Fun Family Farm Visits

Winter’s Best Kept Secret: Fun Family Farm Visits

By Meghan Sheffield

Want to know the season's best kept secret? Here in Northumberland, winter is the perfect time to visit a farm.

After the hustle and bustle of the busy summer and autumn seasons, calm descends with falling snowflakes, and mama animals rest, awaiting the promise of spring babies. The clean, bright snow and cooler temperatures even cover up some of the more “authentic” (read: smelly and unsightly) aspects of life with animals. In the heart of winter, snowy fields and sweet-smelling, hay-filled barns beckon at the eastern and western ends of Northumberland County. 

OLD MILL ALPACAS

In the east, Old Mill Alpacas is located between Brighton and Colborne, a short trip through orchards and small towns from the 401.

At Old Mill, it’s all about the alpacas. These long-necked, curly-topped animals are similar to llamas. They’re both South American members of the camelid family, along with – you guessed it – camels. Alpacas are smaller than llamas, and friendlier, and their wool is of finer quality for use as a fibre.

Woolly, Floofy Adventures

Winter is the season when the alpacas here are at what the folks at Old Mill Alpacas call their “floofiest.” In springtime, their wool is sheared so that they’re able to keep cool during the warmer months. By the time winter rolls around, the alpacas are once again sporting their soft, full, coats of curls.

This wool is at the heart of the farm business at Old Mill Alpacas. Harvested in the spring shearing, the wool is gently processed in their woolen mill to make yarn and fibres. The result is local, sustainable, hypoallergenic, and five to seven times more insulating than sheep’s wool. The farm’s store is full of alpaca fibre products made on site – beautiful hand-knits, felted handcrafts and warm felt insoles.

Book a Farm Trek or Trek-and-Tour

Old Mill Alpacas offers their farm tour – or a trek-and-tour combo, in which guests visit and stroll with an alpaca, feed apples to the herd in a paddock, and view the whole farm. Education is a big part of Old Mill’s mission, and you’ll be amazed by how much there is to know about these appealing animals.  

Life is good for the alpacas here. The barns are warm and brimming with hay; the living quarters are cleaned every day; and there are tree-lined paddocks and two-toed tracks to follow down snow-covered paths. 

Perhaps the best testament to good care is the calm, sweet disposition of the alpacas: gentle and welcoming to visitors. The adorable young alpacas are particularly friendly, and curious about the smaller members of the human herd.

There are so many good reasons to visit Old Mill in any season, but softer snuggles make winter the sure bet.

HAUTE GOAT

On a cool winter’s day at Haute Goat, the view from Northumberland’s western edge is dramatic, as pastel-grey skies paint the rolling hills of Oak Ridges Moraine a misty blue.

Located just north of Port Hope, on a country road surrounded by farmer’s fields, there are friendly animals seemingly everywhere: goats, alpacas, and gorgeous horses.

The full calendar of special events and farm experiences has been creatively designed to meet the needs of enthusiastic farm fans of all stripes.

Book a Shmurgle or Knuffle Shuffle

Look no further for proof than the farm’s signature offering: the Goat Shmurgle. What’s a Shmurgle? Well, even the farmers at Haute Goat can’t translate it into a single word, but it can be summed up as: a silly snuggle with a herd of little goats; an hour-long adventure and up-close experience with these sweet, simple animals.

The alpaca herd at Haute Goat is also full of friendly faces. The sweet nature of the alpacas is so smile-inducing that, during COVID-19 lockdowns, some of Haute Goat’s curly-topped creatures paid window visits to elders living in long term care homes. The farm’s Alpaca Knuffle Shuffle offers visitors the opportunity to meet, harness and walk with an “alpaca partner” on a tour of some of the farm’s beautiful fields.

Haute Goat’s farm store offers a variety of farm-made and goat-inspired merchandise, from alpaca socks and wildflower honey, to goat cheese and their famous goat milk, caramel-buttered popcorn.

Haute Goat’s Screaming Goat Café is open to visitors through the winter, when their small lunch menu offers warming soups and stews, crafted on site with local ingredients. There's also the choice of Ontario beer and wine. The restaurant has a spacious, covered outdoor patio, with fabulous views of both animals and the farm's landscape.

At the end of a frolic-filled day on the farm, the fun doesn’t have to stop – Haute Goat has a variety of overnight experiences to choose from.

Overnight Stay in a Yome?

There's a cozy, one-room "yome" – a modern combination of a yurt and a dome. Nestled into a grove of trees right in the heart of the farm, the yomes offer welcoming queen-sized beds and electric heat.

For the most passionate alpaca lovers, there’s the Alpaca Sleepover. This rustic experience will have you bunking into a private space within the alpaca enclosure. Visitors can drift into dreamland along with the herd and wake with the crows of the roosters to enjoy a hearty farm-style breakfast.

There are a number of unique winter overnight stay packages: in the farmhouse walk out suite – in the property's insulated bunkie or one of the two yomes (located a short walk from the main farm area and parking).

On a winter’s afternoon on the farm, guests are invited to explore the farm and see animals that are out in the paddocks. The goats are silly and playful, climbing, butting, bleating and occasionally coming over for a head pat. Leaning on the fence, lost in the joy of watching these animal antics, the peaceful joy of a farm visit really sets in.

Find your bliss, and some cuddly animals too, on a farm visit in Northumberland this winter.

Check websites before visiting for COVID-19 protocols, restrictions and hours of operation. Children must be accompanied by an adult. Please check for individual guidelines.