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Published: December 7th 2008
I spent the last eight daze WWooFing on Arapawa Island. It's a 25 km long isle with a residential population of 40. Home to the whaling stations of old and WWII military outposts, its channel is the gateway through to the South Island. I had to board the only transport available to get there, the biweekly running mail boat. Now when they said, "Just jump on the mail boat." I had pictured a weathered rowboat with an outboard engine attached to it being piloted by an old, salty bloke who's eyes were winkled shut by overexposure to the elements, sucking on an unlit cigar. Evidently my expectations couldn't of been further from the truth and I was disappointed by my imagination, once again, for the boat was a well equipped dual hull state-of-the-art monster.
The 900 acre residential property I worked on is owned by an alaskan fishing boat Capt and his wife where they are raising and home schooling their three kids. They farm cattle, sheep, trees, and paua (a snail-like delicacy) aka abalone. The days were spent mostly in the hills eradicating weeds either by hand or by chemical spray, mowing lawns, painting, and collecting kelp from the
bay to feed the paua. They had over 200,000 of these critters scattered amongst hundreds of saltwater tanks.
Originally, I had planned to stay for two weeks on this island paradise , but not all that glitters is gold. After a week of pulling 8-9 hour days, I was over it. Lets just say, I never worked so hard for a plate of food. It's one thing when your working for money, it's another when you're only getting food and accommodation. Granted, I spent half the time driving around on an ATV but it was also this impersonal undertone of 'master and servant' vibe I grew unappreciative of, the being 'talked at' rather than 'talked to'. Not to mention the expectations of cleaning up after the entire family after every meal. But what can I say... maybe it was me. Consequently, I tolerated our interactions for the million dollar views on this unique and isolated piece of earth and enjoyed my time anyway. Besides, the kids were distracting entertainment and there was a real sweet girl from France to hang with.
Ever onward !
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Rob
non-member comment
Another great update Raymond, sounds like you had a rough go at it though! scenery is just unreal...beats the hell out of overcast skies and 30 degree temps back home any day.