Every year, Red Oak Grove hosts eight public high days throughout Southern New Jersey and Philadelphia. Our events are all family-friendly and inclusive.
For more information about specific dates, feel free to peruse our calendar.
Canol Gaeaf (Imbolc)
The midpoint of winter, Canol Gaeaf is a celebration in anticipation of the coming spring. The days are getting longer, the deep freeze of January is beginning to break, and the snowstorms are slowly turning to rain. In this time, Red Oak Grove honors Brigedd, our goddess of poetry, craft, and healing.
We gather at a member’s home for ritual and seasonal arts and crafts, as well as a potluck brunch with a prize for the best dish.
Alban Eilir (Ostara)
Alban Eilir is a festival of the dawning spring and all the new beginnings it brings with it. It’s the time to start new work— Soil has to be tilled so that we can later plant, the days are getting warmer, and snow is becoming a much less likely phenomenon.
Our Alban Eilir ritual takes place as the sun rises over the Atlantic Ocean. We get together the night before in Wildwood, NJ, for an evening of laughter, music, and companionship.
Calan Mai (Beltane)
Astoundingly-green Calan Mai heralds the season of beauty and growth! The flowers are in full bloom, apple orchards are white with blossoms, and the crops are in and beginning to grow.
Join us for a picnic day around the maypole as we celebrate the tylwyth teg (nature spirits) with ritual, dancing, and song. Together, we’ll make flower crowns, share in workshops, and judge the offerings for our cupcake contest.
Alban Hefin (Litha)
Alban Hefin is the longest day of the year, when the sun is at its greatest strength. It’s the time to celebrate life at its most intense; darkness has been vanquished, at least until noon passes, and we are all at our zenith.
As well as summer solstice, Alban Hefin is Red Oak Grove’s birthday! We celebrate with a picnic ritual followed by cake and party games.
Calan Awst (Lughnasadh)
The feast of Lugh/Lleu, Calan Awst celebrates the first harvest. August heat and a golden glow hang over the world in this time to take a break from work and enjoy the summer. This is a festival of games and champions.
We gather in the park for ritual and an all-day tournament of simple camp sports, trivia, and board games, at the end of which we name our annual Grove Champion— a title previously held by everyone from our senior druid to our members’ youngest kiddos!
Alban Elfed (Mabon)
The sun is lower in the sky and the shadows grow longer for Alban Elfed, the second harvest. Apples are ripening, pumpkins are everywhere, and the day is equal with night. In this time of fruition and reflection, we celebrate our goddess of the harvest and the earth, Rhiannon.
The main event of our Alban Elfed ritual is a bountiful potluck feast, celebrating what we’ve harvested in our lives over the year.
Calan Gaeaf (Samhain)
Famously a time when the veil between worlds is thin, Calan Gaeaf is the day when we most honor our ancestors. It’s a time to batten down and prepare for the coming winter months as the night grows longer and longer outside.
This weekend-long cabin event features a dumb supper and guided meditation to connect with our beloved dead, as well as a scary story competition, workshops, and a jack-o-lantern carving contest.
Alban Arthan (Yule)
Alban Arthan is the longest night of the year. This midwinter holiday represents the yearly rebirth of the sun and the start of the long journey of returning light. It reminds us that while all things come to an end, something new begins.
Red Oak Grove’s Alban Arthan ritual —once featured in the New York Times— centers around an all-night vigil* as we extinguish and then relight candles to represent the sun’s waning and waxing throughout the year. We also host a gift theft, cookie contest, games and workshops, story-telling and singing contests, and other activities over the course of a weekend-long cabin event.
* Where no one is individually expected to stay awake the whole time!
Red Oak Grove 