Who We Are

Balanced Rock is a Yosemite-based non-profit. When you support Balanced Rock, you are also providing wellness and empowerment opportunties for low-income, underserved, and local Yosemite populations.

Our History

Offering programs since 1999...

When a local NatureBridge (formerly called Yosemite Institute) outdoor instructor, Joie Armstrong, was tragically killed at the age of 26 in 1999, two NatureBridge instructors, Heather Sullivan and Tana Leach, applied for, and were awarded, a Matthew A. Baxter Memorial Fund grant to create Wild Women Workshops. The first backpacking programs had the goal of helping the local community heal, and it included challenging peak summits, journalling, and yoga. This first expedition was so powerful that our Board of Directors and staff still includes four of the original members who participated in the very first Wild Women Workshops backpack retreat more than 10 years ago.

Quickly recognizing that more people could benefit from life-changing empowerment opportunities in the outdoors, the backpacking programs were opened to the general public. In 2007, Balanced Rock co-founders Eliza Kerr and Heather Sullivan made the decision to expand programs to a wider audience, formalize the non-profit structure, and change the name of the organization to Balanced Rock. The name came from the last conversation Heather ever had with Joie, when Joie promised to teach Heather to balance rocks.

Over the years, Balanced Rock has offered programs in Nepal, Alaska, Point Reyes National Seashore, Joshua Tree National Park, and, of course, Yosemite National Park. Program offerings have expanded to include campground- and lodge-based programs, workshops, and bi-weekly yoga classes for the local community. Besides our paid enrollment courses, special programs have included our Women of Color Backpack Retreat, the Yosemite Youth Expedition, Care for the Caregiver Retreats, and the Yosemite Green Living Forum.

What We Do

Nature + Nurture. At Balanced Rock, we're devoted to providing opportunities for mindful living, self-care, and community involvement. We operate primarily within the stunning setting of Yosemite National Park, a world heritage site and one of the most sacred places on earth.

Holistic Health. Through retreats, educational programs, service opportunities, and wilderness journeys, Balanced Rock provides a setting to cultivate personal balance, support your personal health as well as the health of your community, and strengthen your connection to the natural world.

Yoga in Yosemite. Our core programs are nature-based retreats and transformational adventures in Yosemite. On Balanced Rock courses, we pair the outdoors with yoga, meditation, art, music, and self-care practices to facilitate personal empowerment, to transform lives, and to foster a greater sense of compassion. For more advanced study, our 200-hour Yoga Alliance-certified WildYoga Teacher Training places special emphasis on yoga in connection to the natural world.

Serving the Community. Programs like Yosemite Community Yoga enrich the local community through donation-based classes provided by our volunteer yoga instructors. Our Yosemite Youth Expedition and Women of Color programs provide empowerment and instill confident among populations that might otherwise not experience Yosemite while our Care for the Caregiver course aims to provide tools for self-care. At the core of our work is the intention to open hearts, minds, and lives.

With Balanced Rock, you will explore the full yoga experience—beyond just the physical practice—here in Yosemite.