitchen with a small fridge, camp stove and all needed cooking gear, 1 biodigester composting toilet, 2 outdoor showers with hot water, solar power, starlink wifi and 2 glamping tents with beds, a  slack line, hammocks, communal fire pit and the most epic view of stars. It’s not quite luxurious but there’s a base layer of creature comforts and more being added all summer!

  • We are in the middle of nowhere down 5+ miles of dirt road surrounded by BLM/National Forest. The nearest full grocery store is 40min away. 

  • There are rattle snakes, coyotes and other high alpine dessert dangers to be aware of.

  • We are at 7,700ft elevation - thats high! Air is thinner and sun burns ya more easily. 

  • We have 3 epic hot spring facilities within 45min or less. Joyful Journey, Valley View & Hooper Hot Springs 

  • The Great Sand Dunes National Park is 1hr away

  • Swim/float/surf in the Rio Grande River in Del Norte 40min away or in Salida 1hr away 

  • Explore epic hikes/backpacking in the Sangre De Cristo Mountains 45 min away 

  • Visit the mystical town of Crestone just 40 min away, where they have many meditation centers and spiritual events happening.

This is such a magical place to get away from the buzz of the city and really reconnect with the slowness, beauty and vastness of the San Luis Valley.

Some awesome things:

What we’ll be tackling this 2025 build season:

Our main goal is to complete the communal kitchen area which consists of a chefs kitchen, a guest kitchen, indoor bathroom/shower, green house + jungle shower, utility room and 2 guest rooms. This is all happening within/between the 2 existing 40ft shipping containers. 

Projects:

  • Cement foundation between the shipping containers 

  • Roof over the shipping containers

  • Green house off the south end of Kitchen 

  • Windows/doors + framing out the containers 

  • Plumbing/gas/electrical for Communal Kitchen 

  • Finishing out the kitchen spaces once spray foam insulation is complete 

    And lots more! It’s possible there could be some super abode building happening in the fall or bottle cob walls and other cool projects but that is very TBD at the moment and I will send out updates as things progress :)

Group Volunteer Dates

Check out the available volunteer dates here. These are the most ideal (as far as I can predict) times to visit but please reach out directly if you want to come another time.

Getting to Moon Valley

We are located just outside the town of Saguache in the San Luis Valley of south central Colorado. We are 4hrs from the Denver Airport, 1hr from the Alamosa regional airport (with flights to denver) and 2hr 45min from the Durango airport. We’re 2.5 hrs north of Taos and about a 14hr drive from Austin, TX.

Once you get to us, theres about 5 miles of dirt road to drive down and the roads can be a bit slick and washed out just before our place if we just had a big rain. The dirt roads are maintained by the city but still not always great.

I will give you more exact details once you’ve confirmed that you’re coming out!

Please reach out with any questions or concerns.

Thank you again for your interest in supporting this dream! It’s an edge for me to bring people into this humbling process where I am a constant student and frequently feel lost. I look forward to having so many friends out this summer to experience the magic of this valley and land.

If you’d like to make a donation to this project, you can do so at the link below :)