Open Barn at Buck Hollow Llamas

You could not have asked for a better weekend for an Open Barn; April 25-26, 2009's weather was as good as it gets. In fact, everything about the Carol and Doug Reigh's annual event at Buck Hollow Llamas was picture perfect. The llamas looked wonderful, the farm itself is bucolically beautiful, and the vendors with whom we spent the afternoon were the most wonderful people who taught Mickey and me about the craft of shearing, cleaning, carding, spinning, and weaving llama fiber. I left with my head spinning with all the things I could do--and how to do it--with the fiber from my girls.

The original homestead was home base for Carol's wares; fiber, rugs, llama toys, llama puzzles, "Deliberately Mismatched Socks Made in Vermont" (very eco-chic recycled T-shirts repurposed), free popcorn and beverages, and lunch for volunteers and vendors. Solid construction of a century created natural air-conditioning in a charming environment.

The upper part of the barn was home for the vendors, and that's where Mickey and I provided the meet and greet at the registration table. Actually, my husband did the lion's share of the greetings, improving on Carol's registration form for next year, while I wandered and shopped (okay, I did help, but the llamas were such a pull and I was shopping...).

In my meanderings, I got to talk to the guests and learn about grooming (very different from horses). The farm is a beautiful place, serene despite the activity of the day's events, which included videos, haltering demonstrations, a tour of the farm, llama walks, cart driving, and vendor demonstrations. Everything about the day was low-keyed and lovely, a de-stressor and great day in the country, as you can see in the videos below. Some of the images were too big for Animoto, so I am working on where I can put them. For now, I cannot resist including some of the best photos I have ever seen of my husband. The llama is pretty cute too.

BHLF Open Barn
Llamas
Carol Reigh
Buck Hollow Llama Farm, Inc.
Turbo Tagger

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