Patty Lyons will be back by popular demand! Our September 2026 Maker+Stitch hiking and knitting retreat with Patty Lyons is open for registration! We will retreat to our favorite place high in the Colorado Rockies from Wednesday, September 16th - Friday, September 18th, 2026.
Join us to learn from the best with no distractions as we come together in the beautiful alpine setting of the Shrine Mountain Huts, part of the famous 10th Mountain Division Hut System. For two nights and three days we will knit and hike with friends amidst rugged mountain vistas and changing fall foliage.
We're so excited that Patty will join us once again, this time to teach Try Them All! This is a new class for Maker+Stitch, so past retreaters feel free to register and gain even more knowledge from Patty!
Want to improve your knitting speed, efficiency, and comfort? Do you want to improve the look and consistency of your fabric? Learn the secret to happy knitting . . . that you need more than one knitter’s tool in your knitter’s toolbox.
In this fabulous Try Them All! class, we will explore everything about our knitting from proper stitch formation, to yarn tensioning, to stitch sizing. We’ll learn the difference between a knitting style and a knitting method, and along the way, we will explore a variety of knitting styles (English, Continental, and Portuguese) as well as understand different knitting methods (Eastern, Western, and Combination). Finally, Patty will demo knitting and purling back backwards, a trick that can be done in any knitting method or style.
On day one, Patty will show you a variety of knitting styles and methods, so each knitter can find something that they’d like to try. Then we’ll break up into smaller groups for practice. Patty will work with each group, providing feedback and tips. The perfect start to a knitter’s getaway.
On day two we can continue practicing AND Patty will answer any questions you have. You’ll have two days to sit by the fire with Patty and play with your newfound knitting skills.
What skills or knowledge do students need to take this class? Knit, purl, cast on, and bind off.
Patty is a nationally recognized knitting teacher and technique expert who is known for teaching the “why” not just the “how” in her pursuit of training the “mindful knitter”. She specializes in sweater design and sharing her love of the much-maligned subjects of gauge and blocking.
Patty’s designs and knitting skill articles have been published in Vogue Knitting, Interweave Knits, Knit Purl, Knitter’s Magazine, Cast On, Knit Style, Creative Knitting, and Twist Collective. We've loved our retreats with Patty and know you will love this intimate time with her too.
When class is not in session you will have the opportunity to kick back, share stories, eat great food, relax or walk in the peaceful surroundings, and keep your needles moving. 
Our retreat starts when we meet at Maker+Stitch in Edwards at 11AM Wednesday morning. From the shop we will drive up to the top of Vail Pass where we will depart on a leisurely, under-two-mile hike to the hut. Llamas will hike with us, carrying most of our gear! We'll enjoy a big, well-earned afternoon snack at the hut while we settle in and prepare for our first afternoon session with Patty.
Wednesday evening is for relaxing, eating a home-cooked dinner, and sharing each other's company around a woodstove. With a clear night, star gazing will be a highlight.
Thursday we'll wake up to a yummy, light breakfast then head out to hike Shrine Ridge through fall meadows and forest, and incredible high mountain vistas. Our hike is 4.5 miles round-trip; we will munch on snacks on the trail, and if weather permits we'll sit for a knit looking out over the Rockies.
When we arrive back to the huts, we'll enjoy a delicious buffet lunch, and Patty will hold her second teaching session of the retreat. Again, we'll spend the evening knitting, dining at the hut, and relaxing around the fire.
Friday we wake up to another tasty light breakfast then pack to head down the trail for our drive back to Edwards. We will arrive back at the shop by 1PM, which marks the end of our retreat.
Important: For those traveling from afar, Edwards is at 7,200 feet and the hut is over 11,000 feet above sea level so you may want to plan a day here at altitude prior to the retreat to help acclimate. To get to Edwards, you will fly into Denver or Vail-Eagle and either rent a car or take an Epic Mountain Express or Peak 1 Express van. It is not a difficult drive but Edwards is a two hours and 15 minute drive from the Denver airport. It is also possible to stay in Denver Tuesday evening and meet the group at Vail Pass (about 1.5 hours from Denver) on Wednesday. If you plan to choose this option, please let us know!
Accommodations at Jay's Cabin are double and up-to-five occupancy. If you are not comfortable sleeping in a room with others, this retreat may not be for you. The hut does have hot and cold running water, two indoor bathrooms with flush toilets, one with shower, one with bathtub. There is running, potable water at the cabin. There is a communal, wood-fired sauna behind our hut for our use.
Our hikes are at an elevation of over11,000 feet above sea level. We take them at an appropriate pace (hiking to the pace of our slowest participant). Each day has at least a mile of uphill hiking that can feel more challenging because we are at a high elevation. Many first time hikers and sea level participants have succeeded! We encourage you to try, but no one is required to hike, either. If you choose not to hike, that is fine -- we can bring you into and out of the huts without the necessity of hiking, and there is fun knitting time while others hike.
Retreat pricing is $1725 per person. Includes all lessons, two nights hut lodging, meals at hut, snacks, llama hike, transport to and from shop to huts.
Please feel free to contact us at hello@makerandstitch.com with any questions.
More details about what to bring will be available after registration, in July 2026.
All cancellations must be received by July 1st, 2026 for a full refund, except a $175 non-refundable deposit. All cancellations must be received in writing via email. No refunds for cancellations will be issued after July 1st, 2026. If you cannot attend, you may send a substitute in your place at no extra charge. Substitution requests must be received before August 15, 2026.
