For this blog post, I’m going to talk about two parts of the White Mountain Druid Sanctuary complex (located in Trout Lake, WA) in more detail.  The entire site is called White Mountain Druid Sanctuary, but then on the site is a building called The Sanctuary.  It was actually here before Kirk Thomas started manifesting his vision of the Stone Circle and all that has followed.  

Here is what it originally looked like.  The Sanctuary is a building made with cob, which is essentially clay, sand, straw, water, and earth, similar to adobe.

It has a foundation made up of volcanic stone from the property, and also has a set of three windows on the north side that face Mt. Adams. The floor is pounded clay, coated with linseed oil (something that needs to be renewed every few years). And both the exterior and interior surfaces are made up of colored clay washes. This building was constructed by the former owner of the property as a Judeo-Buddhist retreat house.

There is a small fireplace in the east wall that is built within a sculpted tree. This tree flows from floor to ceiling, and is one of the main reasons Kirk found himself so attracted to this location.

The Sanctuary has an unusual roof line. Indeed, some locals refer to it as the 'taco house.' But this roof was erected first, on poles, and the walls then were built up to meet it. Inside, the ceiling is curved, like the underside of a boat, and is both striking and beautiful.

We have brought water and power to the building, and installed ceiling lights for dark afternoons and evenings, as well as an electric heater, to make use of the building more practical. The earthen floor has been covered with carpet for warmth - winters can get quite cold in Trout Lake.

A small antechamber has been added outside the door into the Sanctuary where people can sit and remove their shoes or put booties on.  We also store some odds and ends there.  The several round windows in this picture are between the tree limbs on the inside wall.  Just in the left side of the background, you can see the Pillar to Taranis.

One of the most noticeable structures at White Mountain Druid Sanctuary besides the Stone Circle itself is the Pillar to Taranis.  It rises above the pillars of the Stone Circle and has a wheel secured to the top. 

It is located just outside the Circle to the Southwest.  As an ancient god of the weather, we pray to him regularly to please give us moderate weather so we can have our rituals outdoors.  And he is often very kind and generous about this although we expect he is a bit mischievous as we have had many a day leading up to a ritual with much anxiety about whether it was going to rain or snow or be very cold.  Then the sky seems to clear and it works out fine.

He now has a small shrine built next to his Pillar where we can light incense and leave offerings.  Standing at the base, one can imagine the tall pillar reaching right up to the sky god and giving him our thanks for giving the Earth the weather she needs (including cold, snowy winters that add snow pack to Mt Adams located just next door).  

Next time:  Shrines to The Dagda and The Morrigan.  For more information on White Mountain Druid Sanctuary, please visit our Patreon page at https://www.patreon.com/wmds.