Farming in the high desert

Holland Ranch is a small certified organic farm in Palmdale, CA, about an hour northeast of Los Angeles. It's not an isolated rural piece of land like the name would imply, the neighbors are right next door and the gardens are bordered with chain link fences- which are lodged with tufts of tumbleweed. Joshua trees dot the fields like watchmen, complete with ravens perched on top making their eerie woodblock calls.

Since the farm is so small (and organic), most things must be done by hand rather than with machinery or chemicals. In these two weeks, Reilly and I have spent our time removing plant debris from last season, collecting potatoes and carrots that were left in the ground, cleaning garlic heads for storage, and moving compost onto new fields. Their soil here is essentially sand, and needs more plant matter and nutrients for healthier plants. Their growing season is also much much longer than in Minnesota! In the middle of December, they can plant garlic for harvest in March.

Eric and Cheri Holland are our WWOOF hosts, and are truly good-hearted people. They live on the farm and cook dinner for us each night (creamy sausage pasta with homemade tomato sauce, chicken and dumpling soup, steak with buttery mashed potatoes and broccoli...YUM) We stay in a trailer next to the house which is cozy and stocked with breakfast and lunch items. The previous farm we stayed at provided all ingredients, but we were expected to cook for ourselves each night. It has been a welcome change to have someone cook for us!

Another thing I really have loved about this farm is that we can use the guest bathroom inside the house. It has a real western flushing toilet and a glorious shower stall with plenty of hot water. We were also welcome to use their laundry! I have gotten into a ritual of taking a hot shower after working (we are expected to work 5 hours each day, with Sundays off) and then lazing about in the trailer while I wait for supper. The work load here has definitely been more demanding than the last farm, and it's not unusual to feel sore afterwards.

With our days off, we explored a section of the Pacific Crest Trail (a thru-hiking trail that runs from Mexico to Canada, along the western coast of the United States) and Death Valley National Park. They were both beautiful, and we had gorgeous weather for both visits.

It's been really nice staying here, especially when we first arrived and it was 60's and sunny every day! But as it gets colder and Christmas approaches, we are both eager to get home and spend time with our families. We will stay until a week after New Years in the Midwest- then our next stop will be a farm in Arizona (the one we had lined up just cancelled on us yesterday!... So we will need to work out a new plan). For now, let's enjoy the holidays together :)

Much love,
Haley













Death Valley National Park

Darwin Falls, a desert spring oasis

Mesquite Flat sand dunes

San Fran and Sequoia National Park

We started our drive to California on Thanksgiving day, and ate a lonely interstate meal at a franchise next to the motel for supper. We were hungry and missing our families that night, but the next morning San Fransisco rose out of the ocean like Atlantis, beckoning us and glittering cheerfully on the water.

As we stepped out of the car, the air somehow seemed lighter- and my mind felt more clear. Not to mention the warm sunny weather was a stark difference from Oregon! My good friend Theresa, whom I met while studying abroad in Spain, was a wonderful host. She greeted us with homemade soup, took us for a hike to the top of Mt. Davidson, and then around to all the best dive bars in her neighborhood for our first night in town.

View of downtown San Fransisco from Mt. Davidson

Breakfast Club

Sunset at Golden Gate Park

The morning after our arrival, Reilly and I explored the city while Theresa worked in the lab. We hopped on an electric bus next to Theresa's apartment and started off towards Haight Street, an old hippie cultural center- regretfully transforming into a tourist trap. We visited the famed Amoeba Records, bought a bunch of delicious sandwich ingredients at an organic market, then walked to Golden Gate Park to have a picnic (I love how "exotic" fruits here are local! Fresh pomegranates are the best). We used the same $2.25 ticket to use the public transit all day, everywhere in the city.

The next day Theresa accompanied us to the best spots we had not covered yet, we weaved through Chinatown, perused the City Lights bookstore, climbed a tower with a view of both bridges, strolled across the wharf (sampled free Ghirardelli chocolate!) and with weary feet took a long bus ride home.

Chinatown dried fishes

The legendary City Lights Bookstore

It was painful to leave such a charming city and the company of good friends, but after a long goodbye we set out for our next unknown destination. Our Adventure Atlas led us to a campsite down a long drive off of Highway 1, tucked into some mountains. The morning after was gorgeous, driving along the coast, with an endless view of the ocean. We stopped several times to hike down to the water, put our feet in the sand, hunt for sand dollars, and even got to see some wildlife!

 

That night we found a campsite at Morro Strand State Beach, and found out that sleeping on beaches can be very windy and that sand can come through tent screens very easily- but it was worth it for the view.

Mountainside Campsite

Elephant seals

At breakfast we decided to leave the coast and backtrack a bit so that we could visit Sequoia National Park. We drove right through the central valley with clementine orchards as far as the eye can see, farm stands advertising almonds, pistachios, and olives for sale, and signs that read "Is it a waste of water to grow FOOD?!" We arrived at the park with enough daylight to visit a few giant sequoias and capture a glorious sunset of the valley cradled between mountain ranges.

Driving back to the campsite, we saw a baby black bear run across the road! It was the first live bear I have seen in the wild. That night, I made sure to pack away all of our food into the lockers provided, and read the safety material the ranger gave us (for future notice, scare black bears away with loud noises and make yourself look big). We had a cozy campfire, drank tea, and read our books quietly while keeping one eye on the fox circling the campsite.

 

Can you find Reilly?

Central Valley Sunset

Mule deer

Morning hike

Sequoia National Park was one of my favorite places to visit, it was wild and expansive- the ancient trees and human history of the place had energy and made me feel peaceful and alive. There are definitely more opportunities to explore in this wilderness, and I hope that I can return soon. Maybe for an extended backpacking trip! Some day... For now, it's back to farming.

Hot Spring Salvation

One thing we learned from our time in Portland is to never trust the weather. If it called for any rain in the forecast, expect it to rain on and off all day (ignore the time predictions) and also possibly be sunny while it is raining on you. If it says it will be sunny, it is lying. It made it tricky to plan for our trip to the coast, but huzzah! We got lucky and had a beautiful sunny weekend. On our way there we stopped to climb Saddle Mountain, near the summit in the distance could even see the ocean.

Spore packets on the underside of a fern frond

 

Can you spot the ocean?

After our hike the sun was setting as we approached the coast. We ate dinner at a local pizza joint in Cannon Beach and drove around town agonizing on where to park overnight- we ended up settling for an empty parking lot next to the ocean in the town of Seaside (I was worried if we parked on the actual beach we would be washed away by the tide in the morning). We unpacked all our blankets, pillows, sleeping bags and created a nest in the back of the truck at went to bed at 8pm. At dawn we crawled out of our cave and hiked down to see the beach.

We packed everything up and headed to Ecola State Park (named from the Chinook word for whale, "ekoli") and cooked up some oatmeal on the tailgate, watching the sun come over the trees. The hike was gorgeous with a mix of mystical cool forests and gasping glimpses of the water. We even got to explore tide pools! After the hike we enjoyed an almost cold beer from our growler on the tailgate, enjoying the view and soaking up sunshine.

Life in Oregon was beautiful and fun with its mossy trees, hiking trails, breweries, and food scene. But it also came with it's own set of personal obstacles. The first time we went into Portland my entire bin of clothes were stolen out of the back of the truck, along with Reilly's empty guitar case. It was mostly a sentimental loss for me, those were my old classics that fit me the best and were my favorite pieces of clothing. I still had all my work clothes, my jackets, etc. at the farm, so I had enough to wear. It just felt icky and frustrating to be stolen from, and was a big inconvenience.

Another tough obstacles was in last week we were at the farm, the water stopped working in our little camper. Imagine working in the rain, walking through manure, covered in god-knows-what and not being able to take a hot shower at the end of the day. Several days went by and we decided to make the trek to the Bagby Hot Springs.

Log bathtub

It was about a two hour drive through windy mountain roads into a national forest. At the trailhead there was a long hike through magical trees leading up to a row of wooden shacks on stilts. Similar to roman aquaducts, the steamy hot water was delivered to each shack in a long trough. You remove a stick plug in the trough and spring water pours into your hollowed-out-log bathtub. The water is much too hot for soaking right away, so you mix it with buckets of cold water to get it to the right temperature. It was heavenly.

At the farm, I will miss the sheep the most. I became too attached and don't think I'll be able to eat lamb chops for a long long time. It was a great experience at Moomaw Family Farm, but the cold is chasing us south- and that's where we must go!

Oregon At Last, Meat the Animals

Oregon At Last

The rest of the journey to Oregon was longer and much colder than we had expected. Thanks to generous traveling funds provided by friends and family, we were able to stay at a couple hotels after nerve-racking snowy mountain drives in the dark. Determined to camp despite the 20 degree cold, one night we found ourselves sleeping in the back of the truck in a sketchy park in the outskirts of Idaho Falls. By morning the condensation from our breath (despite both the topper windows being open!) had deflated my cozy down sleeping bag into a limp moist sack. I shivered in the darkness waiting for dawn, listening to trains rattling past us. Morning finally broke over the industrial landscape, we packed up quickly, brushed our teeth at a gas station, ate cereal off the tailgate, and twelve hours of driving later we finally pulled into Bend, Oregon. 

Snowy mountain pass, WY

I had always heard rumors that Bend is a great place to visit. It's a historic logging town, and reminded me of my hometown Stillwater, MN. There is a quaint river park, a downtown with shops (including an awesome candy store) and it was fun to finally explore a bit and discover what the hype was about. The highlights were Drake Park and Smith Rock State Park, just a half hour north from Bend.

Drake Park, Bend OR


Smith Rock State Park, Terrebonne OR

Meat the Animals 

On Sunday afternoon November 8th we arrived at Moomaw Family Farm in Oregon City, 10 miles from Portland. Amanda and Nathan Moomaw showed us the tiny trailer we would be living in and let us settle in while they finished the chores for the day. The camper is exactly 3 1/2 paces long (according to Reilly's stride) and has a distinct groovy vibe. 

Our tiny home

They stocked the pantry full of organic grains, whole milk, eggs, cheese, bread, homegrown meat, and some veggies. Usually at WWOOF farm stays, the hosts are expected to prepare meals for their volunteers. We have a bit more independent arrangement where they provide the ingredients, and we cook all our meals for ourselves. Good thing we know how to cook!

Collards & Bacon

The only downside to our little abode, is that the toilet is not hooked up to a sewage system. This means traveling through the rain out to the "composting" toilet which is a plywood hut with a wooden seat hovering over a rubbermaid bin. At first, I imagined a pit toilet, which is at most state parks or camping sites. I was wrong. It's very up close and personal. Our outhouse rules are as follows, "Use toilet as normal. Paper goes in as normal. Use wood shavings to flush." We must empty the bin when it becomes full into the compost pile. I was grossed out at first, but now after shoveling sheep shit for three days, poop doesn't bother me as much anymore. It's basically just a few steps away from soil, right?

Haley mucking poo

My unexpected favorite animal here is the sheep. It's mostly due to Franklin, The Chosen One, who has been allowed to live for 3 years. He follows humans around, has a collar, and is very affectionate and mischievous. Here he is pictured after stealing my hazelnut bucket:

Franklin the bucket head

They also raise rabbits, pigs, and chickens. Our daily responsibilities are to keep everyone fed and watered, along with the occasional mucking. The pigs follow you around and act like dogs with giant floppy ears, the rabbits are actually pretty cute, and the chickens are fun to catch.

I caught one!

Baby bunny

I really love it here so far taking care of the animals and reading books in our little trailer. Being on the road was rough, and it feels nice to have a place to settle down for a while- but in the depths of my soul there will always be a tug to keep moving. I am happy to call Oregon our home for now, and am excited to get into the actual city of Portland to explore. Crossing my fingers that the rain will give us a little break for a visit to the beach soon!

xo

haley