GET OUTTA HERE!

Adventure, food and music

The Land Trust of the Upper Arkansas’ annual fundraising event promises an exciting evening featuring a program by adventurer Andrew Skurka, presentation of the 2011 Conservationist Award, dinner and a silent auction. The event will be held in the SteamPlant Event Center Ballroom in Salida from 5 to 9 p.m. Nov. 17.

Skurka’s program is about his epic Alaska-Yukon expedition, where he walked, skied and packrafted nearly 4,700 miles across some of the wildest lands in North America. The National Geographic Society and Outside Magazine have named Skurka as “Adventurer of the Year” for his long wilderness walks using the most minimal equipment.

Meet Skurka before the program and bid on the chance to brunch with him and the Land Trust’s executive director, Andrew Mackie, at the Country Bounty on Nov. 20.

The light dinner will be catered by Kalamatapit and Michelle Gap, whose dishes incorporate local and organic foods. Local musician Dave Tipton will please your ears with melodies played on the Chapman Stick, a polyphonic chordal instrument that allows the artist to play bass, chords and melody simultaneously.

The 2011 Conservationist of the Year Award will be awarded posthumously to Jack Close, a longtime supporter of open space and conservation in the Upper Arkansas Valley.

A value-packed silent auction will give you a chance to bid on items such as a spa weekend at Ojo Caliente hot springs, train tickets on the Durango-Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad, backpacking with Antero Llamas, a float fly-fishing trip on the Black Canyon of the Gunnison River with Dvorak Expeditions, a handmade fly-fishing rod from Arkansas River Rods, a guided snowshoe trip with backcountry aficionado Nate Porter, an original painting by Western-landscape artist Stephen Smalzel and much more.

Tickets cost $25 and can be purchased in Salida at the Land Trust office (128 E. First St., upstairs), Salida Mountain Sports (110 N. F St.) or Trailhead Cycle and Ski in Buena Vista (707 U.S. Highway 24 N). The SteamPlant Event Center Ballroom is at 220 W. Sackett Ave., Salida.

All money raised by the event goes directly to the Land Trust of the Upper Arkansas. For information, contact the Land Trust at 1-719-539-7700, info@ltua.org.

Shambhala weekend

Celebrate autumn and Thanksgiving with serenity and rejuvenation at the Shambhala Mountain Center in Red Feather Lakes during a family retreat with Mark and Karen Wilding on Nov. 24-27.

“Thanksgiving Celebration and Practice with Mark and Karen Wilding” begins with an elegant Thanksgiving dinner. This family-oriented holiday weekend offers practice opportunities for new and established practitioners in the powerful setting of Shambhala Mountain.

The theme is “Celebration and Integration.” You’ll find workshops on the contemplative arts, such as haiku and ikebana (Japanese flower arranging), yoga, sensory awareness and additional guided contemplative practices.

Children’s activities include a treasure hunt, storytelling and the production of a Thanksgiving play. On the night of Nov. 26, all come together for shared poetry, music, a sing-along and children’s theater.

There will be ample opportunity to sit in the Great Stupa of Dharmakaya, visit the Shinto Kami shrine, learn more about the path of the Shambhala Warrior, and explore Shambhala’s expression of basic goodness within community. You’ll have time for specific forms of meditation (Shambhala Werma practices), including discussion groups.

Teenagers can attend Shotoku or spend four hours a day shadowing a Shambhala Mountain Mentor providing service, with optional meditation instruction available. Everyone on the land younger than 18 must either attend Shotoku, participate in the mentoring program or be under the direct supervision of their parent.

There is no tuition for the retreat; cost is for food and housing only, which varies by choice of accommodations ($120-$345). Cost for ages 7-17 is $40 per day. Ages 6 and younger are free. Shotoku child care will be available 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

Find out about Mark and Karen Wilding, get a complete retreat program schedule and make reservations by visiting www .shambhalamountain.org. Email to callcenter@shambhalamountain .org, or call 1-888-788-7221.

JOY HARPER, THE GAZETTE