Grow some food and connect with nature in Souto Da Casa, Portugal

Details

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  Description

  Bom dia! I'm Jonathan, 30 years old, originally from Cape Town, South Africa.
  
  I have always dreamt of living on a farm.
  After living nomadically for the last ten years and travelling to about 30 countries, the time came for me to put down some roots.
  Last year I bought a beautiful piece of land next to a very clean river in Souto da Casa, Portugal, and I am finally ready to start building structures, growing vegetables and sharing this beautiful place!
  
  Just like food and water, being surrounded by nature and peace feeds the soul
  I'm hoping to create a place where people can come and heal a bit, and leave feeling recharged.
  I am a social person so I am happy to welcome a small group of volunteers at the same time.
  
  I want to build a native American sauna, (or Temazcal) by the river and a wooden yoga deck with a view of the mountain, as well as a communal outdoor kitchen out of pallets, and a cabin for the winter time. And definitely a communal space for people to gather and share with eachother.
  
  Currently as it is Spring, main focus is planting crops!
  The land has great soil. It is not huge, but big enough! Last Summer I did some minor projects and spent time just camping here and enjoying it, and I have not finished building anything yet, only two very basic compost toilets, and I fixed the driveway. I just got back from South Africa again end of March 2026.
  
  I am currently working on planting fruit trees, starting the vegetable garden, building a communal kitchen from pallets. Work is fun, outdoors, and currently in Spring it is so beautiful with many flowers and it has been amazing weather!
  
  For accomodation, I can supply camping supplies, tent, clean sleeping bag, mattress, pillow or bring your own van/tent. Car access is very good. There is no light pollution so there's beautiful stars at night, the sound of the river to sleep to. Its honestly amazing :)
  
  Help is 3 hours per day in exchange for a breakfast of generally muesli/oats/eggs and fruit, and a big healthy vegetarian dinner, meaning one meal you provide yourself. If we work longer than 3 hours (max 5) then I will provide all three meals for the day. I can provide transport to the grocery store. We share cooking and cleaning.
  
  Drinking water comes from a small crystal clean spring 5 minutes walk away, charging phones with a portable solar charger, cooking on a gas stove,
  there is a composting toilet, showers are currently with cold river water however I will soon create a solar shower, cellphone signal works very well.
  
  20 minutes walk is the village of Souto da Casa. There are many foreigners living in the area and i have nice neighbours who visit sometimes. There are three cafes, a grocery store and a river beach in the village, and the small city of Fundao is only 12 minutes drive away. Busses from Porto and Lisbon go to Fundao, and then there is a local bus to the village of Souto da Casa. I am also at the base of Serra Gardunha mountain 1200 meters which has beautiful hiking and waterfalls and the trail starts close by
  
  You will have plenty of free time to explore the many hiking trails, hang out in the hammock and get a feel for what its like to start your own little homestead. I play guitar, djembe and native american flute so any music playing is very welcome here, but besides that, its a very relaxed and peaceful place. I have spent a whole year searching throughout the whole Portugal and most of Spain for the land for my project, as well as Costa Rica and South Africa, so I have a lot of information and am happy to share what I have learnt.
  
  This is best suited for people who love wild camping and wild places. I am excited to meet you and welcome you to this beautiful piece of Portugal!

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  Types of help and learning opportunities

  Help with Eco Projects
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  Interests

  

  Farming

  

  Plant care

  

  Yoga / Wellness

  

  Water sports

  

  Nature

  

  Dancing

  

  Camping

  

  Beach

  

  Adventure sports
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  UN sustainability goals this host is trying to achieve

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  What's this?
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  Cultural exchange and learning opportunities

  I am a world traveller and I love sharing stories about the world

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  Help

  Cutting bushes, building stairs to the river, making camp platforms

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  Languages

  Languages spoken
  English: Fluent
  Spanish: Fluent
  Portuguese: Beginner

  This host offers a language exchange
  This host has indicated that they are interested in sharing their own language or learning a new language.
  You can contact them directly for more information.
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  Accommodation

  Bring your own tent or I can provide a small two person tent with mattress and sleeping bag

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  What else ...

  This is very rustic camping because it's just getting started, we are building the kitchen and everything else!

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  A little more information

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    Internet access

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    Limited internet access

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    We have pets

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    We are smokers

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    Can host families

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  Space for parking camper vans

  Just a place to park, no sewage, water is from the village or the stream

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  How many Workawayers can stay?

  More than two

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  My animals / pets

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