We are looking for to hosting you at Cotton Creek Farms!
Below are some tidbits to help you learn about our farm and your upcoming Harvest Host visit.
Not a Harvest Host member yet? Sign up and get $15 off your membership.
Available Resources
We encourage you to visit our website and explore our farm before you arrive. Helpful resources you might be interested in are listed below.
Home Page: https://cottoncreekfarms.com/
Watch Our Farm Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J2KzZSyC_bI
Meet the Alpacas: https://cottoncreekfarms.com/alpacas/
FAQs: https://cottoncreekfarms.com/about-us/farm-faqs/
Browse Our Alpaca Products: https://cottoncreekfarms.com/store/
Directions: https://cottoncreekfarms.com/about-us/directions-to-the-farm/
Tour Tickets: https://bookeo.com/cottoncreekfarms
Housekeeping Items
- We request that you check in between 10am-4pm, which is our standard operating hours when the store is open. The grey barn is our store and you can check in here.
- All outside animals must be kept at the campsite. Dogs (including our own) are not allowed near the paddock areas and the alpacas. This is because they cause a significant amount of stress on the herd and they are the top predator of alpacas in the United States. We have many ladies who are pregnant, and this stress can cause their offspring harm, so this is a hard rule at our farm.
- We have two dogs. The black one is a very friendly Doodle mix named Lola. The other is a fawn rescue dog named Cleo. In the rare event you see our dog Cleo, know she is more scared of you than you are of her. We keep her inside when visitors come, but we’d like you to know about her just in case you meet her, and you see that she is visibly scared. She is a rescue from Egypt (yes, the country). She was abused in her homeland and is scared of people, and especially, large men. She is super sweet, but a little goofy due to her past trauma.
- You’ll see we have two distinct areas on our farm. The ladies all live at the grey barn and the boys at the red barn. We keep them separate for health reasons and to reduce the chaos of girls taunting the boys and the boys fighting over the girls.
- The fenced areas between the boys and girls are open to you if the fence is open. Please do not enter if the fence is closed for the evening.
- There is a porta potty and picnic tables available. You are welcome to use both. If you have any food at the tables, please make sure you keep all trash and food outside of the paddocks. This is to protect our alpacas. They cannot eat human food and they cannot eat wrappers or other garbage.
Additional Notes on Bringing Dogs
- Please do not leave your dogs outside of the camper for an extended period of time. We ask this for two reasons. First, your dogs can cause extreme panic and stress on our female alpacas. Many of these are pregnant and we need to limit their stress. Second, when your dogs are left out, we cannot let our dogs out to go the bathroom.
- Please clean up after your dogs. We would like to have a clean camp spot for future visitors and this will require you to pick up any droppings your dogs leave.
- Please stop your dogs from digging in our land. Not only does this disrupt the land, it makes it hard to mow and for future campers to park safely.
These requests may seem silly, but these above items are all issues we’ve had recently with guests who have brought dogs. We want to allow visitors to bring their furry children, but we must protect the alpaca herd and the safety of humans while doings so.
Farm Activities
- Our farm is owned and run by the three of us. Jason and Rebecca with 17-year-old son Hunter.
- We also have some farm helpers who assist in the store, with chores, and with tours.
- You’ll see us outside doing chores in the morning and again in the afternoon.
- We’re pretty much on “cria watch” for a lot of the summer, so you’ll also see us checking on the pregnant mamas throughout the day and late at night. Don’t be alarmed, this is just part of the farming process.
Meeting the Alpacas
- We offer three interactive tours on the days we’re open. If you’d like to attend a tour, we encourage you to book this online in advance of your stay. We are selling out each tour, so we cannot guarantee your spot if you don’t book in advance.
- If you don’t want to take a tour, we have feed bags for sale in the store for $1 per bag. The ladies (big and small) on the sides of the store will be happy to snack from your hands and entertain you.
- If you’d just like to just visit with the alpacas at the store and not feed them, you’re welcome to do this too. They love their humans.
- If anyone is sassy (the alpacas and not the humans), throw up a finger and tell them “no ma’am” in your best parental voice. They really do understand that and they know that means they need to tone it down. As we get to the end of pregnancies, sassiness arrives much more often than on a normal day.
- There is an old granny alpaca named Amber. She is 19, which is close to a regular alpaca’s end of life at age 20. Amber is slobbery and sassy and she does what she wants, when she wants, and where she wants. If the store is open, we have wet wipes inside to wash your hands after feeding Grandma Amber. You’ll know what we mean once you feed her.
- We have lots of babies running around with their mommas. More are coming, so this number is fluid. They will entertain you and if you watch the paddocks in early evening you’ll probably see a “cria run” happening.
Dinner and Drink Options
Cool Outside Venues With Music, Drinks, and Food
- Iron Fish Distillery in Thompsonville
- St. Ambrose Cellars in Beulah
Family Diners
- JK’s Whisper Cafe in Buckley
- Patty Cakes Restaurant & Bakery in Buckley
Low Key Bars With Good Food
- Buckley Roadside Bar in Buckley
- Geno’s Sports Bar And Grill in Thompsonville
If you get lost and need assistance, remember we have maps and directions on our website and there is a link above in this email. We are also on Google and Apple maps, so you should be able to locate us quickly.
See you soon!
Jason, Rebecca, Hunter, and all the alpacas