ANY WWOOF'ers out there ?

[Ken in Anaheim]

I've been lurking here a few years. I dig the (idea of the) van lifestyle but really would like to have a small place of my own to garden and raise a few rabbits and chickens. But I've lived in an apt. all my adult life (I'm now 66, single, no kids/pets) and don't have any experience with the "homestead" life.
I came across this site ( https://wwoofusa.org/ ) and was wondering if any of you folks were familiar with it (?)
I was thinking it could tie in well with van-living and also my desire to get back to the land.
Is it possible (feasible) to just travel around and spend weeks at a time parked at a WWOOF farm- helping them while at the same time getting on-the-job training of "rural skills" ?
My one fear of van-life is that I'd end up just sitting in a little metal box in the middle of the desert bored and lonely.
Right now I just sit in this damned apt. surfing the web for 6 hours a day and then move to a different chair and watch TV...then go to bed (rinse and repeat) day after day.
There's GOT TO BE MORE...........
Any comments welcomed................
KinA

 

[Lucky mike]

Im not really into Woofing methods but......wandering around living off grid in my motorhome is nice....if I want to couch surf , go out and work ,play on the internet or pretty much anything else its the same as if I was still stationary....

the nice part...
changing the scenery...with a larger neighborhood!!
new friends around every corner with new opportunities..
following good weather
new challenges

 

[Donedirtcheap]

Well....you may want to research the internet feasibility first, and air conditioning and maybe heat and...well...maybe thousands in a stash fund for transmissions/engines etc.

 

[Luisafernandes]

Hi Ken!
Life can be monotonous some times. I've been there after separating from my wife in 2004. I lived with my parents and all I did was go to work, come back home, lay in bed and watch TV. I did that for three years.
In 2012 when he separated again I was active. Active as in doing a lot of biking (3500 miles) and running (750 miles).
We still haven't gotten back together but my parents are gone and I needed a place to live; thus the homemobile, aka van. It allows me the freedom to go to work and stay there, no commute! I can go to the gym, or I can have lunch at the beach, like today;

Like you, I love the idea of having a plot of land I can call my own, where I can plant a garden and dream of ways to make changes and build stuff around the house.
My life threw me a curve ball, and I must adjust and hit it, or give up and strike out. So I bought a van, and my outlook on life changed. Now I don't care about having a house and all the stuff that comes with it. All the fixing, cutting, cleaning, sweeping, blowing, hammering, drilling. All the money flying out the window. All the labor, countless hours, gone. Wasted.
Now I like the idea of a simpler life. Less bills, hopefully. Going wherever I want, as long as it's not far from my work.
I think, and this is just me, you'll have to decide if this is for you, but I think you'd be very happy with a van. You, I'm assuming you're retired, could go anywhere in the country. You could have lunch by the beach one day, and dinner by the mountains the next. You could wake up looking at some beautiful landscape instead of four wall.
You could meet up with Bob Wells and learn the ropes for a while, before heading on, to places unknown, to a destination other than your apartment.
Be well.

 

[caseyc]

Dang Ken, I had no idea your life was so boring! Wow! You make my life seem like a rockstar! Joke!!

 

[LeeRevell]

Rather than staying cooped in the apartment, find one or more interests, hobbies if you will. Then google up that activity as a forum. Likely there will be some, like our little place here for van living.
You may find like-minded folks local or nearby, meet them and make some good friendships.
Get out of the house and check out local sites of interest - Libraries, museums, etc.
Or go camping, a night or two to start, then maybe longer.
Biggest thing is, stop vegetating and get out and doing!
I am single myself (and 57 years old), but have my hobbies and good buddies to share them with. Still have my elderly Mom to help out and do for too. Beats staying inside watching TV. I don't even have mainstream TV...... A little Netflix via the PC, and the forum sites, during my downtime.

 

[akrvbob]

Ken, I don't feel a call toward homesteading, but part of me does relate to the desire. So I've never doe it myself.

But I do have a friend who has done quite a bit of WWOOFing and overall he liked it. He said that at some places you are just there for labor and they really don't teach you anything. But others get the spirit of the thing and do spread their love and knowledge of organic farming. Fortunately, he had more good experiences than mediocre ones! He never had a bad experience.

What have you got to lose!!? Buy an older but reliable Class C for a good price and start taking some trips. Maybe you'll love it, and maybe you'll hate it. If you love it, do it even more. If you hate it you can sell it for what you paid for it and be out nothing but missing some of those TV shows!

Let me make a suggestion. You're not far away so why don't you drive over for the RTR. When you get here rent a U-Haul van for very little money and stay in it for two weeks. Between now and then start watching garage sales and thrift stores for a sleeping pad, sleeping bag, propane stove and cooler: all the basic camping gear.

When you get here you'll make friends and live in the van. At the end of it you'll have a pretty good idea if it's for you!

Again, what's the worst that will happen? You'll have wasted a couple hundred bucks. But look what you will gain! It'll get you out of the house, actively involved in the ebb and flow, good and bad of life! Your spirit, mind and body will be engaged with the act of living and thriving!!

Maybe you'll be cold, lonely and tired sometimes. That's good!!!!!!!!!!!!! Living people experience discomfort and pain! Only the dead avoid it!

Who knows, maybe you'll hate it all and never do it again. That's possible. But you'll be left with memories of a grand adventure that you can treasure for the rest of your life!

That's worth any cost!
Bob

 

[caseyc]

Ken,

I agree with Bob. Go check out RTR this year. It's only a short drive for you. Last year I made the mistake of driving through horrible Pasadena Friday 5pm commuter traffic on my way to RTR. Stupid GPS directions! Took an extra 2 hours longer driving through that madness. If I were in Los Angeles area myself, I'd go to RTR if even for only a few days.

Casey

 

[user 2252]

Ken, I am 61 and retired. In 2012 I packed up the car with my tent and some gear, headed west to my first RTR, drawn by the visions of what I discovered on this website. Oh, I've been camping before, but this, this is a LIFESTYLE. I was so unprepared to what I was about to experience. The freedom, the open air, my soul cried out, THIS IS WHAT I WANT! I spent 3 months with Bob and company, the people that accepted me, the friendship, the desert and the beautiful sky in the morning and the awesome sunsets just blew me away. It was simple, easy going, I have shelter, food and no stress. I wanted to have what they have, so I went to Florida, sold my car, all my possessions, bought a van, fixed it up and now I can't wait to get back to where I should be. Thank you Bob and all the other vandwellers for opening my eyes. Come, come Ken to the RTR, you won't regret it.

 

[Seraphim]

Ken - my wife and are not full timers, but we spend about half our time on the road. Family (our decision, not theirs) keeps us from selling the house and taking off full time. Once our son is permanently established...

But one thing we like about living mobile is it pretty much forces us to spend time - to live - outside ... which we enjoy. It's too easy to stay in the house where there's internet, cable and a comfy chair. Not so much when you're in a truck camper. We get out and walk, canoe, cook over a fire... Well, you get the idea. We do these things when we're at home base as well, but not as much.

Hobbies which can be done on the road, outside the vehicle, help as well. If they can generate a little income as well, who's to complain?

The key, I think, is to start doing things to make it happen - not just sit around and think about it.

Good luck.

 

[highdesertranger]

ken not trying to discourage you but agriculture work is hard work small pay. is that what you are looking for? do you think you could do it? I ask because I am close to you and run a small cattle operation one of the last in so cal. there is still a little agriculture in the area. all of paradise has not been paved over yet. do you know that this area was one of the best and richest agricultural areas in the world. to bad they had to pave it over. so if you want to get your nose wet let me know. I know some of the locals farmers to. btw there are a lot of ways to make money in agriculture without the physical labor. highdesertranger

 

[MrWright]

I'm a wannabe wwoofer ... to me it seems like a great way to see the country, learn about ag and labor. I would feel prepared for the labor portion find I'm 30 and really active and probably will do this later next year afteri bike the 101 thru WA, OR and CA.

I guess what I'm saying is if you can do it physically you must while you can. Mortality waits for no man.

 

[highdesertranger]

another thing about agriculture work is if you know how to do it you can find work everywhere. you will not get rich but you can feed yourself. if you are a believer of shtf scenarios it would be one of the few ways to make a living. highdesertranger

 

[activelylit]

From what I understand (may be limited), wooffing isn't paid work. And the knowledge they teach you can be just as easily learned from books, the internet, and from working at organic farms not associated with wooffing (so they actually pay you for the energy you expel). I'm interested in permaculture as a way to change the current agricultural practices for the better. But the farms assoc. with the WOOFFing scene seem to only be looking for dazed hippies who don't know the value of their time and energy. (not saying you're one!)

i can't remember what the acronym stands for, so I'm sorry if I got it wrong

edit: and they supply you with food and accomodation. but, since most of us already have a place to sleep, the accomodation isn't necessary, and the food could just as easly by bought with money earned working at a real farm that pays their workers (and you get to save the rest of the $ for repairs, gas, bills, etc).

 

[gypsychic]

Ken,

I recently became acquainted with WWOOFing and I am very interested in it. My vegetable garden would be hard to give up, I love it so much. To be able to work on different permaculture farms in exchange for room & board would be great for me. I don't need to be stealthy, meet some different people and have a change of scenery. Then after my commitments over go someplace different or take a break.

I agree with Bob and other that since you are so close to go out to the RTR for a few days. Also, whether the van life is something that you want to do or not, next spring see if you can join a community garden. Grow a few fruits and veggies and maybe some flowers. Switch it up and work a little on your van. Then when your van's done you have fresh food to eat. You don't need a fridge because you just leave it in the ground until you eat it. Or take up Highdesertranger on his proposal. That sounds great. Then if you decide to do WWoofing you can say you have experience.

Go out tonight and look at the stars instead of watching TV for 1/2 and hour. Tomorrow go for a walk around your neighborhood. Do anything that breaks the cycle of computer and TV, TV and computer. It sucks you in with the idea of a good time but your just watching other people have a good time in reality or in fiction, living vicariously through others. That's not a life. I doubt anybody has said at the end of their life that they wished they watched more tv.

Good luck-and maybe you can be the one to send me some of those pics if you get to the RTR and I don't I saw your post before it was deleted because guys can't post to the Ladies only threads.

GypsyChic

 

[mconlonx]

If things had worked out a bit differently, plan was to Summer in Maine, Winter in the South as a migrant bicycle mechanic. WWOOFing was the going to be part of the plan while moving from one area to another. But, things change, a different situation developed and now I'm staying put in ME, working a job which pays a lot better than bike mechanic, saving a stash for when I need to move along.

In So. Maine, I currently park on ex-no.1's land, where I'm also helping build them a sugar shack/tiny house. Part of the informal deal is that I'm back at work with their small beef operation, doing meat cutting like I used to. We also cut deer for hunters during hunting season. My ex-no.1-FIL is getting up there in age, not as spry as he used to be, so I picked up additional duties by being part of the slaughtering team. In the past, during dry spells between professional desk jobs, I got by as a meat cutter and am now psyched to have learned slaughtering, too.

My thoughts about participating in WWOOF, was just to meet new people, have a place to park at night, not worry about food, and maybe pick up some permaculture skills. Former plan was, to take a month or two between bike shop gigs to travel and WWOOF. If I get back on that track, it may still be in the cards.

 

[AltTransBikes]

WOOFing proved invaluable to my son for experience, references and particularly contacts in field of that vocation. In his mid 20's he wanted to test drive it, so he undertook assignments at different WOOF locations for a couple of seasons. Deciding it was what he wanted to do, he used that background and further experience on commercial operations to parley it into his current position as manager of the largest CSA in the state with 1600 members.