Im Jahr 2016 haben bereits mehr als 50 Wwoofer und Workawayer unseren Hof besucht. Mit vielen von ihnen besteht weiterhin ein Austausch von Neuigkeiten,sei es per email, per Post oder auch durch einen gelegentlichen Besuch. Bei der Organisation Workaway haben die Gäste die Möglichkeit, eine Bewertung über den Gastgeberhof abzugeben.

Hier veröffentlich ich die bisherigen unkommentiert aus der Website der Organisation Workaway.

[10.03.2016]

I spent 3 amazing weeks in Elke’s farm; it was my first workaway experience and I’ll never forget it. Elke is a positive, generous woman and also her family and friends are very friendly.
There is not much work and working with the horses is very pleasant even if most of the job is about cleaning stables. You’ll have the opportunity to try line dance (which is much fun even if not easy) and horse riding. Moreover, Black Forest is beautiful!
This place is just amazing, I felt like home and I was really sad to leave. You’ll love it, just don’t hesitate to go..!

14.02.2016]

I absolutely loved this place! Elke and her family are so lovely and friendly and they have such great friends who are all so friendly and helpful. I stayed here for 3 weeks. There are a variety of different indoor and outdoor jobs to do and plenty to see outside of the town. I loved trying out line dancing and we even learnt a dance to teach the other ladies 🙂
I even cooked one of my traditional kiwi farmer recipes for everyone to try (which they loved).
I also have to say that I fell in love with her big BEAUTIFUL dog Kate who is such a gem. All the horses are gorgeous as well, and Elke even took the time to give me riding lessons. She is so generous.
Elke’s cooking is delicious and the accommodation is awesome and very warm on those cold nights. When you stay with Elke you get a good idea of how Germany is. I loved this place so much I cried on the train to my next destination. I felt like I was leaving my home and family. I definitely recommend this place!! 🙂
Von Workawayer für Host

28.01.2016]

I stayed there for trhee weeks last cristmas.
Elke is the best host I have ever had, the yard is wonderful, horses are good boys and work is easy to do.
people there is friendly and there are a good atmosphere en the house.
thanks for every thing Elke
Von Workawayer für Host

[27.11.2015]

I stayed at Elke’s farm for what I like to call a sabbathical month. There is so much to write about, but for practical purposes I’ll try to make it short. Firstly I’ll address to the most important questions a volunteer might have: food and accomodation. Elke’s cooking skills are terrific: she takes pride in making amazing dishes with organic food. She also half expects you to cook something from where you came from, as she has her own traveller cookbook. You won’t starve here – trust me, it’s quite the opposite actually. You’re prone to gaining some weight. Volunteers have their own shared apartment and it is a quite large one. You’ll probably share its facilities (bathroom, kitchen) with another volunteer, as she takes two at a time. Cleaning is also made by the volunteers and, if you have any hygiene standarts, be prepared to do some.

The work is dangerously pleasurable to do. So pleasurable it made me reflect about carreer and life choices. Unlike “regular” work, at the end of the day, you’ll have your body tired but your mind still whole, which is the opposite effect of daily urban routines. You’ll do mucking during the morning (the act of picking, transporting and stacking horse poop on a pile) and some other random farm chores the rest of the time. For the first two weeks, for instance, I assisted the other volunteer with building a horse feeder with roof. The only struggle I had was failing miserably to wake up at 6:30am when requested.

Socializing was a strong point during my stay. The Workawayers I worked with, Paolo and Goran, are professional environmentalists and are eager to share knowledge with others. Also, since you do the mucking, the horse owners/riders will get to know you with time. As a bonus, Elke’s friends are really nice and enjoy sharing experiences with volunteers. I highly advise you to bring your musical instrument if you play one – it was a shame I couldn’t bring my flute.

If I had to criticize anything, I’d say Elke can be a bit too harsh sometimes. It has to do with her strong personality. Honestly, I’m not that easy to deal with either. Also, she has wifi, but is not willing to share it for security reasons. That was stated in her profile, so before coming I bought a german sim card/data plan to keep in touch with family. O2 has full 3G+ cover there.

I think that wraps up everything. I hope you guys enjoyed my time there as much as I did. Please pet Katie and Whisper for me. Miss you.

– Haryel
PS: don’t trust Ginger too much
Von Workawayer für Host

21.08.2015]

First workaway and unforgettable experience far beyond expectations! Elke meant not only a kind, welcoming host, but an example to be followed. I spent a month with her, and day by day, I grew happier and increasingly aware of the valuable and inspiring person I was living with. She is honest, sociable, creative and has a catching positive energy that quickly passed on to me. As a result, she managed to make her dream come true, and I suddenly found myself sharing her piece of happiness with a herd of almost 20 horses and her lovely neighbours and friends. Futhermore, I was lucky to have a good laugh and share the daily tasks with Goran, a cheerful and outgoing workawayer, but most importantly, a precious individual for whom I have a high regard.

On the other hand, I would have never imagined how rewarding would be taking care of the horses and doing some manual work outdoors. In fact, I wouldn’t consider it as working at all. It is as simple as you being part of the house, and the house needs some maintenance depending on the season in order to live on. There’s no need for days off when you feel like home.

Elke not only knows a great deal about horses but about life itself, and has a special capacity for connecting with other living beings, both animals and humans. In sum, staying with Elke is much more than a chance to learn about horses or enjoy the natural surroundings of the mighty Black Forest. This might be an experience that will open up your mind and enrich you at a personal level. It certainly did it to me.

Big hugs for you all,

Luis
Von Workawayer für Host

[18.07.2015]

I’m a quite lucky girl, because I have visited her place twice during my trip. Elke is the most wonderful person I’ve met so far. She is not only a farmer but also has a lot of knowledge about education and communication. Her close friends and local people often come to her place, it shows that her place is one of vibrant community place for people. Through my stay there, I found some hints about what the rich life is. Her house is always full of laughter. I truly had a fun time. I want to come back to her place again in the future. Thank you for everything, and keep in touch!
Von Workawayer für Host

[25.06.2015]

I had a terrific time at Elke’s. The farm and the area are beautiful, and it was a great, friendly place to be for a month. Working with so many horses was a valuable experience for me, and there was a good variety of other work (none of it difficult) to keep things interesting. Every day was different, with a good balance of work, social, and free time. I especially liked the collective community of Elke’s family, other volunteers, family friends, and riders. And there’s no going hungry…but mucking out the stalls each morning is a good way to work off Elke’s delicious meals. Wish I could have stayed longer!
Von Workawayer für Host

[13.06.2015]

I didn’t spend more than a long weekend with Elke but I enjoyed it so much that I would love to come back! Elke is a very lovable, interesting and open-minded person who lives surrounded by beautiful horses. I enjoyed helping around the stables and learning about horses (she knows a lot!). The accomodation and the food are great and Elke can teach you line dance! 🙂
Elke has a lot of friends and there are always people around the stables that go there to take care of their horses and take riding lessons.
I highly recommend you to experience it yourself! You won’t regret it!
Von Workawayer für Host

[27.04.2015]

An amazing place, highly recommended! I stayed at the horse farm for about 3-4 weeks and it felt I was leaving my family behind when I left. Elke is a very welcoming person, open and great fun to be around. I had never worked with horses before but I became attached to them after a few days! Having never ridden a horse before, Elke was very keen to let me try it out and I couldn’t have hoped for a better introduction to horseriding, respecting but not being afraid of the horse. The people are great, the food is top class and the work not hard and very fair – couldn’t ask for anything more!
Von Workawayer für Host

[22.12.2014]

This has been my first workaway experience and it has been excellent! You really feel like home in Elke’s house and farm.
There are always nice people around as she is a very welcoming lady.
Work is not hard; it is even nice to wake up early in the morning and greet the horses.
I also started riding, which we did often.
Food was great as Elke cooks nicely international food; there was always plenty of it.
I had a little apartment on my own where to study and even work on my stuff.
There was Goran, another wwoofer with whom we had a lot of fun.
Food, movies and social life did we all together, as Elke receives her friendly friends regularly. There is a very homely and relaxed atmosphere.
I enjoyed very much the Fridays Line Dance evenings. I will continue with the dance for sure.
I look forward to coming back for her birthday next January!
Thank you Elke!

Von Workawayer für Host

[11.11.2014]

i used workaway to find this farm, but i wouldnt use work to describe this ewperiance that i had for 2,5 month. i would use word home, because i really feeled like home. Elke is very worm and friendly person, and the people who i met in that farm were all wonderful and kindhearted. Working with horses was super and i eaven got to ride with them. Elke makes sure that everyone who comes to the farm gets the oportunity to ride. She loves cooking and linedance. So if u enjoy dancing, good music, good company, horses u dont nead to look any further. Elkes farm is like a small retreat from everyday fuss, just perfect place to take time off and enjoy simpel things again 🙂
Von Workawayer für Host

[06.02.2014]

A great place to be a part of! Everyone around is warm, welcoming, and down to earth. The location is pleasant, the accomodation is super, and the work is very reasonable and somewhat flexible. I am a vegan, so fed myself, so can’t comment on elke’s cooking. 😉
There are some nice forests and scenery around for hiking and biking, and a lovely little nature trail right next door, on a creek.
Elke openly shared her friends with me, and put up with my oddities.
A really comfortable, sociable place, you can’t go wrong here!

Von Workawayer für Host