The Mid-Atlantic Men's Gathering is a camping retreat held in Pennsylvania. The gathering is for queer, gay, bisexual, straight, transgender, questioning and intersexual men who wish to promote a safe, supportive space in which men of different sexual orientations, faiths, heritages, ages, and occupations can come together, challenge themselves, and grow. It is an opportunity to explore male notions of spirituality, sexuality, intimacy, aging and gender expression.

Men respond to each other differently in a male-only space. At the gathering, men can be frank and free about their feelings, their sexuality, and their personal boundaries. The gathering provides a safe, supportive place for men to grow. The male-only character of the gathering encourages bonding and intimacy between men.

We are not part of any other organization, nor do we have any agenda other than the goal of fostering a space of celebration, healing, and personal growth.

The Weekend

The weekend begins on Friday, with registration, tent building, dinner, a welcoming fire circle, and drumming around the fire. Circles, workshops, activities and free time are just part of the events planned for Saturday and Sunday. Our Spring Gathering ends on Monday (falling as it does on the holiday weekend) and our Fall Gathering ends on Sunday. We always close with a very moving closing circle.

The Men's Gathering is a camping weekend. The days can be rainy--especially in the spring--and the evenings can be cool. Be prepared with some rain gear and layers of clothing. You should bring a tent, tarp, sleeping bag, mattress, flashlight, towels, insect repellent, sunscreen--basically all of the stuff that you need for a camping trip. The gathering is clothing-optional in certain areas of the site.

This gathering is open to all men who want to explore male notions of spirituality, sexuality, intimacy, aging, and gender expression. We gather in a wild, beautiful sacred place, that is far apart from the workday world in which most men find themselves. The gathering provides a place for you to get outside of the ordinary and explore the playful, silly, caring, tender parts of life.

Our History
Having been around for nearly twenty years makes the Mid-Atlantic Men's Gathering one of the oldest men's gatherings in the country.

We began as the “Softening the Stone” Men's Retreat sponsored by the Twin Oaks intentional community in Virginia. (If you have any pictures or stories of those early days, please send them to us). After some time we outgrew that space and moved on to a camping spot that was sold to a logging company (bad for the gathering and bad for the trees).

After painstaking deliberations (aren't you glad you missed thoseyears?) we renamed ourselves The Mid-Atlantic Men's Gathering and held our gathering at Four Quarters Farm in Pennsylvania before moving to the Hermitage.

For the last decade a lot of the creative energy for organizing the gathering has centered around participantsfrom the Washington, DC area with the online help of organizers throughout the Mid-Atlantic area. We're one of the oldest continuinggatherings for queer and queer-friendly men in the country. We've always loved getting the chance to spend a relaxing weekend with each other.

Now we hold two gatherings; one in the Spring and one in the Fall.   If this is your first time, know that you are joining a long tradition of men gathering to celebrate spirit and community!

Check out pictures from our past gatherings here.



The Land

The Hermitage is centrally located to Virginia, Rhode Island, West Virginia, Maryland, the District of Columbia, New Jersey, and New York and Ohio. How far is it?

The setting is best described as "tranquil" and "spiritual."

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The Hermitage
White Crane
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Pictures from our last gathering.