Tibetan Buddhist Meditation Master
H. E. Dzogchen Khenpo Choga Rinpoche
Retreat Details
Marin County, California, USA
Friday, April 9 – Monday, April 12, 2004
Last updated: April 3, 2004
This is the Retreat Details page. For the basics about the retreat, please visit the Retreat Announcement page.
Transportation
The Point Bonita Conference Center is 10 minutes
by car from the Golden
Gate Bridge, so it is very central for most people in the Bay
Area. Ride sharing is encouraged since there is no public transportation
directly to the Retreat Center. However, there is large parking
lot with plenty of free parking right at the Center.
See Yahoo
Maps to get driving directions to the Retreat Center. The full address
is of the Center is: YMCA Point Bonita Conference Center, 981 Fort Barry, Sausalito,
CA 94965; 800-332-9622; 415-331-9622.
If you are coming from overseas or from out-of-state, be sure to factor-in
ground transportation complexities and expenses when deciding on what airport
to use. San Francisco (SFO) is the closest airport to the Retreat Center and
therefore offers the least expensive ground transportation options.
The Marin
Airporter is an airport bus line that operates from San Francisco Airport
(SFO) to Spencer Avenue (~$15 one way), where you can pick up a ride for the
last five miles to the retreat. If traveling from a long distance, you may
want to spend some extra time in the Bay Area before or after the Retreat since
there is so much to see and do here.
It is also good to note that the Dali
Lama's teachings in Pasadena on April 13–15 could dovetail nicely
into this retreat if one planned to travel from Sausalito to Pasadena (400
miles) on the afternoon or evening of April 12.
If you are flying into Oakland Airport (OAK) or San Jose Airport (SJC) it gets
more complicated to get to the Retreat Center unless you are planning
on renting a car at the airport. For example, the Sonoma
Airport Express is a bus line that operates from Oakland Airport (OAK)
to the San Rafael Transportation Center (~$18 one way), and from there you
can buy a separate ticket to take a Golden
Gate Transit bus to get to Sausalito. From San Jose Airport (SJC) one can
take a commuter train or bus to get to San Francisco, and then take another
bus to Sausalito.
Taxi service is available from all bus stops in southern Marin County. Sausalito
Taxi (415-332-2200) quoted a rate of about $12 each way for rides between Spencer
Avenue and the Retreat Center. The organizers will try to coordinate rides
between retreatants to avoid unnecessary transportation fees and keep people's
expenses as low as possible.
When deciding whether to rent a car, think carefully about your expenses (and
add expenses of anyone traveling with you) for round-trip public transportation
to get to the Retreat Center. Car rentals from mid-afternoon Friday through
mid-afternoon Monday (3 days) start at about $75 from Thrifty
Car Rental.
Weather
April is historically a "moderate" month in this part of California. For the weekend of the retreat, the average high in Sausalito is 59°F and the average low 48°F. The record high is 87°F and record low is 37°F for that same weekend.
Since April is springtime in this part of the world, there may be a chance of light rain or coastal fog. If there is fog, it usually rolls in the late afternoon, and then dissipates by mid-morning leaving a pure blue sky overhead. You may want to check the weather forecast online just before you travel here.
Our rainy season will be drawing to a close, so the hills will be lush green. The air tends to be very fresh and clean here since the prevailing winds are from the west and have traveled across the vast expanse of the Pacific Ocean to reach us.
Since the Retreat Center is right near the coastline, gusting winds are always likely, which can make it feel much cooler due to the wind chill factor. The temperature on the coastline almost always feels 10-30°F cooler than just a few miles inland.
Essential advice to new visitors to the San Francisco Bay Area is to plan your wardrobe with several layers, so that you can adjust your clothing to match the rapidly changing temperature and weather conditions. This advice is valid all year round. As Mark Twain famously quipped, "The coldest winter I ever spent was a summer in San Francisco."
How to Sponsor
Rinpoche would like as many of his students as possible from all around the world to attend this retreat. At the recent Winter Dzogchen Retreat we had students who hailed from seven different countries.
If you are able to sponsor part or all of another retreatant's fees, your generous gesture coupled with your good intention would be very good merit. You can make this donation during the payment process after you register.
There are no "work study" opportunities at this retreat for those of limited means, but you can let us know your scholarship needs when you register online. We will get back to to to let you know if any patrons have come forward who might be able to cover a portion of your fees.
Volunteering
All retreatants should volunteer to help with some of the many tasks necessary to organize a smoothly flowing retreat. This could be as simple as helping to keep the shrine candles lit during the teachings. We'll put together a list of tasks and roles as we get closer to the event. When you register online, you'll have an opportunity to choose how you would like to volunteer.
Insurance
The organizers are required by the Retreat Center to purchase an expensive insurance policy to cover liability. The insurance coverage is included in your fees.
Off-Site Accommodations
If you are on a tight budget, there are a limited number of free camping spots in The Marin Headlands. Book well in advance to secure a campsite. Some of the campsites are very long hikes away from the Retreat Center so investigate this carefully before booking. Bicentennial Camp may be the only campsite that is close enough to consider. Hawk Camp is at least an hour hike away along fire roads from the Retreat Center and there's no parking nearby that campsite. Take a look at this detailed PDF map of The Headlands that shows the campsite locations (use the zoom tool). Compare the PDF to this Yahoo Map to find where the Center is located.
Only about a mile away from the Center is the Marin Headlands Hostel (Building 941, Fort Barry, Sausalito, CA 94965, phone - 415-331-2777) which offers dormitory-style accommodations at $18 per night for adults, and $9 per night for children under 17 in historic 1907-era buildings. The Hostel can accomodate couples in a queen-sized bed or families of four in private rooms. You could have more private accomodations here and attend the retreat as a commuter. The retreat's commuter rate is $50 per person less than the residential rate, so you can apply this savings to your Hostel fees. For example a couple would pay only $4 each more for the additional privacy offered by staying nearby at the Hostel.
All of the following accommodations are all in roughly the same area near Highway 101. They are all about a 20 minute drive from the Retreat Center except for Monday morning rush hour.
The group of three motels immediately below are not fancy, were probably built over 40 years ago, and to my knowledge have the lowest rates in southern Marin.
- Fountain Motel, 155 Shoreline Hwy, Mill Valley, CA 94941; 415-332-1732; $59 Queen; $79 Two Queens
- Travelodge, 707 Redwood Hwy, Mill Valley, CA 94941; 415-383-0340; $69 Fri/Sat; $59 Sunday (double rates, more for king/queen)
- Tamalpais Motel, 680 Redwood Hwy, Mill Valley, CA 94941; 415-381-4775; $59 Single; $69 Double
A major step up from the three motels listed above
is the nearby Holiday
Inn Express, 160 Shoreline Highway, Mill Valley, CA 94941; 800-258-3894;
415-332-5700. This motel was built within the last 10 years. They have
very nice rooms with a king bed or two double beds for $129 per night.
Based on my conversation with their front desk, the rate may be negotiable
to $109 particularly if you have a AAA membership. They told me that their
website sometimes has cheaper rates than what they can quote on
the phone.
The boutique Acqua Hotel is just across Richardson Bay from the Holiday Inn
Express. Acqua Hotel;
555 Redwood Highway, Mill Valley, CA 94941; 415-380-0400. Acqua is running
some specials in April with rooms with a deluxe queen
or deluxe king bed (depending on availability) for a single person at $99;
$119 for two queens; $129 for a junior suite, and $149 fro a junior suite w/
fireplace. Add $20 to these rates for each additional person. Kids under 13
are free. This hotel was completed in the last five
years. This is much a much more refined hotel than the Holiday Inn Express
and the rates seem to be highly competitive right now. He mentioned that sometimes
the lowest rates can be secured via Hotels.com.
Being On Time
It is required that you are on-time for the teachings no matter where you are sleeping or eating unless there is an explanation provided to the Vajra Master in advance.
Related Links
To register now, fill-out the online Registration Form for each person attending in your party.
For the basics about the retreat, please visit the Retreat Announcement page.
For Rinpoche's Bay Area teachings the week before, please visit the Bay Area page.
For Rinpoche's full teaching tour schedule, please visit the Schedule page.
This is the Retreat Details page. For the basics about the retreat, please visit the Retreat Announcement page.
May all beings benefit.
