First of all, can I say that every time someone carries on to you about how gorgeous Colorado is, you can safely assume it's true?
Second of all, we visited a total of three farms.
Frog Belly and Black Cat were both named for animals and both located near Boulder. Black Cat has a lovely restaurant in the city proper called (you guessed it) the Black Cat Farm to Table Bistro. The Happy Doves ate their anniversary dinner in the restaurant, accompanied by James and Joy, their fabulous Boulder hosts. James and Joy are longtime friends of The Happy Doves, and have been living in Boulder about two years now.
We only dream of taking on an internship that allows us to grow and serve such amazing food! Thanks to Eric and everyone on the Black Cat team.
Frog Belly Farm features a number of dairy animals, two controlled climate areas where produce is grown, and several acres of outdoor growing space.
We were lucky enough to arrive around the same time that they hosted a planting festival for St. Bride's Day. We rose early to
help milk the goats, then got in on the fun as guests wove compost materials to offer to Mother Earth and gathered in a circle to sing, dance and rejoice for the coming spring. Thanks to Frog Belly for hosting us!
Rancho Durazno was a four-hour drive from Boulder, nearer to Grand Junction in the small town of Palisade. Like many farms in that area, they grow peaches (who knew?); but they are also a diverse operation that offers a well-stocked Community Supported Agriculture program. We toured the farm, enjoyed an excellent ale at a local brewery, and spoke extensively with the program's directors about what to expect if we're chosen to intern. Everywhere we looked, another gorgeous and completely un-Floridian sight awaited us. We loved the farm, the area, and our generous hosts. Thank you, Rancho Durazno!
Last but not least, thanks to Tamara and Matt, who introduced us to Duffy's Cherry Cricket in Denver (where we had awesome burgers) and then put us up for our last night in town. This allowed us some proximity to the airport and the ability to wander around Denver at our leisure in the morning; not to mention a fabulous breakfast of eggs and scones cooked by Tamara, Trevor's close friend since middle school. Thanks, Tamara and Matt!
Overall we had a smashing good time and hope very much to hear from the lovely farms we visited in the near future.
