Brave an Alpaca Stampede in Central Oregon

Alpacas are all the rage lately, and for good reason. They are adorable and, when you feed them, it feels like little bunny kisses in the palm of your hand. In other words, visiting an alpaca farm is a great activity for family travelers. In Central Oregon, at Crescent Moon Ranch in the city of Terrebonne, you can pay a visit to these fluffy, gentle creatures at a working alpaca farm. While the owners of the ranch raise alpacas for show, breeding and sale, visitors can walk the farm from pen to pen to feed the alpacas. While you can’t go in the pens, they will run to the fence, eager to get a few bites of the food pellets available for purchase at the on-site shop. The trick is making sure every animal gets a share of the food instead of just the bullies trying to hog the spotlight.

© Eugenia Lazaris

The farm is open daily from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and you’ll find alpacas sporting a variety of fur colors and patterns. Don’t let their giant teeth scare you; as long as you hold your hand out, palm up with the pellets, the adult alpacas will gently nibble the food right out of your hand, like a bunny softly smooching your hand! If you are lucky enough to visit when there are babies (known as cria in alpaca lingo), don’t feel bad if they don’t want anything to do with you. While they are young, they get all their food from their mothers and don’t eat pellets until they are older.

I was lucky enough to visit this lovely farm at the end of the day, when the alpacas were about to be herded in from the pastures to have dinner and spend the night in the barn. The owners of Crescent Moon Ranch lovingly call this exciting event the “alpaca stampede,” and let us stay for the fun. The alpacas, knowing dinner awaited, came running as soon as the gates opened, and I found myself in the middle of the entire herd of alpacas running by, making the ground shake like thunder. The feeling was a mixture of fear and pure joy as what seemed like hundreds of alpacas ran past, some nearly barreling right into me before dodging at the very last second, but their adorably goofy faces made it all worthwhile.

While at Crescent Moon, do a little shopping for some great products featuring alpaca wool, like socks, beanies and spools of yarn sporting the name of the alpaca it was sheared from. The owners of the farm (a family-run operation) are a joy to talk to and happy to share their love of alpacas with visitors.