Tai Chi & Forest Bathing
Nature as teacher. Energy as healer.
Experience the magic of a hemlock forest with an outdoor movement-based meditation experience.
Forest Bathing and Tai Chi invite us to be present in nature and move with nature.
We awaken not only our senses, but also wonder, curiosity and our innate capacity for healing.
Nature offers us soothing and grounding expressions of harmony that inspire Tai Chi movements and guide us to experience these qualities within ourselves.
In my outdoor experiences, a gentle walk leads you into a verdant Eastern Hemlock forest where we pause, breathe and experience the richness of nature with simple to follow standing Tai Chi warm movements led by Mary Hannah. By connecting body and breath, these standing movement practices calm and reset the nervous system, help cultivate peace in the present moment and awaken and enliven our "chi" or life force energy.
Tai Chi Classes
Weekly classes offered throughout Berkshire County
See Class Schedule for time & locations
Forest Bathing & Tai Chi at The Mount, Lenox, MA
Fridays 2:00-3:30pm, May 8th -October 30th, 2026
24 Move Form - Tai Chi for Beginners & Intermediate
Artwork
The beauty of Eastern Hemlock forests inspires me to create art. I attempt to capture the feeling of being in the evergreen forest and the unique quality of light that dances on the delicate needles and filters on to the forest floor. I also handcraft earrings and ornaments with the tiny cones.
Conservation
Volunteer and learn more about Eastern Hemlock tree conservation efforts. Eastern Hemlock trees are under threat from a non-native invasive insect, Hemlock Woolly Adelgid.
Ways you can help the hemlocks are surveying your own trees & recording findings on inaturalist app or treesnap app, joining a survey group at Williamstown Rural Lands or The Mount (annual winter survey in March 2027 - contact Mary Hannah to sign up) or support conservation efforts directly at New York State Hemlock Initiative. Learn more about fall cone collection project at Hemlock Restoration Initiative. There will be fall 2027 cone collection events in the Berkshires.
Seasonal volunteer opportunities:
Winter 2027: Survey trees with Williamstown Rural Lands or participate in data collection for the Hemlock Monitoring Project at The Mount, March 2027.
Fall 2027: Cone Collection events at The Mount & Williamstown Rural Lands. Ripe cones are sent to Hemlock Restoration Initiative in North Carolina.
Learn more at information sessions and hemlock ecology walks - dates & locations TBA
Learn to survey Eastern Hemlock trees for invasive pests. Download iNaturalist to start tracking your observations in the forest.
Join a group of community volunteers with Williamstown Rural Lands.
Learn about Eastern Hemlock trees, their nemesis - Hemlock Woolly Adelgid - and beneficial bugs at New York State Hemlock Initiative, a project of Cornell University. If you are a landowner, check out the NYSHI comprehensive resource guide for land management.