SEPTEMBER 3-7 | HUNTER REGION | 12 GUESTS ONLY
5 Days to step out of the noise and come home to yourself.
Quiet
The
An intentionally intimate 5-day silent retreat and digital detox, limited to a small number of guests to preserve the depth and personal nature of the experience.
Fill out the form below to discover if this retreat is right for you.
watch this first.
Before you read the details, let me speak to you for a minute. If this retreat is for you , I think your body will know before your mind finishes deciding.
BEFORE WE BEGIN
You're not tired.
You're overstimulated.
There's a kind of exhausted that sleep doesn't fix. It's not your body that's broken— it's your capacity to hear yourself over the noise.
You're managing, responding, scrolling, planning, holding, checking. Full of input. Starved of space.
You check your phone before your feet hit the floor. You try to rest, but your mind keeps reaching for the next thing.
And somewhere underneath all of that, there is a quieter part of you saying…. I NEED SPACE…. I NEED QUIET…. I NEED TO STOP BEING AVAILABLE TO EVERYTHING.
"The discomfort of silence? That's exactly where this begins."
Silence isn't the
absence of sound.
It's the presence of you.
When you remove the noise , the notifications, the conversations, the constant pressure to be doing something …something shifts. Not dramatically. Not in a lightning bolt moment.
Just quietly, clearly: you start to hear what's actually there.
How your mind moves. Where your energy is leaking. What you've been avoiding. What you actually want.
What has been waiting for months, maybe years.
Science calls it the default mode network ,the brain's ability to process, integrate, and make meaning when external input stops.
Forest, stillness, and reduced input give your nervous system something most of us rarely receive now : space to process, integrate & repair.
"This isn't woo. This is your biology finally getting what it needs."
LED BY EM CRUICKSHANK
You will be
held completely.
Em has been guiding people into stillness, self- inquiry, Yin yoga, meditation, seasonal practice and embodied wisdom for over a decade.
Her approach is direct, warm, and without fluff.
She doesn't teach silence as an idea ,she holds it as a practice, a container, a living thing.
You come. You arrive. You let the forest and the practice do the rest.
THE DAILY RHYTHM
A structured container.
Not a schedule to perform.
Each day has a gentle shape ,enough structure to hold you, enough space to surprise you.
No perfection expected. No right way to do this.
Meditation
Guided and unguided sits to settle the mind.
No experience required
Qi Gong
Ancient movement practice | slow deliberate movement to open the body, move energy and bring your back to yourself.
Yin Yoga
Long-held, supported poses that give the nervous system permission to soften.
Dharma Talks
Ancient wisdom teachings offered as living questions, not doctrine. Contemplation.
Forest Bathing
Guided immersion in 200 acres of rainforest, letting nature regulate what words can't reach.
Deep Rest
Time to journal, soak, stare at trees or do absolutely nothing.This counts as practice.
A SAMPLE DAY AT THE QUIET
Each day begins at 7:30am.
Later than you think.
You're allowed to ease in.
Morning
Qi Gong
Guided Meditation
Breakfast
Late Morning
Dharma Talk
Inquiry
Silent Integration
Midday
Lunch
Rest
Journal
Walk or do absolutely nothing
Afternoon
Guided Meditation
Forest Bathing
Private 1:1 Session with Em
Evening
Frequency Healing
Yin Yoga
Guided Meditation
Dinner Yoga Nidra
THE DIGITAL DETOX
Your phone stays
in the drawer.
Full digital silence for 5 days. No social media. No emails. No smart watch. No checking out of discomfort the moment it appears.
This is the part people are most nervous about. It is also part that changes everything.
Because when the phone goes quiet, the performance goes quiet. The comparison goes quiet. The habitual reach for distraction starts to soften.
And eventually, your actual thoughts come back. Your heart speaks. You find home.
What leaves with your phone
The comparison. The reaching. The constant checking. The noise that keeps you away from yourself.
The forest as medicine
Phytoncides from eucalyptus trees reduce cortisol and boost immune function. Creek sounds regulate the nervous system. The environment does its own work.
What comes back
Your appetite. Your actual thoughts. Your ability to sit with what is here. You hearts voice. You come back home.
200 acres of untouched land
Two hundreds acres of rainforest and bushland, creek walks, old growth gums and quiet your body recognises before your mind catches up.
THE VENUECarawirry
Forest Escape.
Privately booked for our group of 12.
200 acres of Hunter Region rainforest and bushland.
This is not a hotel , it's a private estate.
Warm timber, open fires, pools set into the forest.
Creek walks, old growth gums, wallabies at dawn and natures choir signing for you.
All meals, snacks and beverages included. Simple, nourishing food to support the work.
You don't organise anything. You just arrive.
There are only 12 places across the houses and cabins at Carawirry.
Rooms range from shared house accomodation to more private forest spaces Every option includes accomodation, all meals, daily practices, forest immersion and your private 30 mins session with Em.
A $500 non-refundable deposit secures your room.
The remaining balance is invoiced in 3 equal instalments
ACCOMMODATION & INVESTMENTChoose your space.
THE NOOK - SOLD OUT | Private forest house | King Bedroom | Private Bathroom
TATHRA HOUSE - ONE ROOM REMAINS | Shared House | King Bedrooms | Pool | From $1450 per person
THE TREE HOUSE- SOLD OUT | Elevated Canopy Stay | Queen Bedrooms | Forest Baths | $1800
THE COTTAGE | King Bedrooms | Private Pool | Forest Deck | $1900 per room
GUM LEAF CABIN- SOLD OUT| Elevated canopy stay | Queen bedrooms| Wood-fired Spa | $1650
WHO THIS IS FOR
You don't need to have
done this before.
You just need to recognise something true in what you've read so far.
You feel full, but not clear. Busy, but not purposeful. Moving fast but uncertain where.
You're constantly "on" and when you try to switch off, you can't. The mind doesn't stop just because the diary does.
You are tired of talking about rest and want to actually feel it.
You're willing to be uncomfortable enough to be honest
You don't want to be told to "trust the process" by someone who hasn't done the work themselves.
You know you need more than a “weekend away”.
You don’t want more noise. You want space.
FAQS
-
Check in is from 2pm on Thursday and our retreat program begins at 3:30pm.
We part ways at 12pm on Monday, giving you plenty of time to travel home safely.
-
No. You just need willingness. You will be guided.
-
Yes. The retreat is held as a silent container with guidance from Em and structured teaching moments.
When we arrive on Thursday we will come together still talking and silence will begin after dinner that evening. We break silence after breakfast on the Monday -
You can bring it, but it will not be part of the retreat. Phones, smart watches, iPads and Laptops are put away.
We remove the input fro external sources so you can truly hear yourself. -
Accomodation in your own room (unless you are in the limited shared rooms), all meals, snacks, beverages, daily practices, dharma teachings, forest bathing walks and one private session with Em
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Travel to and from Carrawirry and anything outside the retreat container.
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Good! Most people will. Silence is confronting at first. That does not mean you are doing it wrong. So many of us are so entrained to be around noise constantly that we will notice our nervous systems looking for noise! That is entirely normal.
-
Very little indeed!
Some swimmers if you intend to go into the pool or the swimming holes.
Warm layers as it will stlll be cool in the rainforest early mornings and evenings
Sturdy boots ,or gumboots for forest walking
Wet weather her gear just in case -our accommodation is spread throughout the estate so best to be prepared
Yoga Mat
Silence is not
empty.
It's where things stop pretending to be okay and actually become okay.
It's where you stop chasing rest and start experiencing it.
It's where the version of you underneath all the noise finally gets a chance to speak.
You already know if this is for you.
You've known since the second paragraph.
SEPTEMBER 3–7, 2026 · HUNTER REGION, NSW
Reserve your place
in The Quiet.
12 GUESTS ONLY · $500 DEPOSIT SECURES YOUR ROOM
3 ROOMS REMAIN
3 equal installments will be invoiced for your balance payment.
Rooms fill in order of deposit received. No waitlist.