A 2007 Rainbow Gathering in Bosnia Credit: Aljaz Zajc / Wikipedia
Up to 20,000 “members” of the Rainbow Family of Living Light will gather in the Green Mountain National Forest in the coming weeks. 

An unofficial website describes the Rainbow Family as the “largest non-organization of non-members in the world.” Since 1972, the loose-knit, peace-loving group has descended on different national forests for annual gatherings that occur around July 4 and are open to all.

The group promotes intentional communities and nonviolence but its large get-togethers haven’t always been conflict-free. There have been violent incidents and controversies over the environmental impact on the parkland where members camp. 

This year, according to the U.S. Forest Service, the Rainbow Family has chosen the tiny Rutland County town of Mount Tabor.

The Forest Service issued a press release Monday morning notifying Vermonters about the incoming crowds, which are expected to arrive in the upcoming weeks. 

In preparation, a National Incident Management Team has arrived in town and “is working with various local agencies to address public health and safety, while managing and minimizing adverse impacts to natural resources.”

“Local businesses can expect to see large numbers of Rainbow Family participants visiting stores, buying food and supplies along routes to the gathering site,” the release says. “Areas are expected to be very congested during that time.”

If previous gatherings are any indications, some nudity, drugs, drum circles, dancing and heady discussions can be expected as well. 

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Alicia Freese was a Seven Days staff writer from 2014 through 2018.

19 replies on “Thousands to Descend on Green Mountains for Rainbow Family Gathering”

  1. Ha. I have experienced one of these gatherings firsthand. It was a hell of a bonfire and drum and dance circle!!
    But the bathing in the river and turning it green was unfortunate.
    They took the river from us the locals for a summer so they could be free and in love w nature, ha

  2. It’s that time of year where i try extra hard to convince people to go to the rainbow gathering.
    Just try to let them know what’s up.
    It’s fun to explain the interfaith multicultural exercise in direct democracy through action prayer for peace! (or a giant family reunion).

    How Can I Help?
    That’s really the goal, to answer that question with the purest expression of your authentic self.
    find what your passionate about doing.
    its a pleasure to watch as people share or gain new skills.
    If you have a trade, knowledge, or ability you can host a workshop to share.
    During seed camp we need help digging and building tables, ovens, hanging tarps.
    I help set up the water.
    then there is lots of cooking and prep for food prep, carrying food, cutting food, chopping wood ,and tending fires. caring for each other / playing / teaching children.

  3. I attended a small Rainbow Gathering in Washington State decades ago and really enjoyed myself. I just wish my friends from Washington could come to Vermont. I will think about attending and re-immerse myself in my 60’s roots.

  4. Good Morning wonderful citizens of Vermont! We welcome all of you to come to the Rainbow Gathering and camp with us. The Gathering is non-commercial, free and open to all. We are all volunteers and host the Gathering for everyone. I have been volunteering for 45 years, since the first one in Colorado in 1972. I just drove across country in my ’93 Subaru, Amazing Grace, from Montana where Bernie spoke to us at our town park. We worked very hard to be sure he won Montana!!! Thank you for having us in your forest. We will leave it pristine. I look forward to meeting you all, Feather

  5. I wonder if we could combine the Rainbow Family and the Burning Man events with Don Littlehands as the Burning Man.

  6. Please, please, Rainbow Family, have a supply of Narcan on hand and people trained in administering it. I know you say drugs are not welcome, but you are coming to an area that is currently in the midst of a serious opiate epidemic and I fear your gathering may entice addicts with a free-for-all weekend.

  7. Check this out. First off I attended my first so far National Rainbow Gathering in 96 in Big Piney Wyoming. The whole experience was once in a lifetime and the memory’s will live on as I get excited! Here’s why. I live in Southern Vermont and frequent that area to hike camp and just get away from the Concrete Jungle with my dog’s. I am so excited to meet new people and share experiences of a lifetime. If there’s anything I could answer for you or be of helpful use please feel free my name is Jeremiah. And welcome to Vermont’s Green Mtn’s. Good times!!!

  8. Rainbow is a violent homeless pagan rape drug culture excpect alot of drugs and crime this is a leftist pagan group of crime drugs alcohol disease felons pedos predators dogs runnaways untreated mental illness vermonts crime will rise in first week of july i have warned the abenaki this group is so druged out they think there INDIANS IT IS a drug rape culture they produce nothing but chaos and blame everyone but themselves BECAREFUL VERMONT THIS IS A WHITE PAGAN VIOLENT TERRORIST GROUP AS STATED BY BLM FBI THIS GROUP IS RESPONSIABLE FOR DESTROYING 3 chirches in montana 2013 there is a 1500,00$ reward for information leading to the ARREST OF RAINBOWS INVOLVED BE CAREFUL VERMONT THIS IS A DANGEROUS DRIG CULT 300 felon arrest last year where they invaded NATIVE AMERICAN INDIAN LANDS IN SOUTH DAKOTA #stopwhiteintittlement You can read FBI REPORTS ON RAINBOW FELONS DATING BACK TO 1972 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸❤️❤️❤️ Guns MURDER PLZZ GOOGLE RAINBOWS DEATH AND MURDER AND GUNS

  9. RAINBOW IS A DANGEROUS PAGAN WHITE INTITTLEMENT MANSON TYPE DRUG RAPE CULTURE TERRORIST GROUP

  10. FOR THE RECORD “abenaki” appreciate your concern…Ok… thats truth to some degree, cause we all are coming from a f-ed up world we are trying to reconnect with theland and non-duality… Sounds like you described the American paradigm well… Where do you think that crap comes from… ??? as you said… its there already… I need to warn my family of this coming here for sure… FOR THE RECORD… I have facilitated prayers and safe camps where folks have gotten clean from this sh-t the world feeds my children to deal with the depression from its major disconnect from The Universe and Our Holy Mother Earth! Their rich parents sent them to the highest re-habs that couldn’t do anything about it… 3 weeks in the woods away from CHAOS in the world and wallah! Clean longer than ever and they are still going… The rehabs in the world just want you to clean up to go feed the system that created all the disconnect in the first place…LOVE, LOVE, LOVE! Do a statistical consensus and I bet the ratio is not even close… I understand what you see… Its cause we dont hide it… It is what it is… MERCY will save us all from this horrible state we are in! I LOVE YOU “abenaki”! Please bring your healing to the CIRCLE! WE need you and your heart to Love us out of Chaos! -Amen -Clay Inthepottershands, Rainbow Warrior 20th Anniversary… Love to all well intentioned Law inforcement and authorities… We will try to police our own so you dont have too:}}} Lovelight… GOD of the Living… Guide, Protect and Heal us All…Your Children need you more than ever to swim back through the rabbit hole! Aho!!!

  11. “Abenaki” is a stalker that has been harassing and threatening rainbow gathering participants for several years.

  12. Thanks Adam, I think we have brushed before….We pray for him to awaken to…:}}} Bless man… see if this bird will fly out there! Aho!

  13. WELCOME HOME!!!
    I WISH I WAS ABLE TO PARTAKE IN THE GATHERING…MY HEALTH ISSUES ARE KEEPING ME FROM DOING SO…I DO MISS EVERYONE THOUGH….LETS HAVE PEACE

  14. A definition of terms might be helpful. “Drug: a medicine or other substance which has a physiological effect when ingested or otherwise introduced into the body.” via Google

    Unless things have changed drastically since I stopped going to gatherings (1989 Nevada), alcohol and needle drugs are generally discouraged. Some people bring alcohol anyhow. Hallucinogens like LSD, and magic mushrooms are not uncommon, but. they wouldn’t be distributed in Kiddie Village. Things considered to expand one’s consciousness, including marijuana/cannabis, are embraced in many circles. In other circles, people don’t use drugs at all, including caffeine and nicotine.

    Granted, I haven’t been to a gathering since 1989 in Nevada, so things may have changed.

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