Jagur Organic Farm in Claddaghduff

The last farm I had setup in Ireland fell through so I messaged a bunch more and within a few days I was on my way. I was more than stoked when Aidan was telling me on the drive to the bus station that the area around Clifden is one of the most beautiful scenic places in Ireland. I had thought it was about an hour and a half away but since I took the bus later in the day we had to take the way through the mountains, which was crazy scenic! We passed countless lakes, small patches of islands, and a fresh array of mountains, all the while on a road that was way too narrow, but hey the Irish are used to it.

When I arrived Vincent was right outside waiting for me and on the 20 minute drive to their home I found out they have a certified organic farm and three other helpers from France. Whoooaaa, sweetness. Because it was one of the wwoofers last day Linda had prepared a special meal, and before I knew it I was sitting down to a meal of stewed rabbit and dumplings! Wow, it was good. The meat had similar texture to a tender shredded chicken, but the flavor was unique. And strawberry flan for dessert, all homemade with strawberries from the garden. I said, “wow you’re really giving me the royal treatment” but that was before I found out it was a special dinner for Julia who was leaving the next day. Nice timing on my part, because I totally planned that out.

Welcome to Jagur Organic. View from the front driveway.

View from the backyard. Simply serene. 

I posted up with Remi in the Caravan and didn't see any spiders!! The next day I was immersed in this new experience. This place is an absolute gold mine for learning about the art of sustainable living. They have earth toilets with no water, a wind turbine that provides a third of their electricity, filtered rainwater for their water needs, two ponds that attract an abundance of wildlife, some of which are frogs which eat the slugs and wasps, two cats that keep any mice away, chickens, ducks to take care of more slugs and for meat, and the best garden I’ve seen to date. Everything has a purpose. Even human urine and waste is saved. The waste is put in some of the compost for a year and then put around trees and bushes, and the urine which apparently is rich in nitrogen (gold for plants), helps to speed up the process of the breaking down of compost. None of it is used for the food, but Vincent told me if they were just growing for themselves they would put it on everything.

From the first day I noticed a lot of things that resonate well with me, like pink Himalayan salt, manuka honey from New Zealand, whole herb extracts, wheatgrass, maca, herbal teas, so that’s been super nice to have around.

The work is about 6 hours a day Mon-Fri, and it’s varied. I’ve done some weeding of course, picked black currants, planted new trees, cleaned up certain areas, strimmed, trimmed, harvested potatoes, peeled and prepared garlic for selling, chopped wood (the manliest of jobs), and more. I find it impossible to not feel good after a days work. I can’t wait to have my own farm, although that may be a long time away. The food system that is in place, especially in America, is leading millions to disease & sickness, and then feeding people synthetic medicine to counter the effects of a diet full of toxic waste. Who would you rather trust, a scientist creating some food-like substance and then pumping in synthetic vitamins, or nature? But hey what about “good source of whole grain” or “low fat” or “may reduce the risk of heart disease” or “good source of calcium.” Do people really still buy into this nonsense? Wake up. Michael Pollan, the author of  In Defense of Food puts it a good way, “eat food, not too much, mostly plants.” Well, there is my food rant for the day. 

With the simplicity of my days here I gotta stay creative so I can keep myself entertained, so I've whipped up a pretty smooth Arnold Schwarzenegger voice. For example, we're all working and it starts pouring and I yell, "GET 2 DA CARAVAN! HUUUURRY! EVERYONE RUUUUUN! TIME IS RUNNING OUT!"

 Heavenly scents. I could move my mattress in here and dream of garlic all night

Two of the plumpest rabbits ever named Sherlot and Houdini that basically glow because they’re so healthy. One of my jobs is to feed them loads of greens and clean their cage once a week. 

A new helper arrived this week named Margot, such sweet people. Remi, Floriane, and Margot all from France! I’ve been thoroughly enjoying laughing at the accents and them trying to say American words, and they have been doing the same to me trying to learn French. Floriane has the classic French accent that you would see in the movies it’s too funny. She sounds like a baby trying to pronounce new words. I make fun of her, in a nice way of course, and sometimes she says, “yuuuu areee nauuustyyyy” and what I say isn’t even close to nasty. It’s arguably as good as when Anderson said, “can I get some schooce?” Ha soo good. It’s been fun to play some good ol card games like Presidents and get to know an entirely different group of people.

Linda is originally from Germany and Vincent is from London. They are Jehovas Witnesses which has been interesting to see how that plays into their life. For quite some time now I’ve enjoyed and find it intriguing to learn about peoples lifestyle and how it effects their mental state and so on. It’s so great that we all have the opportunity to do whatever we want in life, or at the very least choose the way we perceive life, no matter what the circumstances may be.