Yoga/Fitness/vegan retreat in Maine (construction, camp, living)

[birdinmigration]

Originally Posted by mainebrokerman

most of the fruits and nuts are in southern maine,,,but land is much more expensive..


far away from everything????

north of bangor... many small towns,,,,


my neighbor, before he died of a heart attack, was looking to build some eco- camps, in northern maine, ,,,off the grid,
nature walks, he wanted massage therapy and chanting....
he put some advertisements in different papers,,,,,and he got some responses,, from what he called some fruits & nuts

the folks that responded said they wanted to "live off the land" even if that meant shooting something, or had some deer/moose meat,,,they wanted an "indigenous" experience

Please don't be put off by people on this board who use offensive terms, or deride any 'wellness' venture. Some folks that post here are the high-blood-pressure, raw meat types that wouldn't know yoga from Yoda.

You have lots of resources up here. I would contact MOFGA Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association and they have an online community MOFGA.net: Online Community of the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association > Home . This research can be done from there.

I would not plan anything until you visit Maine, or target areas. If you want this to be a year-round venture, make sure you come in Winter, Feb. or March. You will see what is viable, in terms of winter/spring programming. It is certainly possible to do a seasonal 'camp' of sorts. Also, year-round can work, but you have to market wisely.

There are lots of abandoned buildings, old houses, mills, that are in need of new ventures, and would be fabulous wellness centers.

Best of luck, and please keep posting about this!

birdinmigration in coastal York County

[slyfox2]

Ellsworth or MDI. Ellsworth is the fastest growing area in Maine.

[Submariner]

Originally Posted by slyfox2

Ellsworth or MDI. Ellsworth is the fastest growing area in Maine.

We are discussing a business setup to cater to the DC / NYC professionals [lawyers, doctors, nurses, etc] with a vacation camp for week-long programs of yoga, fitness, running and nutrition classes.

How does that merge with the 'fastest growing area' of Maine?

[8635angelvalley]

Originally Posted by Newdaawn

You may want to check out a place in Orland called Alamoosic Lodge (sp?) which has this type of program - I think on a smaller scale than you plan. Orland is just outside of Bucksport and I believe this place is on a lake.

Orland is charming. Whenever I drive past it I want to rent a little camp for a week.

[slyfox2]

Originally Posted by Submariner

We are discussing a business setup to cater to the DC / NYC professionals [lawyers, doctors, nurses, etc] with a vacation camp for week-long programs of yoga, fitness, running and nutrition classes.

How does that merge with the 'fastest growing area' of Maine?

People who would come to a place like that will want the other amenities in the area. A fast growing place like Ellsworth has those things, and also has the kinds of people that would be interested in something like this. Fast growing places are usually at the forefront of new things.

This is how it works.

[8635angelvalley]

MDI
Maybe Seal Harbor or Northeast.

[8635angelvalley]

I really think Blue Hill would be the best location.

[birdinmigration]

Where are you with this, OP? You've had some time to think about it since you floated this in August. Enquiring minds want to know!

[lrmsd]

Originally Posted by Cavacava

Yeo, Belfast makes sense or how about Port Clyde? Rockland, Camden, all these places are fine...it is really about the retreat itself that makes the difference. I went on a 4 day retreat to Shoshoni in the mountains of Colorado last Summer. The retreat is about as far away as you can get, but great view of the mountains, good food, freedom to attend or not attend, nice people, all these make a big difference.

Shoshoni is fantastic-small world seeing it here on the ME forum.
Yes, freedom to go to a class or just hang out is a huge plus. I love their land and food. It's just a nice spot to get away..
Though, it's only a few miles from teh town of Nederland, with plenty of amenities, and 30 minutes down the hill from there is Boulder, CO. So, it's not really about as far away as you can get, vs. some of the more remote CO areas.

Anyway, for the OP, there are many rural areas just outside the main tourist, coastal destinations, that could work. I actually think perhaps non natives might be a little less sarcastic, tongue in cheek to answer this type of question-but i'm not sure...

Or, just google yoga retreats in ME, and go for that general area. I mean, there are certain states, Idaho, Maine, etc, where there's a precarious balance between say, ATV/Hunting and Organic Farms/yoga/artists. End up in the wrong area, and your open space for a quiet retreat may not be what you thought it would...Just pick the general area of other current retreats as a starting point for research. Someone else has already done the homework for you by setting up shop where the population/setting supports such ventures! Why reinvent the wheel?

[kellysmith]

This post reminded me of this article. I don't think of yoga when I think of Island Falls, but here it is...
Like Roosevelt, visitors to Sewall House in Island Falls finding physical, emotional benefits — Living — Bangor Daily News — BDN Maine