Visiting the farm

Dear Paul and landpeople;
I am so interested in coming out for a visit in July-August. (I would be camping) I have lived around Lake Tahoe for about 15 years and have been studying high altitude/cold climate permaculture from Sepp Holzer and Geoff Lawton. I'm into mycellium running. I have also read all the Anastasia/Ringing Cedars books and am about to give a presentation at the Public Banking Conference about permacultured 2.5 acre "subsistence living domains" as economic development and a new form of collateral for the public banking movement (localizing our money). I have listened to at least 30 of your podcasts and recommend permies.com to all my permaculture-interested friends. I have for resources: Around $5000 in savings/$700/month income for life; a 1978 3/4 ton Chevy Silverado pickup truck in mint condition and able to haul or tow 2-3 tons of material; a 1950 Spartanette Tandem travel trailer which I am getting off the grid ready and which I have lived in; an EnviroLet (incinerating toilet) and an economic subaru stationwagon in good condition.l I am single, no pets for now (I'm totally animal friendly - including bears) and smoke free. I don't drink alcohol but I'm getting interested in many different kinds of fermentation. I also have tools; heirloom seeds and water catchment barrells. And I am a good cook, about to get Michael Pollen's "Cooked" cookbook. I'm into sharing resources to build a permaculture community. I can't wait to build a hugelkultur (or many!) and a rocket stove. I'm trying out Sepp's bone salve right now. I would love to come out to Montana for a visit sometime in July or August and meet you all and see the land. Please correspond back -- thanks, Jennie Miles

Jennie,

Paul and Jocelyn discuss about visiting the land in podcast 248. The short answer is that it will be possible to go help if you have listened to Paul's podcast. However, they are not ready yet to tell people to come help. That will probably happen later this summer. Make sure you are signed up to Paul's daily-ish email so you hear about the work opportunities.

Thanks for splitting this out, Adrien. Yes, in July (and August) "visits" are actually what we're calling
--two week trial periods where the experience will be for those considering living on the land full time or
--"throw a shoulder in" for those who have listened to a majority of the podcasts and want to come out to help.
We're hoping to concentrate the effort, impact and meet-and-greet/interchange opportunities by having most people out the last two weeks of July.

Page 4 of the first month thread might be a good starting place to learn a bit more. People are sending me private messages with their contact info, why they want to come out, and how they might like to help (and learn).

Even earlier, first month camping, end of May (now) through June, will be a bit looser, for as little as 3 days or so, and is again for those who have listened to at least 30 podcasts, and who would be willing to camp off-grid and help with initial systems.

(Edited to clarify visit stuff and to add the 3 days part for the first month camping.)

Jennie, are you interested in seeing if Paul's place might be a permanent place for you or just a helping kind of visit?

For others, I'd like to mention that Paul has said in a few different places that there won't be much to see these first months. And we simply won't have the bandwidth for visitors or tours that aren't of the helping kind.

Darn it and I just sold two tour coach loads of tickets to NORML for a field trip next month!

I'm interested in both exploring Paul's land project as a permanent place to live and in lending a helping hand while visiting. Will re-listen to podcasts you and others cited and I am signed up for Paul's dailyish emails. The jobs you had posted looked wonderful! I'm about to start work with our only regional organic soil producer "full circle compost" and starting to build a hugelkultur on the business site. I think I'm getting the hang of posting on the permies website here. I would like to plan to drive to Montana sometime late july-early august. Thanks, again --Jennie

That sounds great, Jennie! We are coordinating, people, food, calendars, rides, rideshares, etc., so I need folks to send me a private message so we can do communicate via e-mail or phone, not on the forums.

Hi Jennie and Jocelyn - just a thought. Jennie might be the cook you are looking for? Even if only temporarily - someone setting up at BC who is versatile and can scale meals up and down depending on crew size. Jennie we have the most amazing large local/organic/whole food store here in Missoula (an hour from the Farm) run by a local board. I have read in posts that it is better than the famous Whole Food stores. It's called the Good Food Store and has evolved over 30 plus ?! years. It offers the best of what can be had in Montana. Anyone who likes to cook well would be happy camper shopping there. They have a deli/restaurant and along with the Farmers Markets downtown, Saturday and Sunday mornings in Missoula become a giant festival. If you are really interested in cooking for a while at the Farm or home base kitchen, I would discuss that a bit with Jocelyn - the sorts of things you like to cook. Meat will be on the menu. I like to imagine that once the kitchen at the home Base Camp is spruced up, and a photogenic kitchen garden gets rolling, complete with raised hugelbeds, fountains, birdhouses, chckens, whatever, herbs, flowers, veggies and bee magnet polycultures, it could be a great locale for some permie vids and pods. A gathering place for horticulture/botanists and foodies - hortbots! Fun. Just a thought.

Kathy J.
Missoula resident and supporter of the concept. I hope to donate some bulk foods and seasonings and goodies to the cause, ocasionally, as my budget allows. I believe the kitchen will be central to the entire effort and general good vibes.

It's been this odd feeling of "wow, we sure got a lot done today" and "wow, we worked all day and what did we get done?"

It kinda reminds me of the article I wrote a long time ago called "typical" where a simple task turns into something huge.

Jocelyn said there are a lot of people that are wanting to come to the farm that have listened to a majority of the podcasts, but they want to come for just one or two days. One person was somebody who does a lot of work for the on-line empire. For that person my thinking is "no problem - giving them a tour is the least I can do for the huge help they have been for all that we are trying to do."

For the others, my thinking is: bringing somebody up to speed takes time and I'm concerned that the return on effort might not be high enough. I suppose if it were during a super week, then it would be easier to be part of the greater group and not so much a drain on my personal time (Jocelyn has pointed this out many times, that people that are new want a lot of my time at first - good point).

The one thing that has shown to be problematic over and over is when folks have not listened to many podcasts. They seem insistent on how things should be. And when they hear how we are gonna do things, they seem to want to "save" us from obviously not thinking this through.

I do plan on making a few exceptions, of course, for close friends/family and superstars that I have invited here to teach stuff.

So, for the people that have listened to ALL of the podcasts and want to come by for a day and a half: maybe. If we have some other folks here that would be good to work with you, then I think that could work out great.