RRR4
 

 

Alpaca Walk

 

Hi everyone, it's me Ruby. This week in the wilderness of the beautiful Essex countryside me, my nan and grandad went on an alpaca walk, it was great to combine the exercise of brisk walking with something fun! My grandparents go on a long walk everyday so I was hoping I could keep up with them!

To start, members of staff introduced us to the eight male alpacas that would be doing the walk with us. Our alpaca was called Opal and his best friend Smoky Quartz, who was in front as they were both born near the same time. Rupert, who was the oldest, is 13 years old so he had to lead the pack. Unfortunately, under 14s cannot hold the alpaca but it's definitely still worth the experience because you can walk alongside. Throughout the walk the alpacas would stop to eat from the bushes. Fun fact: alpacas can eat stinging nettles.

After the walk, which lasted roughly an hour, we visited the billy goats and we could feed them a branch of leaves. The guide explained the history of the goats; it was really fascinating listening to some of their stories. One of them was flat horned, which meant he didn't have curved horns like the other goats, this goat was in a fight with a pygmy goat and sadly that goat lost a horn so it is called the unihorn. They explained that most of the goats have been rescued and eventually go to homes where they are cared for.

Following on from the goat feed, we saw some of the female alpacas, there were 11 or 12, some with baby alpacas on the way and the leader of their pack was called... Ruby Matriarch.

Finally, we visited the pygmy goats, we got to stroke and even hold the baby goats. The one I held was 5-6 weeks old and was going to a home.

 

I enjoyed holding the goats as it felt really special. I would love to go again.

 

Ruby Xx

 

 

Ruby's verdict: 9/10

Overall experience: It was a magical experience, a fun way to spend a couple of hours walking and trying something new.

Price: 2 share 1 alpaca, £40 for the pair

Fun factor: I enjoyed so many laughs on my walk and learnt new information about alpacas.

Contact: www.blackwateralpacas.co.uk or 07813 290 708

All experiences must be pre-booked. T+C's apply. Experience on the day may vary and is open until the end of September. Total experience time is 2 hours.

 

 

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