We thought we’d be really clever and stop for a hike at the geological wonder Craters of the Moon National Monument in Idaho, which was on our driving route from Utah to Portland. Halfway through our lovely hike, a snowstorm began!

Craters of the Moon is a neat park because a series of volcanoes erupted there from 2,000-15,000 years ago, and the volcanic cones and lava flows still remain. Since the eruptions were so recent, little soil has formed and few plants are established, so the landscape looks like the moon.

Notice the clouds building in the sky? We didn’t. We were looking at rocks.

Perhaps this is what it would look like if it snowed on the moon.

Turns out this isn’t the time of year to visit Idaho.

So we got back on the road and high tailed it to Portland, where we landed safely last night at Olivia’s brother’s house. We’ll be here till Thanksgiving and are grateful for a home and family!!!!!

Later this week we’ll be attending the international Biodynamic Conference here in Portland. Stay tuned, at the end of the week I’m sure we’ll have a lot of new knowledge and connections to share about!

With love and gratitude,

Olivia and Rocky

CRMPI was one of those places that people we met on our travels couldn’t stop raving about. If we were going anywhere near Carbondale again, we knew we’d have to stop here and check it out. Though it was a harrowing, windy drive up a mountain in the snow, I’d say it was worth it!

CRMPI (folks say it like “crimpy”) is an experimental, educational permaculture institute very high up on a mountain outside of Aspen. The day we went, it was snowing, windy, and generally pretty miserable (southerner speaking). But when we walked into one of their unheated, passive solar greenhouses, it was a world apart! There were tropical plants blossoming and fruiting everywhere! Our guide Callie kept picking us the sweetest fresh fruit to eat–pomegranates, figs, kumquats–while I just couldn’t get over the fact that it was snowing outside.

One technique they were using that I think is so neat is creating worm bins underneath the walkways of their greenhouse. They use the unused space of walkways to produce amazing compost this way! They dig a pallet in the ground, put worms in it, then feed it newspaper shavings and food waste every once in a while, and voila! Like magic, compost appears underfoot.

Callie said sometimes they scoop it out to use in other parts of the garden, sometimes they sell it to other gardeners, and sometimes they just let the goodness seep out into the soil around it.

We also enjoyed sneaking snacks growing out of the compost pile and sharing them with friends we met along the way.

Thanks to CRMPI for the tour and greenhouse inspiration! You can learn more about their work, and read the founder’s book on forest gardening, here.

We found a farm! We found a farm! We are alive and well because we found a farm! I didn’t realize how hungry for real food and work I was until I stepped in Sustainable Setting’s greenhouse (which my friend Marc Cavatorta helped build 7 years ago, crazy connection, good job Marc!). Rocky and I were so elated, we couldn’t stop grabbing things to eat or pet.

We got the wonderful opportunity to volunteer at Sustainable Settings Ranch, an impressive and diverse biodynamic farm in Carbondale, CO. We helped them remove some old crops from the greenhouse, and after an amazing farm lunch, stack some (extremely heavy) hay to be tarped for winter animal feed. The owner of the operation, Rose, was kind enough to give us an extensive tour and answer all our aspiring-biodynamic-farmer questions, covering everything from grass species to business models.

This farm has it ALL! They make their own biodynamic preparations, which are mystical combinations of animal, vegetable, and mineral components that are designed to “harness life forces to enhance the health and balance of a farm.” (If you want to learn more about biodynamic farming, because we’ll be talking about it a lot, read here.) In the growing season, they intensively graze their livestock to build soil organic matter and increase rainfall infiltration. They told us over the last twenty years, they have increased their soil organic matter from 3% to 10%, which is a very impressive figure! They’ve also found a creative model to sell raw dairy products to consumers in a state where it’s typically illegal to do so.

We learned so much in our day here and had an awesome time doing it. Thanks to everyone at Sustainable Settings for the hospitality!