The Wizardly Riverwalk
Ahoy friends. If you’re reading this, it’s because Michael Bungay Stanier and I have invited you to join us in a very particular Wizardly Riverwalk experience. We’re sharing this within our own networks at this stage, so please—keep it hush. There are only ~12 tickets.
We trialled this walk in the spring of 2025, and it was fantastic. We had savage storms, lashing hailstones, winds strong enough to fell trees, some of us nearly died, and there was tiramisu. We had to abort halfway through and catch the train.
Upon reflecting on this wild success, MBS and I decided the main thing we ought to change was to do it in the deep of winter.
A fine jest, sire! Hoho—except nay. 'Tis no jest.
We know there’s something exquisite that arrives when you’re engaged in borderline-safe adventure amidst a fellowship of likeminded questers. A different quality of contemplation, conversation, and connection. You know this, too. It’s why the comfortable version of this day would be a lesser one. So we light the beacon again.
Wouldst thou like to join us?
Is this for you?
This is a day for questers. Folks who are courting something: a question, a crossroads, or a vexation that hasn’t yielded to ordinary thinking. It’s for those of us who suspect that a long walk in poor weather and good company might do what a workshop or conference cannot.
If you want a day that might invite a kind of reckoning, you’re in the right place. This will not be a walk in the park. (Or well, it well be. But only literally.)
What’s happening?
MBS will be in town. In case you don’t know him, he’s an author of eight books that have sold more than 2 million copies. He’s also a Rhodes Scholar and the winner of the “Thinkers50” Coaching Award. Coaching—and the art of asking good questions—is his thing.
But I mostly know him as a wondrously curious, warm-hearted friend. We met a decade ago, when I was speaking at a national HR event in Toronto. He’s one of the few people who can dance with me at the heights and depths to which I like to frolic—and if you’ve ever something complex or vexatious on your mind, he’s the best person I know to turn to.
We’ll have both freshly keynoted at Australia’s national HR convention in Brisbane, so our worlds will be alive with the questions on people leaders’ minds, and we’ll be keen for some time together. If no one shows up, MBS and I will go for a long walk along the river anyway, and then enjoy a succulent meal and some fine wine. But we’d love it all the more if you joined us.
So here is the invitation: come walk a perilous Wizardly Riverwalk with us. It works like this.
1 ) The prelude
On Sunday 9 August 2026, we’ll gather at a brewery in Collingwood from 4–6pm—a chance to meet and take one another’s measure beforehand. Everyone covers their own drinks and food here. We’ve made this an early pre-meet so you can have your preferred dinner and an early night. It’ll be a big Monday.[^ We’ll let you know exactly where closer to the time. (I’ve had folk sneak into events I’ve run locally, and whilst I admire the canny, this time I’ll be a little more coy.)]
Guests from afar: you might want to book accommodation in Collingwood, Fitzroy, or Abbotsford for the nights of the 9th and 10th. Veriu Collingwood is a good option.
2) The Wizardly Riverwalk
We begin with coffee. We shall meet at a Collingwood café for coffee between 8:30–9:30am.[^ Again, we’ll share the spot closer to the time.]
From there it's a ~11-minute walk to the bus. Yes—a bus! We shall be one of the peoples.[^ If you don’t have one, you will want to grab a Myki card from a 7-Eleven.] A 23-minute ride takes us to Lower Plenty, and the beginning of the walk.
This is a big day on foot. Twenty kilometres is not nothing.
The path itself is “relatively easy,” he says. No steep ascents or descents to speak of, and the Birrarung (the ‘river of mist and shadows’) will keep us company for nearly the whole way. The challenge isn’t the terrain—it’s the length.[^ There are points along the route where one could quietly bail if one truly needed to—you can easily grab a ride to the convent and meet us there. But the charm is in not doing this, unless you must.]
This is an urban forest walk. There is one stretch that runs alongside a road, which makes for good contrast. But for the most part it’s only the occasional golf course we’ll need to contend with. The rest is properly lush.
There are public restrooms soon after we step off the bus. Once everyone’s ready, we’ll head to a special spot near the start to begin weaving the enchantments of the day.
In theory we’ll set out around 10am. The first time that my partner Kim and I walked it, it took us about five hours at a near-constant clip. The second time we walked it (with MBS and friends, last year) none of us made it. This time we’ll take regular pauses—for contemplation, solace, provocation, and nourishment—so I expect the walk to take us about seven hours. Nothing can possibli go wrong.
We shall arrive at the Abbotsford Convent around 5:30pm—about ten minutes before sunset. YOU WILL FEEL HAGGARD. Sore, damp, wretched. But also—warm, glowing, and supremely chuffed.
We don’t want to foreclose what happens upon the walk, only to say that these are the conditions conducive to new insight and epiphany. You will not be quite the same person at the end of this walk.
3) The Dinner
We’ll have a semi-private dining “area” at a restaurant within The Abbotsford Convent ready for us, where we shall enjoy a sumptuous meal together, along with a nice glass of wine or two. Or something non-alcoholic, as you please. If you have any dietary requirements, let us know when you book your ticket and the restaurant will cater.
The dinner goes on into the night. You’ll relish the conviviality, and marvel at how quietly things have shifted into perspective. The path to your own calling—the one that so often eludes you—might feel a little closer. The adjacent-possibilities may have revealed themselves to you. You may well Know What You Need To Do. And you might also feel acquainted with like-minded, curious and kindred spirits.
What to bring
- ~1.5 litres of water (there’ll be opportunities to top up)
- Snacks, and something for lunch
- Weather protection (we’ll advise closer to the time—likely a rain jacket at minimum)
- Tissues and hand sanitiser (we'll visit public restrooms along the way)[^ There are limited restroom stops along the way. Managing the delicate balance between staying hydrated and needing to pee will be one of the tensions to enjoy and master.]
- Comfortable shoes you don’t mind getting muddy
- Any other comforts and medications
- Optional: hiking poles, a fresh top to change into for dinner, maybe fresh socks
The particulars
Tickets are $500 per person. It covers your dinner and drinks at the Convent, and the wondrously held container of the whole experience. What it really buys, though, is rare: a full day in conversation with MBS and myself (have you seen what we normally charge for coaching? 😅)—and, better still, with the friends you’ll make along the way.
There are twelve tickets available. Only twelve. And we’re only sharing this within our networks. If the day is calling you, carpe momentum. Seize the moment and do your future self a favour. This may be the last time we ever run something like this again. Join us.
Warmth,
Dr. Fox & MBS