About this Event
What's included in your Culinary Retreat ticket:
- A rooftop welcome reception with craft cocktails and pizza from Telluride's most beloved food institution
- Two hands-on dinner cooking classes with Milk Street Associate Director of Education April Dodd
- One hands-on craft class with Kathy Green of the Ah Haa School for the Arts
- A half-day foraging outing with expert local guide John Sir Jesse
- A gondola ride with locally made pastries and coffee
- A historical walking tour of Telluride
- Free time for hikes and walks that start right from Main Street
- Tuesday dinner; Wednesday breakfast, lunch and dinner; and Thursday lunch and dinner
Please note: Tickets purchased here are for meals, cooking lessons and field trips only and do not include lodging or transportation. We recommend considering Hotel Telluride for your accommodation. They are kindly offering travelers on this trip 15% off their best nightly rates. This discount can extend up to one day prior and two days following the retreat (i.e., from September 7-12). Use and / or apply code COOK26 to apply your discount. If you are flying into Montrose, you have the option to either rent a car to get up to Telluride (a drive of about 75 minutes) or take a shuttle, which costs about $75 each way.
Tucked into a box canyon at 8,750 feet in the San Juan Mountains, Telluride, Colorado is the kind of place that makes you want to slow down, look closely and make things with your hands. That instinct is exactly what this three-day retreat is built around. This September 8-10, we're partnering with the Ah Haa School for the Arts—a cornerstone of Telluride's creative community—to bring together foraging, cooking and fiber arts in a breathtaking setting.
We kick things off Tuesday evening with a rooftop evening of craft cocktails and pizza from one of Telluride’s most iconic food institutions. You’ll meet your fellow travelers and get the lay of the land for the days ahead while also getting familiar with the Ah Haa, the hub of creativity that will become your second home. Before calling it a night, we’ll stroll along the San Miguel River on the hunt for scrub oak and mountain maple leaves to use in the next day’s botanical printing class.
Our second day begins with a ride up Telluride's celebrated free gondola, with local pastries and coffee in hand and mountain views that we'll pair with an introduction to local history and geography. Then, we gather at the Ah Haa for a hands-on fiber arts class led by instructor Kathy Green. You'll use botanicals to print your own custom set of napkins and will learn which botanicals lend themselves to successful prints, why different materials affect the outcome, how to recreate the magic of this process at home and more. While the napkins spend time steaming, you'll join April in the culinary classroom for a simple lunch that uses three prized local ingredients. In the afternoon, you can choose between taking a break and joining a historical walking tour of Telluride's scenic and storied downtown with a guide from Telluride's award-winning history museum. You'll return to the Ah Haa for a hands-on cooking class that continues the botanical theme with a menu featuring ingredients like tarragon, hibiscus, bay, rosemary, turmeric and rose.
On the third day, we set off into the mountains with local foraging expert John SirJesse, who has spent decades foraging in the high-altitude terrain around Telluride. We’ll be looking for mushrooms—the star of a huge festival that takes place in Telluride every fall—but will also teach you to see the woods the way John does: as a source of not just funghi, but also edible berries, leaves, roots and more. We’ll enjoy a picnic lunch augmented by a wild-foraged salad that proves John’s extraordinary ability to see the woods and meadows as a pantry. You’ll come away with a real understanding of what grows at elevation, when, and why. After an afternoon break to recharge, we’ll gather one final time at the Ah Haa for our most ambitious cooking class of the retreat. With John on hand to answer questions, we’ll catalogue, clean and prepare our foraged goods. Then, we’ll make a dinner that allows those items to shine and equips you with essential techniques and templates to successfully work with boldly flavored ingredients once you’re back home—whether they come from the woods or the supermarket.
We offer only a very small handful of these retreats per year. This one is limited to just 12 travelers.
ABOUT THE TEAM:
The Ah Haa School for the Arts: Located in the heart of historic downtown Telluride, Colorado, the Ah Haa School for the Arts is a non-profit community center of learning and culture that offers a wide variety of programs to inspire individuals of all ages to explore, develop and celebrate their creativity. Founded in 1990 by visionary bookmaker, writer and teacher Daniel Tucker, Ah Haa is a dynamic art center dedicated to inspiring people to discover, nurture, and celebrate creativity. The school offers year-round classes in ceramics, painting, mixed media, and culinary arts, as well as art trips and retreats, open studios, lectures, exhibitions and special events.
Kathy Green: Kathy Green began silk dyeing in 1990 during one of Ah Haa’s very first classes. That class, taught by Rita Bernstein, left an indelible mark on her. Kathy’s keen interest and talent for silk dyeing led her to become an instructor, and in turn, she has inspired many of the area’s silk-dying obsessed. Scarves and silk prayer flags created by Kathy and her students can be found in local galleries, shops, and bazaars. Kathy will be assisted by Maggie Stevens, the Ah Haa’s visual arts program director.
John Sir Jesse: John SirJesse has lived in Telluride since 1973 and has been hiking, studying and using wild plants for over 50 years. In the mid-1970s, he became interested in wild mushrooms and began giving herb walks. In the late ‘80s, Herb Walker Tours was officially born when it got a Special Use Permit with the Forest Service to conduct hikes on National Forest lands. Since 1980, he has been the foray leader for the Telluride Mushroom Conference. He has also led workshops for the Aspen Center for Environmental Studies, Canyonlands Field Institute, Rocky Mountain Permaculture, Mesa Sate College and other educational and arts organizations. John also gathers and sells local herbs and preparations and is currently writing a book on Rocky Mountain plants and mushrooms. He is a certified mushroom inspector.
April Dodd: April is Milk Street’s Associate Director of Education. She runs Milk Street’s program of guest-taught cooking classes, teaches livestream and in-person events and leads the cooking school’s sponsorship and partnership programs. She began visiting Telluride for the skiing, then learned that it’s even more special in the summer and fall. She joins the first departure of this retreat as your culinary instructor.
FAQs
Is this an in-person event?
Yes. This event takes place at Ah Haa School for the Arts in Telluride, CO.
What are my transport options getting to the event?
If you are flying into Montrose, you have the option to either rent a car to get up to Telluride (a drive of about 75 minutes) or take a shuttle that costs about $75 each way. For maximum flexibility, we encourage the rental car option.
Is my registration ticket refundable?
No. We do not offer refunds for in-person registrations. However, your ticket is fully transferable to another person for this event on these dates. You are responsible for finding someone to use your ticket, arranging reimbursement, and for sending us the new attendee's full name, contact information, and any special dietary requests.
If you purchased tickets for this class on behalf of someone else, please be sure to forward this message to them so they can come prepared.
Are meals included?
The following meals are included: Tuesday dinner; Wednesday breakfast, lunch and dinner; and Thursday lunch and dinner
Is lodging included?
Tickets do not include lodging or transportation. We recommend considering Hotel Telluride for your accommodation. They are kindly offering travelers on this trip 15% off their best nightly rates. This discount can extend up to one day prior and two days following the retreat (i.e., from September 7-12). Use and / or apply code COOK26 to apply your discount. If you are flying into Montrose, you have the option to either rent a car to get up to Telluride (a drive of about 75 minutes) or take a shuttle, which costs about $75 each way.
I have an allergy or dietary restriction. Can I still come?
We work hard to accommodate as many allergies and dietary needs as possible. You are welcome to write us at [email protected] to get more detailed information on whether this event is a good fit for you.
Are children allowed?
Children 11-17 are allowed to participate if they attend and cook with an adult parent or guardian. The minor and the adult must each have a ticket to the event.
How many people does one ticket cover?
One ticket covers one attendee.
I'm an Insider. Do I get a discount to the in-person classes?
This event is not hosted at Milk Street, so Insider benefits do not apply to it.
These dates don't work for me. Will this class be offered again soon?
We offer retreats on a limited basis. Unfortunately, we cannot guarantee that this class will be offered again soon.
Where can I contact the organizer with further questions?
Write to us with any other questions at [email protected].
Event Venue & Nearby Stays
Ah Haa School For the Arts, 155 West Pacific Avenue, Telluride, United States
USD 1418.66
