For the past 20 years, I have lived and worked on Stearns Hill Farm. Because I worked off-farm, we have run things on a homesteading level: raising goats, chickens, and occasionally pigs, always working to improve the soil, working on the barn, harvesting firewood, and providing food for me, my family, friends, and neighbors.

The Farm: There are 20 acres of fields, used for rotational grazing or mowing. There are 63 acres of woodlands. No pesticide sprays have been used here since my uncle took over in 1972, and no sludge has ever been spread on the fields.

Infrastructure: A large bank barn: 95 X 45 feet, 7 bays, 4 stories (barnyard, linter–housing animals, main floor, great platforms). It was originally built to house sheep and by the late 1800s, cattle. An interior silo was added at this time. The barn’s spacial dimensions provided the room necessary for storing loose hay for the cattle. There is room to store equipment on the barnyard level. Today, as the barn continues to evolve, it houses goats and chickens. It is also a repository eight generations of artifacts, implements, wagons, sleighs, and metal that marks the history of one agricultural family in Maine.

Equipment: We have a Kubota L2900, and haying equipment: a new Yanmar disc mower, tedder, rake, finish mower. No baler–we bring the hay in loose and let it completely dry on the barn floor before pitching it down into the mows
12 strands of sheep/goat electronetting
3200 Speedrite charger

The original “Blacksmith Shop” is a one-story building, approximately 14’ by 20’, alongside Stearns Hill Road, at the edge of the lawn. It could be a potting shed, studio, or small farm store.

We have a prolific raspberry patch, rhubarb, random old apple trees, hazelnuts, beach plums, and a family-sized vegetable garden on a hugel bed and in raised steel containers.

Housing: We have converted our traditional farmhouse into a duplex with a new kitchen, renovated bath, office, two bedrooms, and storage on the second floor. The project is nearing completion. Stephen and I will downsize in place on the first floor.

The original Cape portion of the house was built around 1820. The front portion of the house and the back storage area were built in 1865. We have converted the house into a duplex, with one unit on the second floor and one on the first floor, each with a separate entrance. The front of the house faces south and with impactful solar gain in the winter for the kitchen and the front bedroom. The kitchen and bedrooms are approximately 14' X 14'. The office is a bit smaller and the storage is a bit bigger. There are two heat pumps upstairs, The rooms have been insulated. A second back-up heating system is TBD.

Location: We are 2 miles from the major N-S artery in this area: Route 26, which connects to 219 just north of here. 219 heads east to Augusta (50 miles). Ski resort/destination Bethel is 20 miles north. This area is called the Oxford Hills or the Western Foothills. There are gorgeous views of the White Mountains and the White Mountain National Forest is about 45 minutes away. Lakes, streams, rivers, wetlands–the area is well watered.

Our Philosophy: In the face of an uncertain climate future as well as troubling internal and external turmoil, what does resilience look like? What can we specifically do to make the world a better, more livable, more equitable place?

The talent and energy evident in the bios of the farm seekers is truly inspiring. I welcome a longer discussion with each of you. Please reach out by cell: 207-515-0467 or email: gellen2010@gmail.com

The information herein is believed to be accurate, but not warranted and should be verified by the seeker.

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