Canada
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YES OUR PROFILE IS LONG BUT IT ANSWERS MOST QUESTIONS! Lol. PLEASE READ IT BEFORE CONTACTING US :) We look forward to meeting you and hope you enjoy your stay!
WE HOST BETWEEN 1-2 VOLUNTEERS AT A TIME FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD. IT CAN BE ALOT OF FUN HERE! Many people have become friends after meeting here. We have private rooms for you.
________________ ABOUT US: _______________
OUR NAMES ARE PATRICK & VALENCIA - Patrick works outside with the animals and large equipment, doing repairs and building things during the day - He is a master carpenter, knows electrical and plumbing, and likes being busy. He can teach you about those things. Valencia tries to take care of the house and garden, and works off the farm part-time with the elderly. She has an autoimmune disease that makes housework and cooking a challenge somedays so having extra help is very important to us.
VEGETARIANS are welcome!!! We believe that we can all learn from each other, & can show what it is REALLY LIKE to raise livestock, this is not a YouTube video, it's real life. We are not a factory farm - we believe in Joel Salatins methods which means treating animals with love, building healthy soils and using rotational grazing to increase bio-diversity. We want to install water catchment systems, focus on healing the land and grow almost all of our own food.
We are NOT a fancy well established farm. WE ARE DISORGANIZED and need help getting things sorted and put in a proper place so tasks are easier for everyone.
WE HAVE MANY DREAMS, but without your help we are just stuck doing the basic daily chores. It would be wonderful to host you and make new friends. Most helpers who have come end up staying longer than planned because we have a way of making you want to stay ;) JK. Our place is your place and we want you to be comfortable and have a good time here. Read our IG or facebook to see what we are all about!
WE HAVE 4 DOGS who love to be petted, brushed and walked, and also Barn Cats that like to walk at night with us under the millions of stars you see in a country sky (yes, walking the cats lol). You will see when you get here haha.
WE NEED YOUR HELP to get our farm working in harmony with the animals & to help set up permaculture methods. There is so much to learn and do here and you will never run out of jobs. You may be working around the house baking, organizing, or canning foods, or in the garden harvesting, watering and planting. You may be outside in the fields doing fence repairs, driving tractors, or building things using lumber made from our own trees! You will learn to run a chainsaw (if you want, all safety gear included), and operate the sawmill or brush chipper. There's nothing better than cutting a piece of lumber yourself. Everyone enjoys it, even the girls!
If you come in the winter you will cut down trees, renovate barns, build things in the workshop, and help with indoor jobs such as drywall, painting, cooking, making kombucha, or helping with the new garage renovation. Dress warm and enjoy the beautiful hillsides with our snowshoes! Fall is gorgeous here too, and in the spring we make our own maple syrup! Pancakes anyone??
Our area has tons of local history in regard to mining, farming, & Native American culture, including First Nations reservations nearby (for cheap marijuana, smokes and gas...yes we are ok with smokers!). We have the smallest jailhouse in north america, tons of lakes for fishing and swimming, and dozens of walking trails nearby. Take the van and go for a drive. You are free to go to town whenever you want (but long trips you must pay for the fuel). We have a 4 person canoe, 2 tents and camping gear, and hundreds of acres of government land to use for hiking and camping less than 1 hr away. Our farm has trails for walking, a small pond to skate on, and we have bicycles you can use both on and off road. Learn to drive the ATV, trucks, and tractors! It's not all work here. We have a few board games and cards you can play. Our wifi is unlimited highspeed.
We love bonfires and often have small "parties" at the big pond in the forest, or by the house in our massive firepit. We even have a hottub!! We don't like excessive drinking and anyone being rude or disrespectful while drinking will be asked to leave. When we say party we mean a casual fire, with some beers, music and maybe dancing outside. We do like having fun and don't mind if you want to have a toke, just don't operate vehicles or machinery after smoking marijuana. And if its your turn to work the next day, you still have to get up and feed the animals even if you are hungover, unless it's your day off. Everyone has posted days off and can switch them around with the other volunteers if they want. On really hot days we take the afternoon and go swimming a few days a week. Its better to start early in the summer heat and take a break during the hot time of the day, then go back out when it cools down to finish animal chores.
We are excited to welcome you to our home and hope you will enjoy staying with us :-) THANK YOU for reading our profile.
Art Projects
Language practice
Help with Eco Projects
Gardening
DIY and building projects
Animal Care
Farmstay help
Creating/ Cooking family meals
Help around the house
General Maintenance
Help with Computers/ Internet
Vegetarians can come and learn about ethical and humane meat production to give them an idea of what really happens on a small pasture-based operation- see that we are not cruel heartless killers who truly do love our animals. We want you to experience the joy of raising livestock for food and how the earth can actually benefit and heal from eating food right in your backyard. Help reduce your food footprint by eating food raised right here on the farm!! It doesn't get more local than that!
We offer the chance to see the famous Land 'O Lakes region, and enjoy everything it has to offer for outdoor activities. We offer bicycles, a vehicle for touring the area and a canoe too!
We hope to learn much from you, and will be asking you questions about your other workaway jobs, and listening to your stories about other countries and farms you've been to. You can suggest new ideas or ways to do things and we will listen and put them into practice if they make sense, giving you the chance to teach us and show off your skills!
We live in an area full of conventional farms and cash crop operations. We are trying to lead by example and show others that there is a way to farm ethically that improves the soil and creates more biodiversity.
Jobs vary by season and you may choose to work mostly indoors with Valencia, but if you come for a full farm experience these are the current jobs we need help with:
- WE CURRENTLY NEED HELP IN THE GARDEN, TYING UP TOMATO PLANTS, HARVESTING AND PROCESSING GARLIC, PLANTING FALL CROPS, PROCESSING TOMATOES FOR WINTER STORAGE, SAVING SEEDS FOR NEXT YEAR ETC.
-learn to drive our large tractors and help with organic hay production & feeding, composting manure for gardens, moving trees for milling etc.
-dog walking daily (we have 4 dogs!) Take them off leash through the farm for 30 mins or run them behind the ATV if it's not too hot
-Food prep like chopping up fruit & veggies for snacks and help to make dinner. Baking.
- housework such as dusting, vacuuming, cleaning bathroom and floors, dishes etc - A Schedule is posted of which job to do on which day. If we all take turns it will stay clean and be faster to do for everyone! With 4 dogs the hair gets all over and with burning wood and living in the country it means lots of dust. Farm life is more than being outside, you still have to eat and have a clean house! But we aren't perfectionists, its messy here. Bring slippers or indoor shoes!
- fencing (installing electric insulators, running wire, pounding posts, checking fence lines)
- tree clearing and chipping using a large chipper
-gardening (planting, weeding, mulching, pruning, installing trellises, building raised beds, harvesting and canning, starting seeds in the greenhouse during winter etc)
-painting coops/sheds, signs, trail markers
-Socializing baby animals to human contact meaning petting and scratching baby pigs, petting kittens and cuddling baby chicks :-)
-feeding and moving animals, livestock health care including tagging and vaccines, healing wounds
-barn/coop maintenance (we practice deep pack bedding so daily cleanout or mucking of stalls isn't required! We do it seasonally instead of daily and it stays clean, dry and less mucky, hooray!
-organizing tool shed, garage, basement etc
-yard cleanup, cutting grass, burning brush
- building bird houses, bat & owl houses, feeders, renovating the old barn
- and much much more! We have something for everyone!
English: Fluent
We offer 4 types of accommodations:
-2 bedrooms downstairs (brand new, just built!)
-FULL PRIVACY: our 30 foot fifth wheel trailer with a double sized bed, living area and kitchen. ELECTRIC YES, WATER NO. BASICALLY GLAMPING. Parked near the forest trails with amazing sunset views over the rolling hills (behind the barns, a slight walk at night with a flashlight). Sleeps 3 comfortably. Help us build a deck off the front and put in a natural rock fire pit this summer using all the big rocks we have here! Use the tractor and save your back! You can come to the house at night and play a game or relax and watch a movie with us. Shower and toilet inside the main house only.
-NEW: A 28' trailer with a double bed, parked in the driveway so you are close to the house and have internet and power for charging your devices.
-A 25' Trailer parked near the forest, POWER YES, WATER NO. We need help renovating it. Painting cupboards, ripping out the old seats and putting in a better bed area. It could be nice with a bit of work, paint and time.
MEALS: we are not able to support vegans as it is too much work to cook for that diet. We apologize. Vegetarians: I am willing to learn and dont mind purchasing what you need, but you will have to help prepare meals and cook something we can all enjoy. We eat meat regularly with lots of vegetables on the side. I will cook with you in mind, but making sure you have enough protein and iron are your responsibility.
Breakfast: we will supply breakfast foods for you sourced on the farm including sausages, bacon, eggs and ham. Cereal, whole grain breads and yogurt will be available along with fruit and cheese. Make it when you are hungry.
Lunch: you must prepare our own lunch. You can eat leftovers from supper or have eggs, sandwiches etc.
Supper: you will join us for supper at the main house and eat our own organic beef, pork, and poultry, along with vegetables from the garden in season and sometimes pasta or other starches. Fish is store-bought but we have rods and tackle here, just get a fishing license if you want and go catch dinner! Haha.
We will make sure you are well fed!! We eat outside every night in the summer and bbq alot.
We are more than happy to pick you up in Napanee (preferred), Kingston or Belleville. The bus can be taken to these cities.
There is plenty to see and do less than 1 hour from the farm ans you can get mostly everything you need in Napanee. Special items can be purchased on weekends when we go to the city or during your day off.
We like to relax in the evening and watch some tv after working all day, but Valencia enjoys playing games too and we have a few good ones. We also enjoy evening CATWALKS, but you will see what that means when you get here. We hope you like animals lol
Smoking is allowed everywhere outside EXCEPT the barns/sheds. CIGARETTE BUTTS and BEER CAPS are to be kept OFF the ground. Marijuana and minor alcohol consumption is allowed during your time off. No heavy drinkers. No smoking pot while driving equipment or operating machinery. Anyone not following these rules will be asked to leave immediately.
We hope to host you soon! Thanks for reading lol
Internet access
Limited internet access
We have pets
We are smokers
Can host families
We have power for you.
Only friendly dogs allowed. Cats are not allowed inside the house due to allergies.
Two
25 hrs per week as help vary by season
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