Life on the Goat Farm

The women instructed us to hold out our hands and stick our thumb out, upside down. She then took her own hand and squeezed our thumbs; first with her forefinger and thumb, and then the remaining fingers in descending order. This was her way of simulating how to extract the milk from the goats and would serve as our only instructions. Ten seconds later, it was our turn to milk les chèvres.

A few of our new friends

The women was Marie, one half of the gracious couple that owns and operates the goat farm in Réparsac, France, a small village just outside of Cognac. It was here that we decided to try our hand at WWOOFing for eight days. The acronym stands for World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms and it was only within the past year that we found out that such a thing existed. Essentially, it is a way to connect volunteers who are willing to work with farmers who, in exchange, are willing to provide food and housing. Initially, we had the romantic vision of volunteering on a vineyard somewhere in the heart of France where we would learn to make wine and drink ourselves to sleep every night. Somehow, this plan evolved over time and led us here to the goats.

Morning milking

Prior to our arrival, we had only read a brief description and seen a few pictures of the farm. We had exchanged a few emails back and forth, all in French, to confirm that the farm didn’t slaughter animals and to let them know our travel arrangements. Besides that, we really did not know what we could expect during our stay. As our train was pulling into Cognac, questions began to run through our heads. Would we be the only volunteers there? (No – we worked with five others) What type of tasks would we be asked to perform? (A mix) Would we have any issues communicating? (No – Christina was able to translate mostly everything) What were the sleeping quarters like? (Much to our surprise, a private room) Would there be hot water? (Yes – plenty) Would there even be electricity? (Of course yes – they had responded to our emails) Would we have the best goat cheese of our life? (Pretty much yes – All day, every day).

Fresh cheese

Norbert, Marie’s husband, was waiting for us with a big smile as we stepped out of the train onto the platform at Cognac. Apparently, our gigantic backpacks gave it away that we were the couple of volunteers from New York. Our first night consisted of a tour of the farm from Laura, a German volunteer who was spending two months on the farm, and a dinner with all seven volunteers, Marie & Norbert, their son Louis, and June, the misbehaving farm dog. We went to bed that night still uncertain of how the next week would unfold.

Heading in at the end of the day

From left: Marie, Norbert, Christina, Chris, Laëtitia, Philippe, Laura (and June, in front of the group)

The next day, we wasted no time getting into our routine. Breakfast was short and light, consisting of toast with butter or jam along with coffee and juice. After that, it was time to milk the goats. Only three out of the 12 goats were to be milked which was enough to produce two liters of milk each day. Once finished milking, we then let the goats out of their pens into the fields surrounding the house for the day. We then had to clean the pens and replenish the food and water. In addition to tending to the goats first thing every day, we were asked to do a wide range of chores. These included picking vegetables & fruits, cutting and stacking wood, prepping meals, peeling and chopping endless amounts of tomatoes, moving heavy objects for the future farm renovations, driving the tractor to deliver water to the horses, weeding, baking bread, and feeding Texan, the enormous pig.

Pig selfie

During our stay, we had the chance to enjoy some of the freshest fruits and vegetables we had ever eaten. Almost every meal was literally farm-to-table and it was obvious whenever we took a bite. Some of the tomatoes were the size of softballs and had a deep, fiery red color. The cantaloupe we enjoyed was twice as sweet and tasty as any we had ever tried before. Norbert and Marie make fresh bread every Wednesday for their weekly market and we got to enjoy it throughout the week. We had fresh goat cheese every day and even sampled some warm milk, straight from the goat.

Farm bounty

Friendship Bread

The work load was really not too strenuous either. Our days were never completely full of chores and we had a chance to head into Cognac on a few occasions to check out the city. Of course, being in Cognac, we were obligated to taste some of the spirit for which the region is known. We visited a very small, local distillery one day and followed that up with a tour of the Rémy Martin distillery which was VERY impressive. We ended up being the only two people on the tour which added to the exclusive feeling of the place.

Rémy Martin visit

We both agreed that our time spent on the farm was a unique experience unlike any other and one that we won’t soon forget. It definitely wasn’t the most glamourous stop on our itinerary. Working with the animals gave us a chance to do something we had never done before and allowed for us to appreciate a simpler lifestyle. This is one of the many things we are actively seeking out on this trip. It may have been dirty at times, and it may have been uncomfortable, but that’s just life on the farm.

Now… on to something a little more familiar: Paris!

– The Morts