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Well, I’ve made up my mind, anyway. I want to see mountains again, Gandalf – mountains; and then find somewhere where I can rest. In peace and quiet, without a lot of relatives prying around, and a string of confounded visitors hanging on the bell. I might find somewhere where I can finish my book. I have thought of a nice ending for it: and he lived happily ever after to the end of his days.

THE IDEA

Recently, as we huddled together watching the sun fall into the Pacific from the main campus balcony, we asked ourselves a question: What would it look like to take one of the good things at the very heart of Pacifica, the reading of beautiful books in beloved community, and find a space where that experience could work its magic unhindered by the many stresses of the school year? No phones, no homework, no grades, no college applications, no distractions. 

As we talked, an idea began to take shape. One week in the misty mountains of Northern California reading and journaling our way through the greatest fantasy trilogy of all time: J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings. Nothing but the cold woodland air, a good book, good friends, English breakfasts, warm tea, chips and chats round log fires late into the night.

THE EXPERIENCE

Have you ever wanted to experience what it’s like to fully immerse yourself in an imaginative world as rich and rewarding as Tolkien’s Middle Earth? Do you want to experience, in its purest form, the joy of reading in community? We are inviting you to join us this coming winter break (2024), from Sunday to Saturday, February 18-24, as we take a merry band of faculty and students to Leonard Lake Reserve.

On the first night we arrive we will read the end of Tolkien’s original book 1 of The Fellowship of the Ring, by candlelight. Students will read chapters 1-11 of the book prior to arrival. Each day for the next five days thereafter we will wake up, worship together, then wander to our favourite hiding places, tucked up in the corner of a cabin or nestled amongst old trees, to read the remaining five books of the series. We will gather together for tea, and dinner, and spend time at night talking about Tolkien’s rich and ever-giving world, and in so doing, by God’s grace, we hope to learn, in new and unexpected ways, about the true, the good, and the beautiful, in our divinely created world.

On our final night together we will enjoy the first annual Tolkien feast, with the final four chapters of The Return of the King read aloud in between courses. Our hearts and stomachs will be filled to the brim before we wind our way back to Orange County. 

“All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us.” - Gandalf

— The Fellowship of the Tritons