Taking the Pendleton farm tour
My internship with the Falmouth Outlook ends this week, and I knew I could not say that I’d spent a summer in Pendleton County without having visited some of the farms.
So, on Saturday morning, I put on my bucket hat and went on the 2024 Farm Tour to immerse myself in the sounds and sights of one of the most demanding jobs on earth.
It also became more personal than I expected — I met some familiar faces and others who recognized me from the paper. Thank you all, the tour left me with memories I’ll treasure forever.
Farmers’ Market
I decided to follow the order listed in the pamphlet (although that might not have been the most efficient route) and started with the Farmers’ Market at the fairgrounds.
Not all the vendors were there as some were participating in the farm tour, but there was a good spread of little trinkets, fresh produce, and other knickknacks.
At the Farmers’ Market, you’re not walking down identical aisles with mass-produced items under washed-out lighting. You’re walking past families — sons and daughters, mothers and fathers, grandmas and grandpas — looking at displays of colorful handcrafted goods and homegrown products resulting from days and hours of hard work.
And you’re walking among people that still believe in self-sufficiency and community.
Mains Farms
The Mains’ farm is in a beautiful area with hills and a little river just past its crops. I was also very happy to see Patty and Roy Mains, who I had not met since I wrote the article on Roy weeks ago — the perfect start to the tour!
Here I soaked in the scenery, breathed in the fresh air, and admired all the machinery that it took to keep the farm running.
They had created a little circuit for visitors to follow and the views were just breathtaking. I left with a deep sense of peace.
BlackSheep Farmstead
There were sheep, bees and goats to look at, as well as animals to feed, but I made a beeline for the baby chick and duck holding station (which was near a little lake) where two young farm girls were picking up the cute little animals and placing them into visitors’ hands.
Chicks and ducklings are squirmier than I expected but they were so precious to hold. One even gave a small “peep” when placed into my hands!
Rose Hill Farm Winery
Somehow after holding the cutest creatures on earth, I found myself with a hissing cockroach in the palm of my hand. A UK entomologist had set up a booth, and initially I declined the invitation to hold the cockroach. But after being told that no one else had been brave enough to touch it, I gathered my courage so that I could write about it in the Outlook (these cockroaches hiss when you touch them, and I tried not to look too closely but I think I saw little white dots moving around on their exoskeletons).
Past the tent with the bugs was a beautiful vineyard that sat on a hill which was quite a hike away from the starting point of the tour.
I was hesitant to sample the wine because I have really bad alcohol intolerance (swelling, flushing and rashes) but after seeing the rows of tasty looking grapes, I changed my mind. The wine was fantastic, though I am still sorry to the ladies that I was unable to finish the drinks. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.
Faith Acres Farm
I was so caught up in making sure I had pictures of all the farm fact signs that I forgot to take any of the greenhouses, tomatoes, peppers, herbs and all the other things they were growing. This was a science heavy tour, with detailed explanations of the processes behind the collection of sap, aquaponics, and growing of different crops.
I learned that there are many moving parts to having a successful farm, and it takes a lot of hard work, creativity, and intelligence to run one.
The farm is owned and managed by a couple — the wife works on the farm after her full-time job and the husband owns a business — and the different structures around the farm were hand built by them. How amazing is that!
Hilltop Highlands & Triple G Cattle Farm
I never knew there was such a thing hairy cattle until I saw Scottish Highland cattle, at this farm (and they were so cute)!
There were also signs put up with farm facts that visitors could use to answer questions on a piece of paper that would enter them into a giveaway (I learned that donkeys were herd protectors and after I got back home, I told everyone I knew).
I actually was not going to enter the raffle because I thought I would not win. But guess who the lucky winner was — me!
I won the most adorable hairy cow plushie, a Stanley Cup with cattle on it and a big picture of a hairy cow.
Reclaimed Ranch
The last stop on the farm tour was interesting as we were shown how wool is processed and turned into yarn. There were many machines that made this possible, and we were given a demo of how some of them worked.
In fact, the farmer told us that the machines had only been installed a few weeks back and that a crew came down to teach them how to use it.
In the back I saw the alpacas, sheep and rabbits that provided the wool that was processed.
That concluded the farm tour, which featured a variety of operations, management styles and farm layouts. But one thing remained the same — the fact that these were good, hardworking and intelligent people who took pride in what they produced.
It was a privilege to catch a glimpse of this lifestyle and culture!