INFORMATION ON OUR FESTIVAL
Registration for July 5-8, 2023 is open!
We still have plenty of room for personal tent camping, but as of June 4 we are out of platform or pre-set tent spaces. Registration ends June 20! If you are flying in from out of state and cannot bring camping gear, contact the registrar for some options.
Please read the information below before registering.
In light of the rapidly changing nature of the Covid pandemic, we are not requiring proof of vaccinations to attend the 2023 event. We do, however, hope attendees who are able to will take this precaution, but regardless, we ask all attendees to use best practices of personal care and caution in the two weeks leading up to the event. We will continue the requirement for masks in closed public spaces and in food lines. Read about our policies on health and safety here.
2023 registration will be in stages:
All mailed registrations must be postmarked by the last day for the requested rate.
From opening through April 7th: Early Registration ($350) – early registration may end before March 31st if we reach the allotted available spaces for this rate.
April 8th – June 5th: Regular Registration ($375)
June 1st – June 20th: Late Registration ($400) No late reg fee for 2023! But we close on June 20th, no registrations or transfers after.
After June 20th, registration will be closed and any available registrations must be arranged directly with the registrar.
Please remember: Registrations are solely for the individuals who purchase the registration, and are not transferable without prior approval and facilitation by the registrar. This is both to protect our attendees and SFF, so please do not “Sell” your registration outside of the process the registrar will facilitate for you. If you take money from someone for your registration without prior approval by the registrar, we reserve the right to cancel the registration without refund.
All registrations include 2 vegetarian meals per day (Sunday is breakfast only), camping, and events.
Arrival
- All attendees must arrive on Wednesday, July 5th between 12 noon and 5:30pm.
- Those arriving late will find the entrance gate closed and will need to make special arrangements to be checked into the camp so that disturbance of ongoing rituals or activities is kept to a minimum. This may result in a wait at the registration tent for you, so don’t come late!
- Friday arrivals will not be available this year.
Departure
- Closing circle is early Saturday morning, July 8th (near dawn)
- We must be off site by 1pm. We are always grateful for help with packing up the main site!
Partial Registrations and Day Visitors
- SpiritFire is an intensive retreat, and as such we do not accept partial registrations or day visitors.
- All registrants must plan to arrive during registration hours on Wednesday, July 5th, and stay on site for the duration of the event through the closing circle on Saturday, July 8th.
- SpiritFire Festival does not make accommodations for early departures except in case of emergencies.
Community Contribution/Shifts
- All festival attendees will be responsible for one community shift that helps to support the festival. Signups for various groups will be available upon check-in on site. There are no required meal prep or cooking shifts.
- We are pleased to say attendees will *not* need to bring your own eating utensils or dishware this year!
- PACK IN, PACK OUT policy: you must be responsible for packing out everything you brought in with you. This includes recycling from bottles and cans you brought. Broken camping items, dead batteries, towels, clothing – all of that needs to go back home with you and disposed of properly there.
Children at SpiritFire
SpiritFire is intended as a ceremonial weekend retreat based on 4 (3 for this year) fire circle rituals that are active between late night and dawn; the nights are therefore very active, and mornings very quiet and meant to offer time for sleep and rest. We realize this is a very challenging schedule for young children and their parents; the event is meant for adults, and SpiritFire does not provide daycare or other services for children. Adults attending for the first time are asked not to bring children so you can get as sense of the event and make the decision on future attendance of your child based on that experience. Children are currently welcome to SpiritFire, but please see the Parent Info page for more details. Despite the improving nature of the pandemic, young children are still at more risk of serious illness when contracting Covid or other flu viruses, so we urge strong consideration of bringing your small child to the event. Our age policy could possibly change in reflection of the pandemic situation.
Payment Options
- Once registration is open, you can download the mail-in PDF registration form via the “Mail In” link on the Register by Mail page. With that, you can send a check or money order. You can also send funds via Venmo and send a PDF of your signed reg form at the same time. See the registration form for how to do so!
- We accept online payments via our online system. Because of the fees charged for each transaction, we greatly prefer mail-in registrations with a check or money order or Venmo.
- Payment is required at time of online registration.
- Providing online payment has made registration very convenient, but has cost us thousands of dollars in fees since we began the service. In order to continue, paying online will add 2.9% to your total amount due. To avoid these fees, we welcome and encourage checks or money orders by mail.
Cancellations / Refunds
- Covid 19 and a new era of health practices have drastically changed how gatherings like ours plan and operate. Our refund and cancellation policy has changed to reflect that, so please read carefully before registering.
- You may not transfer your registration to another person without checking in with the registrar first!
- If a registration is transferred to someone improperly, SpiritFire reserves the option to deny them entry without refund.
- If you cancel and choose to put your registration on hold for the following year, it is not transferable for that year.
- The following schedule applies to refunds for situations in which you must cancel your plan to attend. (See below for info on situations in which SpiritFire must change event plans.) Requests must be received in writing by the dates listed. Please note any donations (scholarship or mountain) will not be refunded.
Through 10pm on May 1st: Full refund for any reason, minus $45 cancellation fee and any donations (donations will not be refunded). You can also opt to hold your registration for 2024 – you will be guaranteed a spot if you register during the early or regular registration period. If you choose not to attend in 2024 and have funds on hold, we will not be able to extend your hold or offer a refund. You can also request to arrange for a transfer of your registration to another person with assistance from the registrar (see above note about transferring your registration!)
From May 2nd – June 1st: 1/2 registration refund (minus donations) or we are happy to help you transfer your registration. If registration has filled, we will first go to our wait list and prioritize them. If registration is still open or there is no wait list, you can request your registration go to a specific person of your choosing. It is very important that you contact us BEFORE you transfer your registration to another person. You can also opt to hold your registration for 2024 – you will be guaranteed a spot if you register during the early or regular registration period. If you choose not to attend in 2024 and have funds on hold, we will not be able to extend your hold or offer a refund.
From June 1st – 15th: No refunds, but we will do our best to help you transfer your registration to another person if possible. You can also opt to hold your registration for 2024 – you will be guaranteed a spot if you register during the early or regular registration period. If you choose not to attend in 2024 and have funds on hold, we will not be able to extend your hold or offer a refund.
After June 15th: By this time, we have committed fully to our numbers and contract, and no refunds, holds or transfers are possible.
In case of a change of law or camp policy due to the pandemic: if we are unable to host SpiritFire due to the pandemic, the default policy will be to hold your registration fee in full for 2024. You may request a refund in writing with special circumstances, but if event funds have already been spent and we cannot recover them, a full refund may not be possible. We don’t anticipate this happening – things are looking better each year!
- All refunds will be issued via check or online (in the same way that you registered.)
Additional Information about Food
- If you have dietary needs beyond vegetarian, you are responsible for bringing what you need to supplement what is offered. Our amazing kitchen team does provide some gluten free and vegan options – please make us aware of your preference when you register in order to make sure there is enough for everyone that needs it.
- Please be sure to indicate any medical allergies when you register – we’ll do our best to have options. Please do not indicate allergies to influence the menu due to taste or preference – help us keep each other fed safely and with as much ease as possible!
- Our amazing Grill Master will be selling various grilled meats on site – CASH ONLY and please bring smaller bills! Available items and costs will be posted before the event both on Facebook and in the registration packet.
- We recommend bringing food to supplement your meals. Food may be kept in a sealed, latchable cooler at your site. No campfires or cooking allowed per the camp owner’s policies.
Additional Information about Lodging
- SpiritFire offers beautiful woods tenting, bathrooms, and a shower house. There are a small number of group platform tents (for 4 people) available. Platform bunks are limited and not guaranteed.
- You may request to share a platform tent with up to 3 others so long as space is available. Those 3 others must also list the same sharing choices, and must register while spaces are available. We recommend coordinating the group to register at the same time.
- Preference is given to those with medical or travel restrictions.
- We do not yet have information on how close you will be able to unload your vehicle to your camping site. You will need to transport all your equipment to your chosen site by hand, your own cart, or a provided cart from the Welcoming Tent or designated drop-off sites (more info TBD in early May.) The exact distance will vary based on where you choose to camp. Therefore, you should only pack what you are willing to carry. There is a special drum tent for instruments in the main area of the site so you don’t have to lug your drums/etc. to your camp and then back to the fire circle.
- Cars must be parked in the assigned group parking area. The roads at the site are not open to personal vehicles, per the site owner’s policy.
- Please note that we are not able to provide accommodation for RVs or popup campers.
Pets
Pets are not allowed on the site, per the site owner’s policy, with no exceptions.
Substances and Gathering Policies
- SpiritFire is committed to creating safe space within our site to experience the pathways and community. The gathering does not tolerate abuse, harassment, non-consensual interactions of any kind, for any reason. Please – if you feel there is an issue with an attendee displaying behavior that makes you or others feel unsafe, approach a staff member and we will step in to help. If you are asked to cease any behaviors towards others who say you are disturbing their sense of safety or comfortable enjoyment of the event, do so. If we find that a registrant has broken this policy, it will result in being sent home immediately from the mountain with no refund and possibly being disinvited from future events. Our full policy on health and safety can be found here.
- Drinking alcohol in public spaces is not allowed at SpiritFire.
- We highly discourage casual or excessive drinking during the gathering. Alcohol should be consumed responsibly and away from public areas.
- Minors caught using alcohol will be asked to leave the festival without refund, as will any adults supplying it, encouraging its use, or enabling minors to use it by direct or indirect means.
- Anyone who appears to be intoxicated/under the influence or who disturbs festival events or attendees will be asked to leave site without refund.
- We reserve the right to deny registration/attendance to anyone if we determine such action is necessary.
- Smoking of cigars or cigarettes is only allowed in one area of the site per the site owner’s policy, and we take their preference very seriously. Please only use the designated area for smoking, and do not smoke in other areas or in your cabin/tent.
- Please leave all other substances at home – no illegal substances of any kind will be tolerated at the event.