un(masc)ing
a queer ‘mens’ aquatic retreat
Dearest fluid beings, welcome to the invitation for
un(Masc)ing, an iteration of Queeda -
a practice/wordplay blending
Portuguese/Spanish cuida (to take care) & queer.
This retreat invites queer male-identified and/or male-socialized spirits
to gather for a weekend of nourishing, rejuvenating contact
—with each other and with the water.
June 14-15 2025
Inner Sanctum,
Woodside, Ca
As queer people,
many of us move through the world
struggling to fully receive, to trust, to surrender.
This retreat offers a different rhythm:
A space to slow down.
A space drop the mask.
A place to practice giving and receiving support.
A time soften, to play, to release, to clarify.
To be in connection, and ease into our edges.
To replenish our inner well alongside queer kin.
To rediscover the fluidity at the heart of our queerness.
This is a space where intimacy, tenderness, and vulnerability can be explored without agenda - where we can weave a queer web of belonging.
Held overnight, among the redwoods overlooking the Pacific Ocean, our sanctuary includes a 97° saltwater, spring-fed pool where we will dive into aquatic practices and dance — drawing from Aguahara, Fluid Presence, and aquatic contact dance.
On land, we’ll root ourselves through bodywork, movement practices, somatic relating, sharing circles and hikes in the surrounding lush redwoods. There will be space for sauna, silence, laughter, rest, and joy.
what’s water got to do with it?
water is the queerest of teachers..
It invites us to expand our capacity for sensitivity, receptivity, and shapeshifting.
It shows us how to find reciprocity,
- flowing between holding & being held.
It dissolves the rigid armor we’ve been taught to carry,
- letting ourselves out and others in.
It supports the surfacing of whatever is real in us,
- letting us be seen.
Regardless of how we appear on the outside, or what we carry inside
- it will hold us unconditionally.
Who is this for?
This retreat welcomes any person who:
• Identifies as queer, and
• Identifies with or has been socialized as a man
Gay, bisexual, trans, queer, heteroflexible, questioning, gender-fluid, masc-of-center, non-binary and all who gravitate, orbit, or oscillate around masculinity on their own terms—you are welcome here.
If the invitation resonates, then this space is probably for you.
We aim to co-create an inclusive space for all bodies, racial identities, neurotypes, and expressions within the constellation of queer masculinities.
We will lean into our edges, exploring where trust and surrender meet. Where sensitivity becomes playfulness. Where we can nourish queer communities of care.
The cultural conditioning of “masculinity” has often demanded strength, stoicism, and emotional control, but in turn it leaves many of us feeling brittle, defended, and lonely. Within queer male circles, authenticity and vulnerability can at times be drowned out by performativity, disposability, and transactional dynamics.
This retreat offers an alternative:
A space where we can soften the need to do, to prove, to perform — and simply be. Where we make space for each other, as and how we are. Where we can welcome, and share, the full fluidity of our embodied expressions.
During Pride month there can be so many ways to gather. This is a space for a more tender gathering. This particular retreat is focused on sensual and heart connections, de-emphasizing erotic play and use of substances.
Where is it?
The retreat will be held at The Inner Sanctum in Woodside, California. An oasis overlooking mountains and the pacific, a large 97degree salt water, spring-fed pool, a dry-sauna, an indoor movement and lounge space, a squishy cuddle space, surrounded by rolling hills of redwood forest
Location and directions will be sent out with signing of the liability waiver for the Inner Sanctum, which will be sent out after filling out the registration form.
Accommodations
-
Camping
included in cost of event
-
Shared Dorms
$50 Queen Beds inside house
-
Private Room
$150 w/private bathroom
$120 w/no bathroom
-
Hexapods
$120 Private Queen Bed
-
Sprinter Van
$120
-
Beds in RV's
$80-120
Contribution
Supporting
$500+
For those with more financial abundance, supports lower-income reduced ticket
Regular
$420
Regular priced ticket for event
Reduced
$320
For those needing some
financial support to attend
◎Base Rate included camping.
◎50% deposit of workshop fees is due at registration.
◎Remaining 50% due Monday, June 9th
◎We have a few work-trade positions for the Kitchen and cleaning available for those who need some support to attend.
◎Rate includes Included meals from saturday lunch through Sunday Lunch
◎Options available for arriving the night before
◎Limited options for receiving private aquatic bodywork session Friday night
Some questions for the weekend:
Which masks do I wear that that are barriers to deeper connection?
How can I let myself be supported by queer fam?
How can the water teach me what I no longer need to hold alone?
your facilitator
Asha (he/they) is a Somatic Experiencing Practitioner (SEP), integrative bodyworker, aquatic therapist, dancer, and facilitator whose work invites a return to the fluidity and wisdom of the body. With over a decade of experience in trauma-informed care—including crisis intervention, somatic counseling, and psychedelic facilitation/integration—Asha supports clients in reclaiming authentic expression, connection, and embodied safety. For many years, he has worked with queer men, and the wider queer community.
Blending Somatic Experiencing, Compassionate Inquiry, parts work, bodywork, and aquatic therapy, Asha’s approach centers nervous system regulation, emotional integration, and resilience. His sessions are attuned, spacious, and rooted in warmth, often weaving breath, voice, and movement to deepen somatic awareness, capacity and expression. As a dancer/mover, his movement practice has been shaped by many influences, but is predominantly informed by Axis Syllabus, Contact Improvisation, functional movement, Contemporary dance, Playfight and aquatic dance. Through his practice and teachings, he strives to support the development of functional fluidity, a reliable connection to the ground, subtle listening, and presence in moments of disorientation.
As a queer, multilingual immigrant born in Sicily, Asha’s path has been shaped by the lived experience of embodying fluid identities. He strives to hold the multiplicities and contradictions within the human experience with grace, humility, and compassion. He earned his B.A. from Hampshire College with a focus in integrative psychology, medical anthropology, and Buddhist studies, and completed his CMT at the McKinnon Body Therapy Center. His passion for aquatic therapy led him to study Aguahara and Fluid Presence in Brazil, Mexico, and Spain. He works as a somatic practitioner and bodyworker at the psychedelic-assisted therapy clinic Sage Integrative Health. He also facilitates legal, integrative psilocybin retreats with Kiyumi in the Netherlands. In his free time, Asha loves to dance, freedive, and offer somatic-based workshops—on land and in water—that support practices of mutual care.
