Wwoof!

I have yet to explain how it is that I ended up at Tlell Bay Farm in Tlell, British Columbia. Bonnie and I are members of an organization known as WWOOF Canada - Worldwide Opportunities on Organic Farms (in Canada). The organization was originally started in England under the name Working Weekends on Organic Farms to provide Londoners the opportunity to escape to the country side with free accomodation and board in exchange for a few hours of work on the farms they would visit. As the movement progressed to allow volunteers to stay for more than weekends, the organization became known as Willing Workers On Organic Farms. Now the movement is a global one. Every country runs its own organization listing and membership database. Essentially, hosts (the farmers) need to subscribe and pay a membership fee to their national organization in order to have their information listed. Wwoofers (volunteers) then have to subscribe and pay their fee to have access to this information.

In Canada, the opportunities are plenty. You can search for farms based on a number of criteria including the location where you would like to live or the type of farming you would like to undertake. Usually the hosts are quite detailed in the accomodation they have to offer, the conditions in which you will be working and the type of work commitment they expect from you in exchange for your work. They accepted norm is 20 - 25 hrs of work a week, however some hosts do require you work 8-10 hrs per day. Ideally, you need to be able to express what you are looking for and your expectations of a certain host in an adequate fashion, as well as request the same of them so that your WWOOFing experience is not a poor one.(For instance, is cell phone service or internet an important consideration for you? Is your host able to accomodate a vegetarian or vegan diet? Is smoking allowed onsite?)

Though the WWOOF movement is a global one, 'WWOOFing' is still not a term that is immediately recognized in most circles. However, on Haida Gwaii, I have learned that it is a common term for the locals - so common that when Bonnie and I have met new people on the island, we are either introduced as WWOOFers by our hosts or people will ask us if we are here as WWOOFers. Apparently we do not give the impression yet of being locals.

I found Tlell Bay Farm in November 2010 on the WWOOF Canada website. I was looking for a place that could take both Bonnie and I in April and that was not too isolated since we wanted to have the opportunity to explore Haida Gwaii. There are many many farms on Haida Gwaii that accept WWOOFers, and we were actually turned away by a few to which we sent emails of interest. I did a little dance when I got the news to my Blackberry that we would be welcomed in Tlell come April.

I do not know why we were turned away from the other farms, but I do get the impression thtt certain hosts are very popular because of their location or what they have to offer in terms of learning or recreation. Nevertheless, I have also learned that the biggest difficulty with volunteers is the fact that they don't show up! Farmer Elizabeth has even said that she only really believes someone is coming once they have landed at the airport or ferry terminal on Haida Gwaii.

I can see how changing plans on a host can be difficult, however I also empathize with individuals who just don't know where they are going to be in 1-, 2- or 3-months time. For instance, currently I am talking with a woman in Tuscany who owns an olive farm to see if I could work for her during the harvest season starting in November. Olive oil is probably my all time favourite food product, so much so that my parents and good friends are constantly bringing me bottles of olive oil from their travels around the world. It is a dream of mine to be a part of the harvest and participate in the oil production. Though the Tuscan farm is happy to take me, I cannot at this time say that I am 100% committed because I am unsure how my life will have developed in the next six months. Maybe I will have fallen in love with life in Cawston, BC, and want to stay there for another year? Or maybe I will be very ready to get away from the life I had lead for the last six months and go abroad? Both sound like realistic options at this time.

One of our neighbouring farms currently has a WWOOFer from Germany. Stef is 25 and studied agriculture at university. While Bonnie and I know that we are leaving on May 2, 2011 to our next destination, if you ask Stef, she doesn't know when she is leaving or where she is going next. It is great to be able to find hosts that have the flexibility to keep you for an indefinite amount of time, but this also means that she will be limited in her next destination because she will only be able to provide a limited amount of notice to her arrival. There are pros and cons to each approach, but as a planner at heart, I would recommend that you look for the best farms that meet the most of your criteria and commit to these individuals well in advance (4 - 6 months if possible).

So what has my life as a WWOOFer been like so far? Honestly great! I feel like I am on a vacation for the most part. I am able to wake up each day, look at the weather, see what the other people in our house are up to for the day, and evaluate how I can most effectively use my time - is it best to go for a hike first or maybe garden for a few hours and then take off? Farmer Elizabeth gave Bonnie and I an orientation on day one and then typed up a list of projects that she would like us to complete during our stay. While here I have met a few hosts who disagree with this approach and believe that it is better to be working with your volunteers in order to show that 'you are in the trenches too', but I disagree with this belief. With a list, Bonnie and I are able to manage our time, choose our projects in the order we desire and we are not being micro-managed which could easily make the work we are doing lose its element of fun very quickly. Knowing the number of hours we need to contribute to the farm a week, we are also able to get away for a few days knowing that we can just work harder in advance or after our getaway. That being said, I have heard of some hosts that do treat their WWOOFers a little bit like 'free labor' in its purest sense and have very unusual requests of their volunteers. WWOOFing to me involves a certain amount of agricultural activity. If you are being asked to act as a cleaning person for the majority of your time, you are not being given the opportunity to be a WWOOFer.

There are already a number of experiences I have had as a WWOOFer that are new to me. First, I have learned about a number of new gardening tools and their uses, about composting, fertilizing and mulching, about how to set up a green house, about different seeding methods, and about chickens and their care. Plus it is so nice to be sitting outside under the sun, listening to some good music and working with your hands while you imagine what you would still be doing if you had not quit your job. Really it is a fantastic feeling.

If you are interested in WWOOFing in Canada, start your search at www.wwoof.ca. It is worth spending getting a membership to browse the opportunities and start making some connections. At the very least, you will be supporting a great movement. WWOOF!