Mahalo from Maine
Late August it was time for a new WWOOF adventure in Maine. Mahalo Farms is a small homestead operated by Eli and Matt. They live in the single family home there along with their son and we were given a trailer to call our home for the next five days. While the farm is only a couple of acres, Eli and Matt make the most of the space and tending to the garden is a near full time job. At Mahalo they grow enough vegetables, potatoes and such to carry the family through the winter, and Eli keeps a schedule and the garden organized to make it all possible.
When Eli learned that Rene and I were no strangers to the kitchen, she lined projects up for us. The garden had just finished putting out tomatoes and squash hand over fist, so we were given the task of helping to process them. We made several large pots of soup for storage, salsas, fermented peppers, sauerkraut, sun dried tomatoes, shucked corn, cleaned garlic for storage, and harvested potatoes and pole beans- all in 5 days. Mahalo farms employs permaculture philosophy and practices to their homestead. They were generous in sharing the history of their farm, raised bed process, cover crop info and whatever other inklings crossed our synapses.
We completed our stay with a mushroom walk in the woods and came across some lucky finds. Turkeytail mushrooms enough to make enough tincture for the winter demand and some beautiful chanterelle and hedgehog mushrooms.
Of course there was some regular cooking too. Rene seared up some amazing pork chops from the farm just up the road. Eli and Matt taught us a lot about how to build cost effective, symbiotic relationships within the community to help make the farm “go” and reduce waste. Though we were visitors for a short time, it was inspiring to see what two people can accomplish through building relationships and a couple of acres.
During our free time there was plenty of exploring done. There’s no shortage of easy coastal hikes which are filled with trees, mushrooms and views of the countless bays and inlets. Being surrounded by such immense beauty and calm, of course got me thinking of the indigenous people who occupied this land way before conventional agriculture came into being. “Today, the four Maine Indian tribes are the Maliseet, Micmac, Penobscot, and Passamaquoddy, known collectively as the Wabanaki, "People of the Dawnland." Each community maintains its own tribal government, community schools, cultural center and each manages its respective lands and natural resources.” as quoted by Abbe Museum. Maine is another state that has abandoned Columbus day for Indigenous People’s Day and is doing their part to help educate non-native people as to why that shift is important.
Two adventuring highlights were the Pemaquid Point and the Giant Trolls at the Boothsbay Botanical Gardens. The name Pemaquid Point continues to be connected to indigenous peoples as it is thought to originate from the Akanabi word for “situated far out.” We happened to arrive at low tide, which was a visual treat we didn’t plan. It was easy to forget about time and wander around and through the naturally occurring grooves in the schist.
The massive Troll sculpture were so well designed each one felt as if it could get up at any point, or begin a conversation with you. With the exception of one troll, the wood used is untreated. The trolls will age and the tone of the wood will shift and decay as the seasons pass.
Maine had so much beauty and so many teachers, and we tried to be sponges as much as humanly possible. We look forward to when this place calls us back to visit and learn more.
