Category: Uncategorized

  • Quaker Center Survey

    QUAKER CENTER NEWS:
    Quaker Center announces our new Friend in Residence program. Experienced Friends are invited to live, study, worship, and work at Quaker Center for periods of six weeks to six months.

    Quaker Center offers Quaker meeting for worship Monday through Saturday from 7:30 until 8:00 AM. Extended meeting for worship is offered on Thursday, continuing until 9 AM.

    View our 2011 program schedule and register for our upcoming programs: our three youth camps, Community Work Camp, “Savvy Activism and Spirit-led Witness” with Shan Cretin and Joe Morris, and “To Be Broken and Tender” with Margery Post Abbott.

    The Ben Lomond Quaker Center Association is pleased to announce that Bob and Kathy Runyan of Chico (CA) Meeting are our new Quaker Center Directors. They began their employment here in mid-March. Click here to learn more about them.

  • Homepage

    Choose Your Location

    The Redwood Lodge
    Group Retreat

    Lodge with overnight accommodations, a large commercial kitchen, outdoor meeting areas, and a large hall for meeting and dining. Both lodges have wireless internet.

    The Orchard Lodge
    Group Retreat

    Lodge with overnight accommodations, a large commercial kitchen, outdoor meeting area
    s, and a large hall for meeting and dining. Both lodges have wireless internet.

    The Haven
    Personal Retreat

    A spacious one-room studio. A queen-sized bed, large pull-out couch and a full kitchen and dining area complete this popular wheelchair accessible cottage.

    Sojourner’s cottage
    Personal Retreat

    A cozy 100-year-old cabin. It has a bedroom with a full-size bed, a living room with a small pullout sofa, and a fully-equipped kitchen and bathroom.




    • News from Quaker Center – April 2026

      April greetings to friends of Quaker Center everywhere,

      Many of you can close your eyes and recall some of what spring at Quaker Center feels like on a sunny day – the orchard so green and alive it bowls you over. Things are blooming and buzzing and flying around wherever you look, and the trees sway all day long in the breeze. Groups gather for meals at the Orchard Lodge picnic tables, talking and laughing, and a few are sprawled out on the grass. The Hearties are down at the Redwood Lodge for a month, having returned to their Quaker Center home. We hoped to get in the first mow of the year before the Spring Session of Quarterly Meeting this weekend, but with this extra rain, we’ll have to see.

      However, Quaker Center is more than just its rugged beauty. Blessed by a stream of visitors, they let us know that they are refreshed and inspired when they come here. We remain dedicated to caring for this magical space, nurturing the spiritual growth and faithfulness of Friends and all visitors, while strengthening Quakerism and its witness in the world.

      -Nico

  • The Haven

    The Haven

    The Haven

    To  check the availability of the Haven, make a reservation, or to ask any questions, please email mail@quakercenter.org or call us at (831) 336-8333.

    The Haven is a spacious, one-room studio-style wheelchair-accessible cabin. It has a sitting, dining and sleeping area with a queen size bed, a large pull-out couch, and floor pads for additional guests. The wide space also has a full kitchen, writing desk, piano, and wireless internet. There is a wheelchair accessible bathroom and shower, and a private, wrap-around wooden deck that includes the famous Haven outdoor clawfoot tub and shower. The Haven is most appropriate for  1-4 people, though more can sleep on floor pads indoors or on the deck. Linens and towels are provided, guests should bring their own food and toiletries.

    Our hillside can have hot summer days and cold winter nights. The Haven has a gas heater controlled by a thermostat, ceiling fans, and an air purifier.

    The Haven currently costs $100 per night for one person, and $30 per night for each additional person. We also ask all our guests to consider the market value of their stay and whether they can give more than these suggested rates. We request a deposit of one-half the total cost to secure your reservation. Full payment is due by the day of your departure.

    Getting to the Haven. See our Directions page to get to Quaker Center. Once you’re here, at the top of Hubbard Gulch Road, make a sharp left and go up the hill.  Continue past the Orchard Lodge on your right. Keep following the road, and fork left at the Maintenance Manager’s driveway. The Haven will be on your right, and you can park in front of the trellis. A wheelchair ramp leads to the door.

  • Sojourner’s Cottage

    Sojourner’s Cottage

    Sojourner’s Cottage

    To  check the availability of the Sojourner’s Cottage, make a reservation, or to ask any questions, please email mail@quakercenter.org or call us at (831) 336-8333.

    The Sojourner’s Cottage is a small, comfortable and cozy 100-year-old cabin. It has a bedroom with a full-size bed, a living room with a small pullout sofa, and a fully-equipped kitchen and bathroom. The Cottage can comfortably sleep three, and floor pads are available for an additional person. Linens and towels are provided; guests should bring their own food and toiletries. There is wireless internet in the Cottage.

    The Cottage is not wheelchair accessible, and has a flight of eight stairs that leads from the road to the Cottage deck. Parking is close by.

    Our hillside can have hot summer days and cold winter nights. The Cottage has a gas heater controlled by a thermostat, and a portable fan and air purifier. Guests should be prepared for a range of temperatures over the course of the day, regardless of the season.

    The Sojourner’s Cottage currently costs $100 per night for one person, and $30 per night for each additional person. We ask that our guests consider the market value of their stay and whether they can give more than these suggested rates. We also request a deposit of one-half the total cost to secure your reservation. Full payment is due by the day of your departure.

    Getting to the Sojourner’s Cottage. See our directions page to get to Quaker Center. At the top of Hubbard Gulch Road, turn right, past the big Quaker Center sign, and make an immediate left turn. The Cottage is on your right. Just past the Cottage, pull your car up to the sign that says “Sojourner’s Parking.”

  • Accessibility

    Though situated on mountainous terrain, all of Quaker Center’s facilities with exception of the Sojourners’ Cottage are wheelchair accessible.

    Quaker Center recognizes that each individual with accessibility needs is unique; we recommend that you contact us to discuss your particular situation.

  • Contact Us

    Contact Us

    Phone:

    (831) 336-8333

    Mailing Address

    Quaker Center
    250 Main St. #686
    Ben Lomond, CA 95005

    Physical address:

    1000 Hubbard Gulch Road, Ben Lomond, CA  95005


    Please note that we can only receive mail at our Post Office box. All mail sent to our physical address will be returned to sender!


  • Personal and Family Retreats

    Personal and Family Retreats

    Personal and Family Retreats


    Why Quaker Center?

    Spending time at Quaker Center is a wonderful way to enjoy some quiet, walk in the woods, and appreciate the beauty of the Santa Cruz Mountains. In addition to our large group lodging, we also provide hospitality to families and individuals. Quaker Center has various simple, cozy accommodations available for personal or family retreats. Anyone is welcome to make a reservation.  

    A retreat at Quaker Center might include time for reading, study, writing, meditation, and Worship; a visit to our labyrinth, library or meditation hut; exploring our hiking trails, or simply spending time away from the normal routine.

    Available Spaces

    Deposits and Timelines

    Rules and Guidelines

    Quaker Center may offer support to those doing particular spiritual or service work who may need a subsidized rate.  Please contact us for further information.

    We are always happy to answer questions about personal retreats at Quaker Center. Please send an email to mail@quakercenter.org or call us in the office here at (831) 336-8333. 


  • getting here

    Physical address:
    1000 Hubbard Gulch Road, Ben Lomond, CA 95005
       (this is not our mailing address!)

    If you are planning to visit Quaker Center, please let us know. We love visitors and we’d like to know you’re coming.

    If you are coming with a group, please do not arrive early. Make sure to check with the group leaders about your group’s scheduled arrival time. 

    Using GoogleMaps, Waze and other apps. These may give you a route to Quaker Center that directs you over remote mountain roads such as Bear Creek Road, Bonny Doon Road, and Skyline Boulevard. They are scenic but winding and unlit, and taking Highway 9 from Ben Lomond via Santa Cruz or Highway 17 is the simplest way to arrive. The only route to Quaker Center is on Hubbard Gulch Road from Highway 9. Quaker Center is not accessible from Alba Road. 

    Driving from Ben Lomond: Go north on Highway 9 for about one half-mile from the center of Ben Lomond and the Ben Lomond Market. Continue past the Quality Inn on the left. Move into the center turn-lane to turn left onto Hubbard Gulch Road, which is just before Alba Road. There is a large wooden sign for Quaker Center on that corner. If you pass the Orthodox Church of Sts. Peter and Paul with the gold dome, turn around in the church parking lot because you have gone too far. There are wooden signs for Quaker Center along the way up Hubbard Gulch Road. After one mile, you will arrive at Quaker Center. The large wooden sign with our address will have specific signs indicating which way to go to meet your group or find your retreat space. 

    PUBLIC TRANSIT.

    In Ben Lomond: The 35 bus runs between the Metro Center in downtown Santa Cruz and Boulder Creek, further north of Quaker Center on Highway 9. The closest stop to Quaker Center is the Highway 9 and Main stop, which is labeled “H” on the 35 route. If you are coming from Santa Cruz the stop is in front of Scarborough (Ace) Hardware; from Boulder Creek the stop is in front of Ben Lomond Liquors. If you are in front ofthe hardware store, carefully use the crosswalk to cross the Highway to the other side (you can also walk south down to the traffic light). Then walk north on Highway 9 for about five minutes, and turn left to go up Hubbard Gulch Road, following the signs to Quaker Center. The walk up from Highway 9 to Quaker Center is about one mile.

    If you are going to join a group that is renting one of Quaker Center’s facilities, please contact your group’s leader in advance to see about arranging for a ride to get here from the transit stop.

  • Group Rentals

    Group Rentals

    Group Rentals


    Quaker Center is currently hosting in-person groups. Sharing our space and practicing hospitality with groups and organizations working towards a more just, sustainable and peaceful world is part of our witness as a Friends’ institution. This is a wonderful place to hold a group retreat, conference or other activity. Many organizations return here year after year and  consider their time at Quaker Center to be an important part of their year and programming. 

    Facilities

    Minimalist Philosophy

    Groups Do Their Own Cleaning

    Groups Provide Their Own Meals

    Covid Precautions

    We encourage groups staying here to take additional Covid-19 safety precautions, as do those of us who live and work here. These may include taking Covid tests before leaving home, using masks indoors, holding more activities outdoors, increased ventilation indoors, social distancing, and asking participants to affirm that they are vaccinated. We are happy to talk more about these measures and our experience of hosting groups during this pandemic.

    Redwood Lodge Exterior
    Orchard Lodge Interior