Chapter One
Set out.
Twice a year, a small group of CISOs leaves the inbox behind and meets where the cell service ends. Spring, then fall. New park each time. The trip is short. The reset is not.
Spring & Fall
Two retreats
Every year
Two retreats
Every year
Connect. Collaborate. Recharge.
Step into nature's classroom where Chief Information Security Officers recharge and connect in the nation's most breathtaking National Parks.
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Est. July 2025
Founded in July 2025. First retreat in the fall of the same year. One rule: leave it better than you found it.
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CISOs in the community
Vetted, top-of-house security executives from across the country.
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National parks per year
One in spring, one in fall. A new park, every time.
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CISOs per retreat
Small enough to know everyone by Friday night.
Why CISO Ascent
A community built to fight executive burnout in cybersecurity.
Chief Information Security Officers carry nation-state level stress. CISO Ascent is the answer. A nationwide gathering of peers who choose the wilderness over another ballroom, and conversation over keynotes.
Two annual retreats, one in spring, one in fall, each set in a different breathtaking National Park. No panels. No keynote slogs. No stage between you and the conversation. Just people who do the same hard job, walking the same trail, sharing the weight.
How it works
Three chapters. One trail.
A simple rhythm: set out, walk together, return changed. Each retreat follows the same arc — a small cohort, a great park, and the conversations that only happen when the inbox stops ringing.
Chapter Two
Walk together.
Sixty peers, no panel theater, no badges to scan. The conversations that matter happen on the trail, around the fire, and at the bottom of a long climb. Friendships outlast quarters.
Chapter Three
Return changed.
You come back with a network of CISOs who get the weight you carry, a clearer head for the work, and a contribution toward the parks and communities that hosted you.
The Difference
Less of the usual.
More of the trail.
A few things you won't find on the trail.
- 01Panel discussionsTrail talk beats stage talk.
- 02Badge scanningShow up. That's the badge.
- 03Hotel ballroomsTrade fluorescent for open sky.
A nationwide CISO community
Leave it better
than you found it.
One rule. Every retreat.
On the Trail
What you'll find out here.
06Reasons CISOs
keep coming back
keep coming back
01 / Place
Breathtaking National Parks
Experience the beauty and support the nation's most stunning national parks.
02 / People
Life-long Relationships
Connect with fellow CISOs and build closer, life-long relationships.
03 / Pace
A Place to Recharge
Retreats built to help our CISO peers manage nation-state level stress.
04 / Peers
Selective & Vetted
Nationwide membership is limited to top executives leading enterprise information and cybersecurity.
05 / Purpose
Attend with Purpose
CISO Ascent proudly supports the National Parks and communities where events are hosted.
06 / Access
Breaking Down Barriers
Optional travel and lodging grants for members with tight budgets.
Upcoming & Cadence
Two retreats. One trail.
Every spring and every fall, the community meets somewhere new: a different National Park, the same rhythm: hike, talk, decompress, return changed.
Jul 2025Founded
Fall 2025First retreat
Spring 2026Past
Fall 2026Open
Now accepting · September 2026
Fall 2026 Yellowstone Retreat
Bozeman, Montana · Yellowstone Country and the Northern Rockies · Bozeman, MT
View retreatMembership is free
Find your cohort
on the trail.
Apply to join a vetted, nationwide community of CISOs who choose the wilderness as the room where it happens.
Apply for membership