We’re excited to welcome Ethan to Shibagau Creek Forest Farmstead as our new Farmstead Caretaker & Hospitality Coordinator!
Ethan will help care for both the land and the guest experience, ensuring the farmhouse and surrounding property are welcoming, well maintained, and ready for every arrival. From tending trails and outdoor spaces to preparing the farmhouse with fresh linens and supplies, he’ll be helping make each stay feel comfortable and memorable.
Ethan will also help welcoming and orienting guests, managing rental turnovers, responding to inquiries, and sharing stories and photos from life at the farmstead. His role will help us continue improving the property and finding new ways to make every visit special.
We’re excited to have Ethan on the team and look forward to the fresh ideas he’ll bring to Shibagau Creek Forest Farmstead!
Eight of us gathered bright and early at Shibagau Creek Forest Farmstead for a morning of listening, watching, and counting as many birds as we could spot across the property.
Armed with binoculars, keen ears, and plenty of enthusiasm, we explored the forests, fields, and trails together. By the end of the count, we had recorded an incredible 41 birds!
It was a wonderful opportunity to slow down, learn from one another, and appreciate the remarkable variety of birdlife that calls the farmstead home. Thank you to everyone who joined us and helped make the morning such a success.
After months of renovations and preparation we are excited to announce that Shibagau Creek Forest Farmstead is officially open and accepting bookings for the 2026 season! Leave the noise behind, unplug from the rush, and reconnect with the outdoors. Spend your days exploring the forest, gathering around the fire, reading, creating, or simply enjoying the rare luxury of doing very little!
Whether you’re planning a family getaway, a creative retreat, or a restorative weekend in nature, we look forward to welcoming you.
Events and Workshops
We also have an exciting lineup of events and workshops planned for this year, with plenty of new opportunities to gather, create, learn, and connect with the land. Be sure to check our website and follow us on social media to stay up to date with everything happening at the farmstead!
Learn more about the property, upcoming events, and how to plan your stay at scff.ca.
Friends and community members gathered at Shibagau Creek Forest Farmstead with brushes in hand, transforming our cherished caravan, appropriately named “Sunflower”, into a bright and joyful sunflower landscape. What began as Victoria’s long-held dream has now become a beautiful, living work of art, filled with colour, creativity, and the individual touches of everyone who joined us.
The day was full of painting, laughter, fresh air, and connection. Artists of all experience levels worked side by side, sharing ideas and leaving their mark on a special part of the farmstead.
A heartfelt thank you to everyone who contributed their time, energy, enthusiasm, and creative spirit. You helped bring the caravan to life and created memories that will remain woven into our community for years to come.
We can’t wait for you to see “Sunflower” in person!
There has been plenty of activity at Shibagau Creek Forest Farmstead, and we’re excited to share some of the newest improvements taking shape around the property.
Our biggest addition is a brand-new staircase leading up to the loft, making the space easier and more comfortable for guests to access. We have also welcomed one of our smallest, but most exciting, upgrades: a new light switch!
Staircase leading up to the loft
So much is growing at SCFF!
Outside, the farmhouse is looking refreshed with a newly stained deck, a new counter in the outdoor kitchen, a freshly painted picnic table, a new platform for the barbeque, and a newly created flower bed that will bring even more colour and life to the property.
Newly installed countertops & platform for new barbeque
We’ve also upgraded our outdoor shower with a new system that provides better water pressure and warms the water more quickly, making it easier and more comfortable for guests to freshen up while enjoying the off-grid experience.
Outdoor shower with new water system & newly built flower bed
Beyond the farmhouse
The work continues beyond the farmhouse as well. We’re clearing and improving existing trails, cutting new paths through the property, and continuing to build our dead hedge forest maze. Each new trail and woven wall adds another layer to the experience of exploring the land.
We’re proud to keep improving SCFF while preserving the rustic, peaceful character that makes it so special. We look forward to sharing these new spaces with our guests and community throughout the season!
A fully immersive, off-grid retreat in Ontario designed for women who give so much – and are ready to finally receive.
No Wifi. No Pressure. No Performance.
Just sacred rest, meaningful connection, and profound renewal.
You Carry A lot!
You Lead. You Nurture. You Achieve. But when was the last time you nurtured YOU? The constant hum of responsibility. The inbox. The Expectations. Even ambition can become exhausting.
The Nurturing You Retreat is your invitation to lay it all down – without guilt.
Two workshops with Peter Sramek are planned for 2026 that will cover experimental folded and sewn artist’s books, including a potential for drawing and collage to create contents for binding. Topics such as boxmaking, alternative sculptural structures are also possible depending on interest, so please get in touch to let us know what your interests are.: workshops@scff.ca. We could even do an extended series on handbinding digitally designed and printed books.
Dates for summer 2026 are July 11-12 and August 14-16. If you are interested in attending a workshop, please contact us and Register Early to help with planning.
Book workshops will take place at our Heron Point home location near Desert Lake, Hartington.
Workshop #1: Album explorations – July 11-12 This workshop will consider a variety of structures appropriate for inserting contents, be it photos, prints, drawings, collages, envelopes that hold items or more. For anyone wishing to bring together collected materials in an album format, this workshop will provide inspiration and binding techniques.
Workshop #2: Experimental Artist Books – August 14-16 Options for artist’s books will be presented and the group will focus on techniques pertinent to project ideas. Participants are encouraged to bring visual materials to work with or collect them onsite. Sewing and gluing can be simple and appropriate for those looking for binding experience, while more complex approaches can be selected by those looking to develop more advanced skills.
Develop your photography with guidance from Peter Sramek (sramek.ca), longtime OCAD University professor and founding member of Gallery 44 Centre of Photography in Toronto. Whatever your experience with photography, this workshop will meet you with appropriate content as you enjoy a weekend with a group of creative participants.
Photo workshop, September 2025.
This program is designed to support you in your photographic journey, whether primarily visual, conceptual or technical. Field work will explore the farmstead landscapes and the local area, while discussions will address approaches to making images, with focus on participant interests. Engage with the landscape, explore portraiture, create site interactions to photograph. Consider aspects of light, composition and moment. Share your images in creative evening sessions. If you bring an ongoing project, a portfolio discussion will provide feedback.
Preparing image files, Photo workshop, 2025.
Participants will work with digital cameras, but are free to also shoot film for later processing. Technical aspects can be covered if desired. Digital results will be reviewed onsite and those interested may experiment with historical cyanotype printing (blueprinting). Gear is not the focus and a basic camera or phone for making exposures is all that is required.
Self-portrait, Sardar Farrokhi, 2025.
If you are interested in attending a workshop, please register online or contact us at workshops@scff.ca. Participants will stay the weekend at SCFF or arrive for each day’s session.
Practicalities
Participants will arrive in Tamworth on Friday afternoon or evening and may stay an extra night on Sunday to make a long weekend should they desire.
Cost: $590 includes tuition, accommodation and meals; $390 for those who do not require accommodation.
A deposit of $100 will hold your place with full payment due 3 weeks prior to the workshop. A non-refundable fee of $100 will apply if you cancel less than 3 weeks prior.
Ride sharing can be coordinated where possible. Pick-up and drop-off in Napanee is also possible should one wish to take the bus or train from Toronto area or Montreal.
Natural Inventions – Staging in the landscape – Sept. 5-7
Walden, Taimaz Moslemian, 2025
Similar to last year’s land-based workshop, we invited photographers to engage with the land in staging site-specific assemblages using natural materials which were then photographed. Over the weekend we used cyanotype printing methods to turn digital images into tangible prints. The participants this year, who included experienced artists and photographers, presented their portfolios in our evening session adding to this engaging event.
Exposing cyanotypes, Peter Stranks, Sardar Farrokhi and Taimaz Moslemian, September 2025
If you are interested in attending a future workshop, please contact us atworkshops@scff.ca. Participants may arrive on Friday to stay the weekend at SCFF or arrive for each day’s session. Registration and accommodation arrangements will be posted.
