Our Recent Move to West Virginia

I don't generally put personal stories on my blog, but I feel like I need to keep my readers in the know. Some of you may have noticed a recent change in some of our blog posts as well as our location. Well here's why:

After graduating from Sterling College in Vermont in May, Zak and I recently moved to our good friends Scott and Jordan's farm, Rabbit Ridge Farm. Now we live in West Virginia, imagine that! (I had never even been here before we moved). Zak, Scott, and Jordan became inseparable friends after hiking the Appalachian Trail together on a whim in the summer of 2013. I was a late comer to the group after meeting Zak in the fall of that year.



Now, we are planning on staying in West Virginia for the summer and building a small primitive shelter to live in while we help Scott and Jordan build their house and start up their homestead. So far we have been planting all the gardens (and we're not even done with that yet!) and clearing trees up on the hill for the house site. 

I'm not sure what Zak and I are going to be doing this fall and winter yet as Zak will most likely have to get a full time job so we can start paying off his student loans. I will keep you updated on that, but for now I want to introduce you to the crew here are Rabbit Ridge:


JORDAN

Jordan started Rabbit Ridge Farm on her father's land in New Hampshire several years ago before moving down here. She is an avid blogger, tea drinker, animal snuggler  and outdoors woman. Jordan is our head of livestock as she owns all of the animals including 4 quail, 7 chickens, 8 ducks, 7 rabbits (including 3 angoras), one dog, and a kombucha SCOBY. She hopes to get several sheep and a horse as soon as they have enough land cleared for pasture. As a lover of animals, Jordan has been a vegan since 2013 and a vegetarian before that. Since the four of us often cook and eat communally, many of the recipes that I share are vegan optional to cater to Jordan and Scott, who is also vegan. Jordan also has a blog of her own where she shares highlights from our homesteading journey, vegetarian recipes, gardening and livestock advice, and wild crafting. Although we are both blogging and homesteading full time, going to markets and maintaining an on site farm stand, we are also currently co-authoring an ebook on foraged foods.


SCOTTY

Scotty grew up right here on this property and is now coming home again after 4 years in the Honor Guard, 2 years in the Peace Corps in Zambia, and 4 years at Sterling College. Although he is currently working full time doing construction, he hopes to transition to homesteading full time soon. When he is not at work, he is our resident craftsman, building our beautiful farmstand, working on the house, tilling land, and maintaining our vehicles. Scotty is also our "get anything" guy, an important role on any homestead as we are always trying to get our hands on free or cheap building materials, equipment, mulch etc. Scotty is passionate about permaculture and hopes to one day turn this land into his own slice of permaculture paradise. 


ZAK

Zak grew up in Northern New Hampshire near the White Mountains and spent much of his time there hiking and exploring the woods. Although it was always an interest of his, Zak really began to hone his primitive skills after completing the Appalachian Trail. He is passionate about teaching and has worked for several years teaching outdoor skills to children at a handful of different organizations. Some of his most notable work includes the mastery of the bow drill fire, the construction of a traditional bow and hand made arrows with flint tips, and the completion of several usable stone axes. Zak is also an excellent ecologist and understands the movements and daily activities of many species of animals. He's not too bad at finding the occasional edible plant or mushroom also!


MADELINE

That's me! I'm the creator and writer here at Stone Axe Herbals. I've been working in the agricultural field for 8 years now, but am finally ready to start a farm of my own! I spend most of my time combining my favorite topics: food, history, and health. We're a bit tight on money right now, so I spend much of my time making traditional, money saving recipes from scratch. When I'm not cooking, though, I can often be found in the garden, growing heirloom vegetables to save seeds from. I LOVE edible and medicinal plants of all kinds and also spend much of my time tracking down wild herbs to add to my medicine box. I also love horses, and all animals really. I've been studying draft horse management for the last three years and hope to own my own team sometime in the near future. 


Disclaimer: This blog is just my own opinion, nothing more. While I try my hardest, everything may not be completely accurate or complete. Sorry, I'm only human, so do not hold me accountable for anything you do to harm yourself or the world around you. I do make money from this blog (seriously not very much at all guys). If you click on any of the links in my blog I may make money from it, at no extra cost to you. I'm not sponsored by any of these people I just honestly love these products and want to give you the resources to find them. I am not a medical practitioner; consult a health professional before using any herbal remedies. I am not claiming to diagnose, treat, prevent, or cure any ailment.