Radio Silence

We’re back! I didn’t write a blog post for over TWO years. Sorry folks, I know you have been anxiously awaiting the next post. Let me explain…

It’s because of the zucchini – this stuff grows SO FAST

May / June 2022 was a wild time filled with firsts. Our first harvest EVER (woohoo!), our first farmers markets, our first deliveries to restaurants, first CSA. So much excitement and SO MUCH work. It was full on balls to the wall survival mode for the rest of the season and the blog was all but forgotten. But life was being lived to the fullest.

The joy and excitement of our first spring was tempered by depression, exhaustion, and frustration. I was working off-farm at Iron Furnace Brewing and Rhianna was working odd jobs. Weeks would go by where we would hardly farm together. It was hard to stick with it.

I would come home late in the dark and the cold to our screened in shack and lie awake as the wind drove sheets of mist into the structure. Why did we do this to ourselves? We had a good, comfortable life as farm workers in Montana. We had spending money and weekends and a cute little cabin by the river. In New Hampshire we had no friends, no house, and a farm that didn’t paid the bills and consumed our entire lives.

I honestly think we would have quit if it weren’t for Vesper. She brought puppy energy to every new day and always came on the bed to snuggle up in the sleeping bags.

Bath time at the pond (best part about shack life)

Always a good laugh when Vesper is around

The mountains were the other thing keeping us grounded during the early days of Rocky Branch Farm (honorable mention to gin+tonics and cheeseburgers). Whenever we could, we would sneak away to enjoy the beauty of northern New Hampshire. We lived for these moments of quiet and focus. And in the blink of an eye, the days began to shorten and the end of the season was finally in sight.

Hiking is considerably cheaper than a therapist

Island hopping on Long Pond. Vesper learned to swim this day!

Come October we had a really bad case of senioritis. Shack life was getting old now that it was below freezing at night and the cabin renovation was delayed for what felt like the thousandth time. I will never forget the day our cabin was completed. We had no furniture yet so we slept on a pile of painters drop-cloths in our sleeping bags, elated to begin a new chapter of our lives. we could finally shower, cook indoors, do laundry, and heat the space with wood we split over the summer. Heaven.

Major progress by late summer. Stoked to see the well get drilled

Winter 2022 felt like a new beginning. I started serving at the Beal House and substitute teaching at the elementary school. Rhianna got a full-time pet sitting gig. We saved up some money. We met new friends and had tons of fun skiing, hiking, and ice climbing. It gave me hope that this life in New Hampshire could really work for us.

Backcountry skiing the Tuckerbrook trail

Then came spring 2023, our second season at Rocky Branch Farm. We were equal parts stoked to see some green and horrified that winter had disappeared so quickly. But this time we had a house, and we had some idea of how to sell all this food. We were confident. We got accepted to the Littleton Farmers Market and were gearing up for a great season. Rhianna would transition to full-time on the farm and I would only work off-farm a couple days a week. It’ll be way more chill this time around, right? Wrong!

In classic farming fashion, the season gets rolling and mayhem ensues. A never ending to do list develops that stretches into November. We built a new high tunnel and added a seeding room with a wood stove to our propagation greenhouse. We broke new ground and planted the full acre by late spring. It was wildly stressful and exhausting, but we more than doubled our sales, and we had achieved financial stability. We hadn’t yet turned a profit, but things were looking up. We’re starting to get the hang of this whole farming thing. Kind of…

I barely even took any pictures that year. Granted it rained for what felt like the entire season without stopping. Here’s a few good shots:

Totes on totes of tomatoes. So many tomatoes with the new tunnel

Early fall CSA shares looking mighty fine

I will admit I had a number of full-on mental breakdowns; days where I wanted to quit, lying on my back in the grass with Vesper licking up my tears. I could just get a normal job. Pass go and collect $200. But we were determined to make it work. It’s the ebb and flow of seasonal work that feels so natural and keeps me coming back, and I would always remind myself on those tough days that winter is coming, and it’s gonna be so good.

And it was good. Almost too good. We found an amazing community of friends, we had good restaurant jobs, we had three day weekends. I had climbing partners and was getting out ice climbing and skiing as much as my legs would allow. Pure bliss, and the perfect balance to a work heavy summer.

Myself leading Dracula at Frankenstein Cliff

Rhianna topping out on the Coffin, Frankenstein Cliff

Not much snow in 23/24 winter, but we still went skiing!

Looking down near the top of Cathedral Ledge on my first winter ascent

Ok, finally on to 2024, year three at Rocky Branch Farm. This past year has been by far the best year since we moved to New Hampshire. We both transitioned to working full time on the farm. We both took some incredible vacations. It was AWESOME.

What I am most proud of (besides digging ourselves out of the red) is establishing a sustainable work-life balance. I went rock climbing consistently this summer for the first time in years. We got out hiking and biking a ton. We went swimming. We had fun every week – it was top priority for us. When we were down at the field we worked efficiently together as a team. It felt like we were running the farm and not the other way around. Thank you times a million to everyone who supported our farm this season – you showed up, ate your veggies, and made this life possible for us.

I’m gonna skip explaining our year. Here are some of the highlights in photo form:

2024 kicked off with a bang. Quebec ice trip was rad

Camp on the fjords, cooking and drying gear

Returned home to excellent spring skiing conditions on Mt. Washington

Meanwhile, plants were loving life in the new greenhouse expansion

Rhi and I touring in April while plants grew steadily in the tunnels

By mid May the fields were looking great

Harvesting for our new market at St. Johnsbury. They love bok choy in VT

Turnips were a huge success. Happy farmer moment

Last day of skiing was in late May! First time skiing the Great Gulf

Melons were a hit. They were even featured in a Super Secret sorbet!

Fall colors. It was a fall to remember with perfect dry weather every day

In September Rhi went on an epic 5 day bikepacking trip in Idaho

Meanwhile, Vesper and I held down the fort on the farm

Capped off 2024 with a post-season desert trip with Vesper

Vesper was hesitant at first but learned to love the desert

This brings us to present day. Eating squash. Skiing. Mentally preparing for another growing season only a month away. I can’t say I’m excited quite yet (the skiing is too good!), but I am grateful to be a farmer. It keeps me grounded in these tumultuous times.

For now our seeds sit dormant in a box tucked away, a billion years of knowledge within. Pretty poetic stuff, farming is. Plants do the talking, we provide the pen and paper.

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