Last Friday on the Farm
We have now been on the farm for 13 days and the time is FLYING by.
Yesterday Yves had to go to town for a doctor's appointment so we were left alone to feed the Llamas and finish up some of the other projects we started. After feeding the llamas we went and finished the fence posts down by the river that we started and got the last post in and secured. Making a total of 13 posts that we replaced! We started putting the chainsaw helmet on Rylee Because the bell for hammering in the posts was hurting her ears and unfortunately I don't have a picture of that unique sight.
After that it began to rain for the first time since we arrived. So overall we are very lucky to have had such amazing weather and fall colors. Because of the rain we had to switch to some other projects before lunch and then joined the llamas under a tree to stay dry.
In the evening, once Yves was back, he took us to a different part of the park to start another huge project. For this one he had us suit up in full body protection suits that were both comfortable and wildly fashionable. And we set off.
The task at hand was to remove a HUGE bush full of a viney plant structure that had grown out of control of the years. It was roughly 7 feet tall and 30 feet long on a very steep hill. For this we would use what Yves called a Streamer and what I grew up calling a Weed Wacker, but we installed a metal blade onto the end instead of wires for the thick shrubbery needing to be cut. It was much more of an industrial Wacker however, with a chest/back harness and a belt to clip it to for balancing and holding the weight. It was something I was comfortable using and Yves showed me the techniques and a breakdown of how all the buttons and movements worked.
Unlike some of our other jobs this task took place deeper inside the heart of the llama park and you might think, same as me, that llamas would not like being around loud noises like chainsaws and weed wackers. But on this bet, we both would have lost.
We ended up spending all of today continuing this project and got it finished just before the end of the day! During which I found a very cool green, black and white snail shell in the hillside that I threw to Rylee thinking that she might enjoy seeing it, which of course she did because I know my fiancé very well. She ended up finding another shell on her own and kept them both in her pockets for the rest of the evening. Once we got home she left both shells on our houses stoop to dry. About 3 hours later I went outside to trim my finger nails and I noticed that one of the shells had moved and was now stuck vertically to the stair! I gave it a gentle push and it was for sure attached to the wall. So I called inside to Rylee and asked her how many shells she kept today. She replied and said she kept 2. And I gladly informed her that one of the them was escaping!
Earlier in the day Rylee also discovered a Fire Salamander in our working area that was in danger of being trampled or having tree limbs and logs rolled over him. So she rescued the salamander, now named André and placed him next to a small pond near the river just a few dozen meters away.
We ended our day by joining Yves as he went to a nearby town 7km away to pick up some fresh vegetables that Solange had requested. Once we got to the, what we were told was a 'shop', we found a man standing behind a beautiful little open air vegetable stand built into the side of the houses above. As soon as we got there he offered us some shots of purple liquor and a glass of his grapefruit juice. The liquor we found out was Crème de cassis which is a liquor made with blackcurrant, and frankly it was magical.
Yves then translated for us that he was offering this up because he was retiring his vegetable shop! And that this very literally was his final few hours with the shop. While we stood there about 7 other people from the town or nearby arrived with their bags in hand to get their vegetables as well, all to learn that the stand was closing. So everyone got a drink and toasted to the man that had brought them so much great food over the years.
For tomorrow Yves has informed us that we will be trekking up the mountain with the llamas! He says the trek is about 2.5 hours one way and we will stop at a building on top, to which he had to call the cities town hall to get the key, and have lunch before returning in the evening.
So for now, Santé!
What a day!!!!