Wandering Wolves: February 2016

Starting out on the second leg of our trip has taught me two things; eternal spring is elusive and nearly impossible to find, and carefully plotted plans can derail with almost no ceremony. I left Minnesota thinking that no matter where I was, as long as it was warmer, would be better. There might be more sunshine down south, but it is not the verdant paradise my imagination created. Maybe a true spring must be one that has been patiently anticipated throughout the dead of winter, no cheating allowed.

It's been three weeks since Reilly and I left Iowa for part two of our WWOOFing adventure, and a chain of unforeseen events has landed us in a very different place than we had originally planned. After slowly couchsurfing and camping southward through Fort Collins, Albuquerque, El Paso, and a short stay with my parents in Sedona, we arrived at our farm near Tuscon, AZ.

Excited to learn about the aquaponics system, our optimism helped us to ignore some really big red flags; the filthy unheated trailer (they told us to heat the space using the stove burners, which leaked propane), no meals provided (only past-prime donated pastries and produce from Safeway), no restroom (only a 5 gallon bucket), and a host who carried a pistol loaded with hollow-point bullets on his hip at all times (he had an 'accident' in the summer where he blew off part of his leg while cleaning it, leaving him handicapped).

While we were chatting, or rather while he was talking at us about bombs and changing our money to gold and Obama stealing his freedom, we were enclosed by a 6ft chain link fence topped with barbed wire and a padlocked gate. Afraid of losing freedom, they locked themselves away. A little shaken up we went to sleep in the cold trailer hoping things would look better by the fresh light of morning. A quick farm tour the next day showed us that they do not even have an aquaponics system! Unable to put up with the unsanitary conditions without the promise of new knowledge, we asked for a key to the front gate and slipped out after our chores.

Unsure of our next steps, we booked a hotel room in downtown Tuscon and decided to try and forget about the unsavory experience for the night (which happened to be our 3rd anniversary!) and treated ourselves to dinner. The next few days we spent sending numerous emails from coffee shops asking for a new farm, and finally found one in New Mexico.

Our new farm is heavenly compared to the last, we have a small casita with a wood burning stove and sleeping loft, access to a real restroom, and all meals are provided (the family is vegan). I am stunned with a realization that both of these recent farms are living "low-environmental impact" lifestyles, but the latter has an astounding amount of emotional wealth despite struggling finances. They are a young couple with a toddler and are warm, welcoming, and understanding. Being around them makes me instantly calm and at peace. Both farms are living lightly on the land, striving for self-sufficiency, yet with polar opposite results.

We have a view of red rock hills dappled with juniper and pinyon trees out of our little home, and absolutely zero cell service reception in the valley. It has been hard work collecting fire wood, constructing hugelkultur beds, and doing other off-season chores. But after a warm shower, making a cup of hot tea, and reading in front of the fire you feel the energy come back into your bones. I am so grateful that we found this farm, and for the family's graciousness. Our next step is a permaculture farm in NM (very close to our current farm) starting on Feb. 15th.

Until then,
xoxo
Haley