The snow has melted, the dog poop has appeared and the gardening has begun. Time to get some WWOOFers!
These days, there are numerous groups that support work exchange travel.
When WWOOF started in England, in 1971, it stood for Weekend Workers on Organic Farms. In Canada it stands for World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms. There are now WWOOF organizations in 32 countries, with variations on the words used in the acronym.
When I first learned about WWOOF, from a bulletin board at a youth hostel in New Zealand, in 1987, it stood for Willing Workers on Organic Farms. I sent a $5 bill to the address I was given and received the hand-typed pamphlet in the mail a few weeks later. It contained about 50 addresses and descriptions of organic farms where I could go help out in exchange for free room and board. Now, of course, you can sign up online as a host or worker. The Canadian WWOOF organization charges $59 a year for a worker and $50 for a host.
These days, there are numerous groups that support work exchange travel.
Workaway is a popular choice for Yukon hosts looking for someone to help with their dog teams, hobby farms and off-grid homesteads. Some of them even offer a small wage for their helpers. I always enjoy meeting my neighbours’ travelling volunteers at our community events. Their joy at getting to work with dogsledding teams is as apparent as their hosts’ appreciation of having someone to scoop the poop and feed the dogs.
HelpX lists 42 Yukon hosts on their website. Each one has a comprehensive description of what a HelpXer would be expected to do — like helping to build and maintain structures, harvesting firewood, cleaning out barns, caring for animals, helping with the kids and working in the greenhouse. They also describe experiences the HelpXer will get, like using snow machines and ATVs, fishing, hiking and enjoying the remoteness of a homesteading lifestyle.
I had zero gardening experience when I signed up with WWOOF but had been reassured by fellow travellers that I could help out wherever I could, even if it was just entertaining the kids or cooking a few meals, and that weeding and shovelling shit are easy tasks to learn. I liked the fact that it meant not only free room and board but a chance to really get to know the locals and get lots of fresh air and exercise.
I travelled all over New Zealand for two months, hitchhiking from one WWOOF host to another and spending very little money. Some of the different chores I did were helping with the kids, turning compost, weeding gardens, burning trees, building rock platforms, cooking meals, milking goats, packing honey, and farm sitting for a weekend. In exchange I got to swim under a waterfall, enjoy delicious vegetarian meals, have a wood-heated bath under the stars and meet lots of extraordinary people.
I consider myself blessed to have WWOOFed at Mahana Freehold commune when it was at its prime. It was a vibrant community when I was there in 1987. Everyone lived in little caravans and shacks that were dotted over the hillside, but ate at the cookshack where meals were cooked by whoever had signed themselves up. There was also a sign-up sheet for milking the goats, but otherwise, everyone just helped out when and where they wanted. They had enough kids to have a little school that the parents took turns teaching at. I loved it there and fit in like a dirty shoe, so I was sad to learn, from the 2017 documentary The Last Man of Mahana, that there are very few people living there anymore.
My other favourite host was a family practising and teaching horticulture on their beautiful farm. I helped burn the huge branches of their Macrocarpa trees that they were harvesting to build their dream house from. Afterwards, we would go for a refreshing dip in the creek that runs through their property, complete with a waterfall.
So, whether you are looking to immerse yourself in an affordable cultural experience or would prefer to bring the world to your paradise, consider slow travel and hosting opportunities like WWOOF, HelpX and Workaway.
