Phil working on the John Deere 310G

The Rio Oro and Phil. Winter is coming to an end this month and we start our Summer,

Phil at the Rio Oro checking out the damage caused by the wild river. We use to be able to drive across the river to the other side of our farm.

The heavy rains of November have been destructive to the rivers, roads, and crops. The potato crops on Volcan Irazu were mostly lost and the banana crop along the Atlantic coast is under water. In our area sugar cane was blown over and flattened in a random pattern. Every crop has been affected in some way by the winds and rain.

We compost our waste, all of it including the humanure. We are keeping the planet green by taking care of the brown.

We still have a septic tank for the purpose of controlling our soapy water or gray water. Today when Phil went to do the final hookup he found a family of Sapho toads in the septic tank. They are native to Central America and about the same as Bufos Marinus that lives in Florida. Not good for dogs to chew on, but they eat their weight in insects. The toad secretes a hallucinogen alkaloid from their skin when attacked. This secretion is capable of killing your dog. He rescued the toads and they happily hopped away.

Here is Phil in another good view of our waterfall. Our land continues up beyond this fall. We look forward to continued exploration

Just in case you thought I was kidding about how difficult the climb is, here is my dear husband Phil resting on a rock. He looks just a little tired and the going down is even harder than the going up. But he loves every minute, every fall, every delicous drink of spring water blowing up out of the ground.

Here is a closer photo of Phil and the filly. The air is pleasantly cool and the sun is very intense. The horses have unlimited clean water from a stream that runs through their pasture. You will notice that the fence posts are living. The animals like those leaves also.

Here is a photo of my husband Phil with a leaf bug he found in the garage. Phil is letting his beard grow, I am not sure how long this phase will last. At least it is not scratchy at this pont. It makes him look older, but he is happy not shaving. I understand.

Here is a photo of my husband Phil and his mare Lluvia. Lluvia means rain in Spanish. She is the proud mother of a filly who is about 34 days old.