Take a Tour
The goal of walking the labyrinth is to connect with God (or your Higher Power). One of the by-products of walking the labyrinth is transformation. The key to getting the most out of your walk is to remain open.
After walking the labyrinth, you may decide to sit and meditate on all that happened during your walk.
Sit on the Peter Rabbit Stone and share this beloved story with your little ones.
The next stop on the tour of The Sacred Grove is to the east and up the hill. At the top of the hill is Athani House II. The name comes from stone parapets about five and a half feet high, called athani. They are found along the country roads in southern India to provide market goers a place to put their bundles of produce when they need a rest. After resting, the villagers go back to the athani, give a little pull on the bundle, balance it on their heads and continue their journey.
Walking partly down the hill and to the south is the Meditation Garden and Buddha statue. Pat appreciates the opportunity to sit and meditate. The space is deep in the woods where birds and small animal sounds can be heard.
The “Ridge Walk” is named from the ridge caused by an old logging road which was used at the turn of the twentieth century. The Ridge Walk takes you from the Meditation Garden to the homestead.
In the early part of the 1900’s, a bachelor named Fred Hoerning homesteaded this land. This is the basement (root cellar) of his home. The old well is still here, but we have yet to discover where his outhouse was located!
Surrounding his home were many trees: oaks, white birch, red and white pines, aspen. For some reason, a red and a white oak withstood the cutover and weather, and, today, they present an awe inspiring “couple.” They surely are the grandfathers (along with the stones) of The Sacred Grove.
A part of the homestead was a barn. All that remains of it is the foundation stones. It is within the stone perimeter that we had our Millennium Solstice bonfire and have celebrated the Winter Solstice ever since.
Continuing our Sacred Grove tour…
The entrance to the Path to Uncle Fred's Homestead is next to the barn foundation. “Uncle” Fred left miscellaneous implements and articles lying on the ground throughout his tenure on this site. There is an abandoned broken corn binder that now has a tree growing up through it! Other farm implements he used have been collected and are on this path. So, too, is a copy of the 1905 Land Patent Mr. Hoerning received from President Teddy Roosevelt!
There is a pond that is vegetation free in the spring and every year a pair of mallard ducks spend time there. By the fall, it is full of water plants, ferns and water irises
Needless to say, everyone who experiences The Sacred Grove enjoys the space. We have a guest book and we invite visitors to sign it.
