Safety & Standards for Plant Medicine Retreats in Peru
Your safety is the foundation of every journey we guide. Here is how we screen guests, care for them during the retreat, and support them when they return home.
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Your safety is the foundation of every journey we guide. Here is how we screen guests, care for them during the retreat, and support them when they return home.
Groups are limited to 6 or 9 guests, so every guest receives personal attention.
Every guest completes a personal consultation about their health and medications before reserving a space.
Our lead facilitator is a certified Wilderness First Responder and integration coach.
Integration support comes with every retreat, and crisis calls are always free.
Our Commitment
Before you ever arrive, we take the time to get to know you: your intentions, your health, and any medications you take. We arrange your transport, lodging, food, and medicines ourselves, so you are accompanied and supported from the moment you arrive until the moment you leave.
Every retreat is guided by experienced facilitators who understand the traditions, the plants, and the people they serve.
Every guest begins with a personal onboarding interview. Nothing is rushed, and no one is accepted without first being heard.
The experience does not end when the retreat does. Preparation and aftercare are part of how we work.
We listen first, prepare carefully, and stay with you from your first conversation to your return home.
Screening
Screening is how we make sure a retreat is right for you before you commit. It is free, personal, and never rushed.
We meet by video call, usually on WhatsApp or Telegram, before you book or pay anything.
We talk through your reasons for joining, your interest in the medicine, your health, and any medications you take.
We tell you plainly whether a medicine is right for you, and give you honest guidance on dietary preparation and on speaking with your physician.
We ask for an emergency contact, send your preparation guide, and shape the retreat around the people in it.
Some conditions and medications make Huachuma, Ayahuasca, or Kambo unsafe. If a medicine isn’t right for you, we will tell you honestly. If what you are looking for points beyond what we offer, we can recommend a partner center from our community. Our partners are centers we work with professionally, and we receive no compensation for these recommendations.
Medication Note: Please never stop or change a medication without speaking to your physician first.
Personal Attention
We keep our groups small to improve the guest experience and sustainability. Raymi Retreats are limited to 9 guests, and The Serpent & The Condor is limited to 6.
Who You Work With
Every coach is screened and hired by Mountain Wind. We only work with coaches that are qualified and follow our guidelines for Integration Support. If you reach out to us, one of the following coaches will be available on your schedule.
Owner, Facilitator and Coach
Shane is certified with NOLS as a Wilderness First Responder and holds a current CPR certification. He has completed training to serve Kambo and has dieted and received permission to facilitate ceremonies through a curandera. He is also certified as a Psychedelic Integration Coach through Out of the Dark Integration Academy.
Experienced Facilitator and Integration Coach
Zach provides integration coaching to guests who feel connected with him and has worked with plant medicine and integration support for many years. When available Zach may cook on our retreats and he is an excellent facilitator that we bring in when we have more than a few guests.
Healers and Musicians
Based in the Sacred Valley, Alonso and Flor have a combined nine years of experience serving plant medicines. Alonso is a traditional curandero trained in the Amazon rainforest, and Flor holds ceremonies with song, cleansings, and plant baths.
Health & Readiness
Our retreats take place in the high Andes and the Manu Reserve. We prepare for both the common challenges and the rare ones.
At the mountain house we have oxygen, coca tea, over-the-counter medications, and natural supplements, and our staff has decades of experience helping guests acclimatize.
In extreme cases we follow NOLS WFR best practices and can descend in altitude, then slowly return to help with acclimatization.
We suggest travel insurance for every guest. Choose a policy that covers medical care, emergency evacuation from remote areas, and trip cancellation, and that does not exclude plant medicine ceremonies.
An emergency plan is created for every location we visit. Including planned routes to the nearest hospital, evacuation plan and for less severe cases a well stocked medical kit. NOLS WFR best practices are always observed.
In Ceremony
Every ceremony is conducted with respect for tradition and care for the people in the circle.
Note: Schedules are approximate and may change to suit the group and conditions.
Respect
We approach traditional practices, and the people who preserve them, with humility, respect, and a commitment to responsible experiences. We work with traditional curanderos, and we keep our recommendations honest: partner centers pay us nothing, and we pay them nothing for being listed.
Transparency
Mountain Wind arranges all transport, food, lodging, and medicines, with no hidden costs while you are with us.
We ask every guest to complete a free consultation before paying. After your consultation, you receive a code for your deposit, and we do not accept payments without it. This keeps every booking tied to a screened guest.
We use the information you share only for our internal safety and booking processes, and we do not share it.
Together
Safety is a shared effort. These are the commitments we ask every guest to make.
Note: Schedules are approximate and may change to suit the group and conditions.
Aftercare
Preparation and aftercare are included in every retreat: two preparation calls and two integration calls per guest. Crisis calls are always free, even for guests of other centers.
Note: Schedules are approximate and may change to suit the group and conditions.
Answers to common questions about how we keep our retreats safe.
Every participant has a personal onboarding interview before booking, where we ask about your reasons for joining, your health, and any medications you take. Some conditions and medications make Huachuma, Ayahuasca, or Kambo unsafe, and if a medicine isn’t right for you, we’ll tell you honestly.
Plant medicines carry real risks, and they are not right for everyone. That is why every guest is screened before booking, why we keep groups small, and why we prepare each retreat around the people in it. Our retreats are not medical treatment and do not replace medical or mental health care.
We will tell you honestly. If what you are looking for points beyond what we offer, we may recommend a partner center from our community. Our partners are centers we work with professionally, and we receive no compensation for these recommendations.
Raymi Retreats are limited to 9 guests, and The Serpent & The Condor is limited to 6. Small groups give every guest more attention from our guides and keep the experience personal.
Retreats are guided by Shane Parks, the founder of Mountain Wind, with experienced facilitators, sitters, and traditional curanderos. Shane is certified with NOLS as a Wilderness First Responder, holds a current CPR certification, and is a certified integration coach.
Our lead facilitator is a certified Wilderness First Responder, and we follow NOLS WFR best practices. An emergency plan is created for every location with evacuation, nearest hospital, and a well stocked medical kit. Mountain Wind prepares well for our retreats and we have experience taking care in any situation.
At the mountain house we have oxygen, coca tea, over-the-counter medications, and natural supplements, and our staff has decades of experience helping guests acclimatize. In extreme cases we can descend in altitude and slowly return. We also recommend that you arrive early and ask your doctor about altitude medication before you travel.
We use the information you share only for our internal safety and booking processes, and we do not share it. To request your data, contact us and verify your identity by video call.
Yes. Integration support is included in every retreat, with preparation calls before and integration calls after. Crisis calls are always free, even if you attended a retreat at another center.
Begin With a Conversation
Choosing this kind of experience is a meaningful decision, and you should feel safe every step of the way. Reach out and we’ll answer your questions, honor your intentions, and tell you honestly whether a retreat is right for you.
Diet, packing, altitude, and travel details to prepare you for your journey.
Preparation and aftercare from certified integration coaches, open to guests of any center.
Small-group Huachuma, Ayahuasca, and Kambo retreats in Cusco, the Sacred Valley, and Manu.