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Do you love spending time in the great outdoors, surrounded by stunning natural scenery? Are you passionate about sustainable living and giving back to the community? If so, then Upper Humber Settlement is the perfect destination for you!
We are currently seeking volunteers for our WOOFERS program, and we would love to welcome you aboard.
Wwoofing is short for World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms, and it’s a program that connects people who want to travel with organic farms all over the world. Wwoofers stay at the farm for a period of time, usually between one week and one month, and help with the farm work in exchange for food and lodging.
Wwoofing is a great way to travel and learn about other cultures. It is a great way to travel because it’s an inexpensive way to see the world. Wwoofers are not paid for their work but instead are provided room and board, which can save a lot of money when travelling. Wwoofing is also a great way to learn about other cultures as it is deeply immersive and often, transformational. Wwoofers have the opportunity to live and work with people from all over the world, and they can learn about the local culture, the way of life, and language all while working and exploring.
At Upper Humber Settlement, you are also provided many volunteer opportunities to learn about organic farming practices.
We use many permaculture methods such as; No-Dig Crop Beds, Regenerative Agriculture, Permaculture Zoning and maintain a Chemical-Free Commitment.
We are still learning and very open to ideas from the WWOOFing community.
We accept WWOOFers from mid-April until October every year.
Peak visitor season in Newfoundland is July & August, so those are the busiest times and when it’s hard to get a campground or rental car. During WWOOF season, seasonal tasks look like this;
Spring is busy with work in the greenhouses and planting (once the snow goes) and building projects/maintenance from winter damage. Come in May or June if you want to see icebergs!
Summer is full with produce harvesting, weeding, watering, egg gathering and maintaining the market stand. Peak migratory bird and whale season as well as warmest for swimming and water adventures.
Fall is all about harvesting, selling, and prepping the beds for winter. No bugs, lots of fall colours and quiet trails in Gros Morne.
UHS is excited to be expanding and working on projects like;
Building a barn
Building a processing facility to clean, wash, dry and store produce
Building a mill house for Mill
Expanding cleared land and creating no-dig beds for vegetable produce
Developing new pest management practices and creating logbooks
Farm volunteers come from all walks of life, and they do this for many reasons.
Some might want to learn more about farming, while others might simply enjoy being outdoors and working with their hands. No matter their reasons, farm volunteers are an important part of any farm operation.
As former WWOOFers ourselves, meeting people from Germany, Czech Republic, France and other places was a highlight of our holiday working visa! We worked in New Zealand in 2019, taking opportunities to hike and explore the adventure capital of the world.
We now look forward to welcoming guests to our FarmStay in Cormack, Newfoundland.
WWOOFing F.A.Q’s
Do you get paid for WWOOFing?
No, you’re working in exchange for free room and board. Most farms expect 4-8 hours per day for 4-5 days week.
How many days off do you get to explore the new area?
At UHS, we encourage you to work 4 days and use the 3-day weekend to head out and explore places like Twillingate, L’Anse aux Meadows or Gros Morne National Park. We do expect 25-30 hours per week (or roughly 6-7 hours a day) and are flexible to ensure you gain both opportunities to learn and time to see this beautiful province.
Where do you sleep and eat?
We provide a bedroom furnished with a queen bedroom and dresser storage in a section of our lower level apartment. The bathroom is shared with staff during the day hours. The kitchen and living are your own space in the evenings as we have our own space as well.
Where is the best place to WWOOF?
Well, that depends on what you're after. We loved our time in New Zealand and this proved to be a super affordable way to explore an expensive destination. We think this works well in Canada too, many climate zones and areas to explore but it’s an expensive country, so WWOOFing makes it much cheaper. Europe belongs on this list though too, they have been small farm leaders for a long time and have deep roots in organic and biodynamic farming.
Is there are age limit?
Nope! If you’re feeling up to working and doing manual labour 4-6 hours day, you’re welcome to come. We have had youth from the ages of 16-24, adults under 30 and some retired WWOOFers all volunteer with us in the past.
If you're looking for a unique way to travel and learn about other cultures, WWOOFing is definitely worth considering.
There are many volunteer opportunities available that will allow you to learn about organic farming practices, and the people who participate in this program come from all walks of life. Whether you're doing it to gain experience in a new field or simply want to connect with nature, WWOOFing is an excellent way to spend your time.
Have you ever considered going on a WWOOFing trip?
If not, we highly recommend checking out some of the amazing options available on the WWOOF website.
Here is our WWOOF business profile so you can learn more and we encourage you to sign up. We'd love to have you join us in Newfoundland!