Miss Piggie

 

It is a mud turtle, Felipe found him on the farm near a pond.  Had not seen one here before.

He is alive, and about to be release from within our house.  Not happy about his photo op....  What a catch!!!

Baby Boy's second day of life

Baby Boy's second day of life and he is getting a ride.  Mom went to breakfast with the herd and Marcos carried baby boy down from the mountain to the quad.  Our boy is a very big new baby, a good looking guy.

Rio Oro after yesterday's rain.

 

The beautiful Rio Oro runs through our farm and joins the Rio Atirro which also runs along our farm and is a boundary line.  Our farm is on both side of the Rio Oro.  This view will change many time during the rainy season that has just started and runs through December.  Here at Finca Quijote, we can receive 240 - 300 inches of rain a year.  Hydropower is the obvious choice.

Quebrada Brava after yesterday's rain

Brava comes down from a series of beautiful waterfalls and crosses our road.  Yesterday we had a good hard rain, and the chocolate water of Brava is the result of the waters pouring down from the mountain above.

Mud Turtle

After today's big rain, it is the rainy season....we found this guy when we came back from a quad ride.

He is a white lipped mud turtle, Has single-hinged belly armor that can be closed completely. Is one of the very few turtles in the world that inhabits cascading mountain streams.  Kinosternon leucostomum  Their diet consists of fish, earthworms, mealworms, snails, and some plant matter.

Our newest baby cow.

 Our newest baby cow.  Born this very day.  A perfect baby, a natural birth.  When cows give birth each member of the herd queues up to sniff, lick and greet the just born baby.  No pushing or shoving, the line is very respectful, each cow waiting her turn to meet the baby.

This is the baby's most handsome Daddy.  A gentle bull who loves to have his head scratched.  He is a big, sweet guy.   All of our herd is gentle, they have been bred to be so.  I love cows...
 

The Waterfall of Brava.

 So many waterfalls at Finca Quijote, this one feeds Brava.
 Erika resting at the pool of Brava.
 Looking up into the Brava waterfall.
 My daughter Erika enjoying a hike to Brava's waterfall.  It is a good life on the farm.

 Malanga, high in fiber and good for you... and beans growing down in the valley garden near the river. 

Erika backing up the tractor and drump trailer. A short wheelbase trailer is difficult.

 

 

Have you seen this short video shot entirely on our farm?  http://vimeo.com/60415169

Eggs and Tangerines

The eggs come precolored depending on the type of mama chicken.

Fresh tangerines from our trees.

Video of WWOOFers at the farm...

WWOOFers Evelina and Karolis made this beautiful video of the farm and of other volunteers.  Thank you for this awesome sharing....  http://vimeo.com/60415169   Shot entirely on our farm....

 

organic produce from the greenhouse

We grow most of what we eat, all organic.  Our beef is grass-fed, we raise our own animal feed.  For the cows, high protein grass and they love fresh orange peel with their grass.
 

Costa Rican Chameleon

Felipe says, he met this fellow while pruning the landscape.  The Costa Rican Chameleon showed his true colors....both brown and green.

 From left to right, Evalina, Karolis, Sallu, Umar and my husband Felipe.  We are about to have our organic farm lunch using the veggies we grow and our homemade bread.  Sallu and Umar made the floral arrangements.

The floral arrangements are sooooo sweet.  They make life a little more beautiful...if that is possible.

Our wonderful wwoofers in the Greenhouse

Karolis and Evelina are from Lithuania.  They are traveling around the world and are 1/2 way through their journey.  Umar and Sallu are Agro Engineering students at EARTH University.  Their home is Sierra Leone, but for 5 years while studying they are living in Costa Rica.

Giant Beetle

 Giant Beetle, this is the biggest one of this type we have seen on the farm.  Do not yet know what type of beetle he is, but he is beautiful.