United States
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We currently have an immediate opening due to a last minute cancellation. We prefer a 2+ week stay, can definitely host a longer stay if it is a good fit and prefer 2+ months! We have one spot left for a full season helper (through early Nov if possible). This is really the best way to get the full immersion educational experience as you'll get to participate in all farm activities. We may also have opportunities for short term stays of 2 weeks or more during busy times of the season-particularly mid through late July, late August, September, and early October.
Organic collective farm nestled in the foothills of the North Cascade mountains, looking for help with farm tasks, general landscaping and rural living activities, occasionally building projects. We are a community devoted to conservation, educational and social outreach. The farm is a non-profit land trust focused on conservation, outreach, and education. We have 100+ acres, mostly wooded with a lovely creek running through our land. We offer a range of outreach programs, the most impactful of which is our seed distro project. We grow, process, and package organic heirloom seeds for schools, food banks, community gardens, and low income households at no cost. In 2017, we distributed over 8,000 packages of free seeds. We sell very little produce, instead using our acreage to provide for residents of the farm and to grow seeds to improve food access in our area. We usually have about a 8-10 year round residents, with an additional 2-5 during the farming season. We've been hosts on other sites for over a decade, and have hosted hundreds of folks through those sites. We've met amazing people through hosting and look forward to meeting new friends! We have a detailed info packet that we send prior to applying/booking which should give a good overview of what we have going on here.
Gardening
Building
General Maintenance
Farmstay
Other
Help with Eco project
Help in the house
Charity work
In addition to organic gardening and farming education, you may also have the opportunity to study: natural building; food preservation (canning, drying, fermentation); conservation practices (riparian planting etc); wildcrafting and native plant ID; pruning; poultry care; permaculture design, layout, implementation; homesteading skills (landscaping, wood harvest, off grid water systems, etc); crafts (soapmaking, brewing and vinting, woodworking, sewing, any fiber related craft like spinning, dyeing, knitting, weaving, and more); herbalism; events management; seed saving/processing/packaging; CSA and produce marketing, and much more. We also do a lot of fun things here-there are several large festivals/gatherings planned (music and educational) and plenty of social gatherings, events, parties, creek swimming, hiking, and more.
We have been hosting through other websites for over 10 years, and have a pretty good system in place. We ask that people come here with a solid work ethic, good communication skills, and the willingness to learn. Tasks vary greatly depending on season, but can include general gardening, light construction, cleaning, painting, landscaping, firewood harvest, tree planting, poultry care, pruning, food preservation, and more. We meet in the morning to discuss daily tasks and there will be opportunities for both group and independent work. We much prefer longer stays of 2+ months but are willing to host shorter visits (2 weeks or more) for international visitors.
English
We have a bunkhouse for helpers built in 2016, usual capacity of four (two in each bedroom, with kitchen area in between) and this is the primary place we host visitors. We also have a shorty schoolbus with woodstove, private bedrooms in the community house, vintage travel trailer, and tiny homes/cabins which may be available if unoccupied by full time residents. If you prefer a tent, we can provide one but we always have enough indoor space available so tenting is optional not required. There is a communal kitchen in the bunkhouse with gas stove/oven, refrigerator, food. The bunkhouse kitchen has an outdoor dish washing station. The farm primarily uses rainwater collection and usually has gravity fed cold water at various residences-no hot running water although we do have a seasonal outdoor shower as well as a weekly wood fired sauna. We have several outdoor composting toilets (in separate buildings from the sleeping quarters), no indoor toilets on the farm. We receive great reviews about the food here--if you visit in the June-November period you'll have access to an abundance of amazing produce! We also do a lot of food preservation here, so we also have many types of dehydrated and canned goods available all year. Our kitchen is primarily vegan, although we do typically have farm eggs and occasionally purchase a bit of cheese for visitors. We stock with a large inventory of dry goods including various beans/pulses/legumes, grains, flour (although we also have a grinder), pasta, herbs and seasonings, oils, cereals, vegan milk, and a variety of items like coconut milk, coffee, and chocolate. Most of what we purchase is organic. Visitors take turns cooking meals on a rotation schedule with others. There is cell phone reception on the farm although it can be spotty-we can occasionally offer wifi (sort of high speed) at a private residence on the farm but this should be occasional and limited to things like email and itinerary planning. There is good high speed wifi available in town at the local library for downloads, video etc.
Unfortunately, we cannot host dogs. We do like them, but are maxed out with the number of resident farm dogs.
We love hosting international visitors, and can sometimes alter their schedule to allow three days off per week to allow for more sight seeing in the area. The nearest "town" is a village of about 800 people and is located 5 miles away. There is a local bus stop within a half mile of the farm which makes several round trips to a more urban area. About 45 minutes away from the farm, there is a bus/train station. Our residents all work at least part time off site, so there are ample opportunities to carpool into town or to the bus/train station. We are about equal distance between Seattle and Vancouver BC. The ferry to the San Juan Islands is about a 45 minute drive from the farm. We think our place is pretty ideally situated for sight seeing, and for those who like to hike or be in the wilderness, our mountains draw people from all over the world each year.
Internet access
Limited internet access
We have pets
We are smokers
More than two
Maximum 4-5 hours a day, 5 days a week
