Total Pro Sports
It turns out Aaron Rodgers really did disappear into the shadows.
New photos from Sky Cave, the site of Rodgers’ now-famous darkness retreat in Oregon, have surfaced, and they reveal just how serious the quarterback was about unplugging from the world. The images show a stark, 300-square-foot room, partially buried into a hillside, built with curved, earth-toned walls and barely enough space for a bed, meditation mat, and a small bathroom.
It’s not exactly a luxury hideout. There’s no light, no windows, and absolutely no distractions. In 2023, Rodgers spent four nights alone in complete darkness to find clarity about his life. He called it a powerful reset.
“Unplugging from society has real value,” he told The Pat McAfee Show after the retreat. He brushed off critics who mocked the experience as a publicity stunt.
Now, he’s starting fresh in Pittsburgh and drawing headlines for his personal life. But his time in darkness is once again coming to everyone’s attention.
Aaron Rodgers’ retreat site, designed by Sky Cave founder Scott Berman, isn’t just something new. It draws on ancient practices from places like India, Egypt, and Tibet. “The entire experience is meant to help people sit with themselves, without the usual distractions,” Berman explained in a 2023 interview. The goal? To face discomfort head-on and let the mind settle into its deeper layers. It’s not for the faint of heart, guests stay for days, sometimes a week, completely cut off from the outside world.
PHOTOS: Where #Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers spends his darkness retreats…
300 sq ft, partially underground Hobbit-like room with a bathroom and meditation mats on the floor.
In this tiny hole for nearly a week at a time zero human interaction.
😳😳😳 pic.twitter.com/owZcBKNc2W
— MLFootball (@_MLFootball) June 10, 2025
Athletes like Colin O’Brady and Hannah Eden have described the retreats as intense and emotional. Some have relived past memories or experienced deep emotional breakthroughs. For Rodgers, it wasn’t about deciding whether to retire, but rather to reconnect with himself. Those close to him say that experience had a lasting impact.
Now in 2025, Rodgers is stepping into a new chapter with the Pittsburgh Steelers after a rocky two-year run with the New York Jets. His contract, a one-year deal worth up to $19.5 million with bonuses, shows that he still has something to prove. Whether this is his last ride or just another twist in a wildly unpredictable career, but Rodgers isn’t afraid to take the road less traveled, even if that road leads straight into a cave in the Oregon woods.
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