Hey! Read this!

(It's important info to know before registering.)

Thanks! If you haven't yet read our Welcome and the Step-by-Step Explanation, you might want to do so first so this all makes sense.

It's important to us that every single person who attends an Adventure Weekend has a wonderful experience. To that end, we want to make sure everybody understands a few important points before registering:

Participants must meet admission requirements.

AGE: Otherworld events are designed as exciting, challenging adventures for adults. To attend, you must be at least 18 years old. 16- and 17-year-olds may attend if accompanied by a parent/guardian. Each six-person group can contain at most one under-18 participant.

PREGNANCY: If you're pregnant (or think you might be at the time of the event) please read our Pregnancy FAQ.

Participants are outside most of the weekend, regardless of the weather.

We've run Adventure Weekends in sunny years and rainy years, warm years and cool years. The packing list in our information packet makes sure you arrive prepared for different weather conditions, and if you forget something, we can help out with extra layers or sunscreen or whatever.

Participants spend the weekend as heroes.

There are great stories out there that center on abrasive or nasty or downright evil characters, but at Otherworld, we strongly encourage you to be a hero who's -- well -- heroic. There are a lot of reasons for that. One is that we want every single participant to have a wonderful weekend... and that's a lot easier when no one is being abrasive or nasty or evil to you.

Happily, this rarely becomes an issue. We're lucky to get such genuinely kind, considerate participants. However, if treating the people around you -- those in your own group and the other participant groups you'll encounter -- with courtesy and compassion doesn't sound like a good time, then probably Otherworld isn't the experience for you. Otherworld is an unusual opportunity to be your best self, and we're committed to giving that opportunity to every one of our participants. For that reason, anyone whose actions compromise the safety or happiness of other participants or staff volunteers will be asked to leave.

Participants walk at least 8 miles over the course of the weekend.

The layout of our site means we simply can't give someone an adventure if they can't walk decent distances. Some of the trails are smooth and level, but others are uneven or hilly... or both. There are chances for breaks: you'll walk, then have a meal, then walk, then sit to talk. We encourage participants to communicate about their needs, so their group can walk more slowly or pause more often. Comfortable shoes help as well.

If you have a particular health issue that might make attending problematic, please contact us so we can figure out together if Otherworld is right for you.

Participants engage in combat with safe padded swords.

Sword-fighting is not the focus of an Adventure Weekend, but it is part of it. That idea makes a lot of participants nervous, so we want to address a few concerns here:

"I'm afraid it'll hurt!" - It won't, honest. The swords are foam padding wrapped around a hollow plastic core, then covered with soft fabric. Getting hit with one feels like having a Nerf football thrown at you.

"I'm worried I won't be good at it!" - Most people aren't great at something they're trying for the very first time. In a swordfight (as in much of life), everyone is so worried about how they're doing that no one will notice how you're doing.

"I just don't like it for moral reasons." - We understand. The mock fighting Otherworld participants do is defensive: it's about "this is something I do to protect myself and my group", not "this is something I do to get what I want."

If people are nervous about combat, why do we do it? Because, plain and simple, nothing pulls a group together like making them physically responsible for each other. And because it's good and healthy to try new and scary-but-safe things.

Participants stay on-site from Friday at 3pm till Sunday at 5pm.

We know everyone is busy, but you can't come to Otherworld for just a couple hours, or for just one day. Part of what makes the weekend work is the way parties bond and actions progress over time. Many people find that the time "lost" while they're away from home/work/school is compensated for with renewed energy and enthusiasm upon returning at the end of the weekend.

Visit our Registration page to sign up now!