Join us and learn self sustainable living in homesteading ranch, Bagaces, Costa Rica

Infos

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  Description

  My name is Max (32 M) and my friend Corey (31 M) and I are starting a Homesteading workaway here in Bagaces, Guanacaste, Costa Rica. We met back in 2014 volunteering at a Wildlife Rehabilitation project here in Guanacaste, CR and have been great friends ever since. Since then Corey has stayed here in Bagaces where he's been managing the farm here and started a family with a local woman, and they have one daughter. I (Max) went back to California where I had a career in IT in the Bay Area and after nearly a decade am finally at a place in life where I'm ready to return and build out the workaway we've been talking about and planning for nearly 8 years.
  
  This is a start-up workaway that is focused on self sustainability and working in natural, holistic, and organic ways with the earth and community around us. We are raising livestock including cows, pigs, chickens, goats, and turkeys which provide us food and a means of affording expenses, as well as a vegetable garden which currently includes bananas, yuca, beans, squash, melons, peppers, and other vegetables, roots, and herbs to provide food for ourselves. We also care for horses, a donkey, dogs, and a few cats, and are currently watching a neighbors animals (currently 3 horses) and have ongoing trades of work or services with others in the local community.
  
  We are looking to find people who have (or are looking to develop) skills in animal care, farming, gardening, building projects, general maintenance of the farm and small facilities that we have here. We are open to sharing the skills we have and have developed as well as learning from others.
  
  Ultimately we are focused on a way of living that is in sync with the world and people around us, and sharing that with others who are also interested in a more natural way of life. We would like to be clear in disclosing that we do raise animals for food here. Corey raises livestock as a way of living which is used to afford expenses for himself and his family, but these animals are also raised to feed us as volunteers. They are raised with love and respect for what their lives provide. We believe that this is a natural way of living for humans and we work very hard to do it self sustainably. We respect that not everyone agrees on this and want to be transparent so that everyone can make the decisions that are best for them and their values.
  
  When we're not working we like to have bonfires, barbeques, take trips to the local waterfalls, and get out to the beach on the weekends. Corey is sober and I like to drink on the weekends. We prioritize our work but always love to have fun.
  
  We just recently started an Instagram so you can keep up on what we've been up to:
  
  If this sounds like a good fit for you please apply and reach out with any questions you may have.
  
  -Max

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  Types d'aide et opportunités d'apprendre

  Projets artistiques

  Jardinage

  Bricolage et construction

  S’occuper des animaux

  Aide dans une ferme

  Cuisine/repas pour la famille

  Aide à la maison

  Entretien général
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  Objectifs de développement durable de l’ONU que cet hôte essaie d'atteindre

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  Qu'est-ce que c'est ?
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  Echange culturel et opportunités d'apprendre

  The benefits of volunteering here in Bagaces are that it's a very natural Costa Rican culture. There is not a big expat or foreign presence here, and very few people in town speak English so there is plenty of opportunity to learn and speak Spanish while in town. Corey is fluent in Spanish and so is his wife and family. We have a neighbor who we work with frequently who is fluent in Spanish and learning English who would enjoy doing some language trade while we work.
  
  Corey knows a lot about the land and animals here and can teach you a lot about raising any of the livestock that we have here on the ranch. He is a wealth of knowledge and has been living here on the land for the last 8 years and the most important part of starting this workaway for him is being able to teach this self sustainable ways of living to others.
  
  You will learn a lot about the different native plants and trees here in Guanecaste as well as enjoy the fruits that they bare. We have Mangos, Tamarind, Cashew, Jocote, and others on the ranch. You can learn how to identify these plants and we can learn together how to make different foods and preserve them to enjoy during their off seasons.

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  Aide

  Work will be 4-5 hours per day, 5 days per week with 2 days off in exchange for a place to stay, food, and basic amenities. We typically begin our day around 6am and start work at 7am and work until noon. Typical work includes feeding and watering the animals, planting fence posts and repairing fences, weeding the garden, watering plants, cleaning and maintaining the facilities (kitchens, bathrooms, showers, etc), milking goats or cows, and other ranch/farm style upkeep. We also will have time to work on other projects that come up or that volunteers would like to undertake including construction, art, decorating, renovating, etc.
  
  We are primarily looking for those with gardening experience to help us to improve and expand our organic garden. Other skills that would be beneficial would be beekeeping and construction. We don't require you bring skill sets of your own but we ask that you are a thorough worker with the ability and willingness to learn new skills and contribute to the ongoing projects and upkeep required at the ranch.
  
  I am also looking at building a second story structure on top of a shipping container that we have using bamboo structurally and corrugated metal roofing to create a living space as well as a multipurpose covered area below.

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  Langues parlées

  Anglais: Courant
  Espagnol: Courant

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  Hébergement

  Sleeping Arrangements:
  We currently have a new house built 2 years ago that contains a room with 2 single beds for volunteers. We also have an older house with working electricity that is habitable but in need of some repair. We have the ability to provide materials for anyone who would like to undertake a project fixing up the house there. There is plenty of room for those who would like to camp as well, but it may be a difficult undertaking during the rainy season.
  
  Showers/Bathrooms:
  Currently we have a single working toilet and shower. With the recent habitation there was also a building built which houses 3 showers, and 3 bathrooms. There is 1 toilet and door installed, and 2 bathrooms which still need plumbing and doors. One of the showers is currently fully functional with a door, and the other 2 showers are functioning but need doors installed. The toilets run to an underground septic tank which was installed the same time the new buildings were built.
  
  Kitchen:
  We have a kitchen with a refrigerator which we use the freezer as a fridge as the fridge portion needs repair. We also have a large freezer that's fully functional, in which we have frozen meat. There are dishes available for volunteers here already.
  
  Water:
  We have access to clean water to drink from 24/7 on site. We have running water which is pumped from our private creek (artisan spring). We have a 2.2 gallon water filter and city water access at the street.
  
  Electricity:
  We have city electricity which is very consistent and reliable.
  
  Internet:
  Currently you will need to provide your own sim card to use the internet on a phone or hotspot your laptop, but in case of emergencies or specific needs we can provide network to you. We are currently looking for a more affordable solution than by the gigabyte cell data so we can provide access to the internet for our volunteers and ourselves. More info soon.
  
  Provided Food & Supplies:
  We will be providing rice, beans, toilet paper, and cleaning supplies including soap at all times during the stay. Our collective work on ranch with the animals and plants will be providing eggs, milk, meat, fruits, and vegetables as is available.
  
  In the case they are not being grown/the garden isn't producing we will provide them.)
  Additionally our ranch has a reliable, year round source of eggs. We will typically have varied animal proteins available including meat and milk, but which types of meat and which animals are producing milk varies and depends on a variety of factors.
  
  Our organic garden is a newer addition to the property and currently is producing: Yuka, Cucumbers, Green Beans, Carrots, and Tomato, with new vegetables to come.
  The vast majority of the vegetables and herbs grown in the organic garden are purely for the consumption of the volunteers, myself, and Corey. (The only exception here is a select variant of cucumber which we are growing for a friend so they can pickle them.)
  We are also looking into making different types of dairy products (starting with cheese) from the cow and goats milk available.
  
  Corey and I currently live on this mixture of essentials purchased in bulk, and what is provided from the land and animals. The volunteers would be sharing in the meals with us and in the case there is something we need to buy to supplement our diet that's essential to our wellbeing we will ensure that its provided. (This is limited within reason, as certain foods such as peanut butter are very expensive. If an individual wanted this specifically, they would need to purchase it themselves.)

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  Autres infos...

  Fun Activities and Sight Seeing:
  The Llenos de Cortez Waterfalls are about 15 minutes away from us, Playas del Coco beach is about an hour West, and the hot springs are about 45 minutes North (Thermalmania) or East (Arenal), and Palo Verde National Park is also 30 minutes south of us.
  
  Transportation:
  We are located 20 minutes east of Liberia and about 45 minutes from the Liberia Airport. The local bus system is reliable and getting to and from the farm to any of the surrounding areas is easy and affordable. You can also use the local taxis in the case that time is less available than money in a given circumstance.
  
  Getting to and from Town:
  Getting to the ranch from Bagaces is a short taxi ride and should cost 2000 colones (or $4 USD). We have 2 bikes that can be used to get into town and typically ride there (downhill) then pay for a ride back with our groceries/supplies and bikes in one of the truck taxis that are available during most reasonable hours of the day. It's also walkable but takes about 30 minutes to town, and 35 minutes back.
  
  Safety:
  Bagaces is a very safe place to be with low crime. There aren't many bars or people out at night. It's a smaller town where everyone is quite friendly and tends to know each other. We spend most of our time out at the farm and in the 8 years Corey has been here he's had no problems. His wife's family has a house just across the entrance from the farm and someone is generally watching the property or here at all times. We also have secure structures to lock up valuables for extended periods of time.

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  Informations complémentaires

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    Accès Internet

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    Accès Internet limité

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    Nous avons des animaux

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    Nous sommes fumeurs

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    Familles bienvenues

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  Combien de volontaires pouvez-vous accueillir ?

  Deux

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  Nombre d'heures attendues

  Maximum 4-5 hours a day, 5 days a week

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