Willing Hearted Work Days at Emandal Farm ~ March 27-29, 2015

Since 2011 we've been attending "Not Just Cowboy Poetry" at Emandal Farm, about 17 miles east of Willits, a fundraiser for the Willits Public Library and Willits Daily Bread. This year's event, September 26th, will feature Dave Stamey, one of our favorite singer/songwriters and Western Entertainer of the Year. Experience great food, live music and the infamous Apple Pie Throw Down. To find out more about Dave go to his website at http://www.davestamey.com/. 

Emandal Farm has something for everyone: family camps, art weekends, Not Just Cowboy Poetry, workshops, and more. You should check out their website and http://emandal.com/ and take a look for yourself. A family camp weekend, a class or a concert may be in your future. 

Fall is beautiful, but Spring we discovered, has magic of it's own. We went up to Emandal for a weekend to volunteer and help Tam ready the farm for visitors: cutting new trails, building stairs, helping with the garden chores, planting, burning slash from the winter storms and editing her new cookbook. 

We arrived late Friday afternoon and got settled in. Next stop was Tam's country kitchen to await other guests and watch the magic happen. Meals are served buffet style on the wrap around counter. There are two large tables in the great room to sit down, share meals and get to know the other volunteers. 

Dinner prep with Tam. 

All food and stock are grown on the farm.  

After a hearty breakfast we scatter with our work crews. I joined up with dirt patrol to help Malanyon move a large amount of compost into various sized containers, transplant seedlings and get them set up in the large greenhouse.

Rod was assigned to help build the Stairway to Heaven (working title) up to one of the cabins. The project was started Saturday and finished Sunday. A couple of days of digging, leveling, pounding pipes and setting boards for 44 steps made for some exhausted, proud and happy campers.

Awaiting the dinner bell

After dinner a walk on the Eel River 

Part of Sunday's Breakfast

Rod fixed pancakes for Lyndon and the rest of the crew

Sunday morning we took on collecting and burning the remaining brush that came down in a winter storm. There was a double Hummer size pile when we started and it was down to a few small piles by the time we finished. Buffalo chainsawed all firewood size branches into logs and this bodacious trio stacked all the fire wood.

Sharon, Margaret and Me

White Lilac

When worked stopped about 1 pm Sunday, we cleaned up and then enjoyed a hearty brunch of left overs out under the apple tree with the crew. We made new friends and experienced a different side of Emandal. It was hard to leave, but we said our goodbyes and left for home about 3 pm. The weather was sunny and warm, night skies brilliant away from civilization.