Alpaca Fun at Little Foot Alpaca Farm

When you think of the most social animals, what comes to mind? Dolphins with their playful pods? Monkeys that create some of the most advanced animal societies with their troops?

Surely human’s best friend, the dog. It turns out there is another animal that should be added to this list- alpacas. These creatures only thrive in groups of more than three and are also incredibly calm. This makes them the perfect animal to spend a weekend outing with, as I did recently at Little Foot Alpaca Farm.

We arrived at Little Foot Alpaca Farm, and met Caroline. We started off the tour by checking out some of the finished alpaca fur products, as well as seeing the large wall of awards they earned. We then visited the docile female alpacas. Caroline gave us some pellets to feed the creatures, which they ate from our hands.

This group of alpacas is used for breeding, with pregnancies lasting for up to a year! We were able to pet the alpacas’ soft fur as we learned more interesting information from Caroline. As it turns out, alpacas are the equivalent of dogs in Peru, their origin country!

After closing the female alpacas’ pen, we went over and visited the more rowdy male alpacas. As we walked in, we heard them “chattering” by making all sorts of chaotic noises. Among them was Little Foot’s champion alpaca, an individual without blemishes and incredibly soft fur. We spread out to feed the males so that they didn’t fight too much over food. It’s very clear that alpacas are among the most extroverted animals in the animal kingdom. After spending a lot of time with the males, we went back inside.

At the end of our tour, we took a look at the Little Foot gift shop, containing the fruits of the alpaca’s existence- fur products. Among all the clothing items I mentioned earlier, there were also alpaca figurines made out of their fur. I ended up buying a soft pair of gloves, before saying goodbye to Little Foot farm.

If you too want to meet some alpacas and maybe purchase some of the softest clothing/decorations possible along the way, visit Little Foot Alpaca Farm. Some of Little Foot’s other experiences include a one-hour Alpaca Trek for people ages 14+ on a designated trail,

Alpaca therapy for those with special needs and even a luxury Airbnb. The farm also offers itself as a venue for engagement photo shoots and weddings. For more information, click here.

The cost for the farm visit tour is $20 for adults and $10 for kids. Children under 3 are free. The farm is located in Spencerville, Ontario.

David is a fifteen-year-old aspiring adventure and travel writer living in Ottawa.  Skydiving is on his bucket list. He received complimentary tickets for the ferris wheel and the port of Montreal tower, but all views are his own.

Parc Omega

When you have three kids spanning three age groups finding a family activity that does not inspire groans from at least one moody member is a huge coup...and we have found one.

Parc Omega

Located about an hour from Ottawa, and an hour and a half drive from my neck of the woods, Long Sault, Parc Omega is a little bit of wilderness in our back yard, minutes from quaint downtown Montebello. It is a terrific stop if you are on your way to Mont Tremblant.

The parc is comprised of 1500 acres, offering a 10 kilometer driving path through meadows, lakes, forests and rocky hills harboring a virtual pot pourri of exciting wildlife.

And I mean exciting. Especially if you happen to be in the possession of carrots.

Why? Because the wildlife that calls Parc Omega home loves their carrots.

What kind of wildlife? Wapiti, black bears, buffalo, red deer, white tail deer, caribou, beavers, the fallow, arctic wolves and timberwolves. And the boars. Oh, the little piggy boars!

With the exception of the wolves and the black bears, the collection of animals at Parc Omega roam free and plentiful, jauntily approaching your vehicles for food.

And this is where the multigenerational family bonding begins...all my children were initially equally terrified of the huge noses probing their way into the truck, sniffing out the food they knew must be in there somewhere.

The tour at Parc Omega starts at the front gate, with imposing statues that got the kids excited right away ( okay, maybe not the teenager).

The park is open year round, offering different adventures for every season, and there is seasonal pricing.  The hours vary as well, so check before heading out.

The first stop is at the "House of Park", a log cabin housing a snack bar  ( the teenager got excited about this...fries...yum ), a gift shop ( all the kids dug this;)) and a lower area where nature exhibitions are held. When we visited in February, there was a spectacular nature photography exhibition, with huge prints taken within the park. There were also arctic wolf pups playing and nestling up against the windows of the building, in a fenced in area where the parc often places it's most vulnerable members - babies and recovering animals. These little guys were a huge hit with children and adults alike.

The most important thing to note about this stop are the carrots.

Carrots make the drive through the park more fun and they are available by the bag at the gift shop cash. You can bring your own ( carrots are the preferred food for the animals as they are sweet and safe for them ), but the park carrots are nice and long making feeding very easy for your children. There are rules around who to feed and not feed, depending on the season, and all this is explained to you upon entering the park. We were not allowed to feed the buffalos...and one look at them lumbering up to and rubbing against the truck explained why. They are huge.

Once on the road, you will be greeted almost immediately by large caribou who anticipate your carrot sharing. The drive through the park is slow going, with most cars making the most of the feeding opportunities. You do have to be mindful of fingers and staying inside the vehicle, but in 10 years of visits we have never had a bitten finger.

You are able to tune your radio to FM 88.1 in English or FM 90.1 in French to listen to a good narrative about the park, it's history, philosophy and the animals found within it's boundary...which sometimes includes wildlife from outside the boundaries...

There are three walking paths available to visitors, and often you are able to visit with and feed deer along these protected trails. We were lucky enough to catch the opening weekend of the "cabane a sucre", and enjoyed taffy on a stick and a short walk in the brisk sunny weather. This is a new feature at the park and it was busy and popular the day we were there. The maple trees are tapped right there.

So, with all these possibilities, what did my kids enjoy the most? The teen enjoyed the fries, the tween loved feeding the deer and caribou ( after her initial "squeeeeeeee" moment ) and the baby loved pointing out all the boars. Of which there are many. Too many, lol, and not very bright...I was worried about hitting them a few times.

I loved the flying wild turkeys and my husband was thrilled with the fact that the cranky caribou did not leave a permanent hoof print on the truck when he kicked the door when cut off from his carrot fix.

All of us were thrilled to see the black bears out of hibernation THAT DAY, enjoying the sun. That was really exciting as they were very close to the fence.

The whole tour took us an hour and a bit, and you are allowed to go around as many times as you wish. Many people, in the summer, bring picnics and enjoy lakeside dining on the patio at the  "House of the Park". There are statues for the kids to clamber over and inquire about and lots of place for them to run during and after the car ride. There are also bird of prey shows in July and August.

A side note...if you are hungry after leaving Parc Omega, there is a great greasy spoon/ casse croute in Montebello called "La Belle Bedaine". The poutine was too die for. Seriously worth the stop:).

Angela is mom to a teen, tween and toddler, wife of an intrepid businessman, master of two big dogs and she loves her camera-baby very much. She is a displaced montrealer living in Long Sault, Ontario. She blogs at

From the Dock

A Very Good Day at the Agriculture Museum

by Natasha The Canada Agriculture Museum is a fantastic place to take your kids on a holiday weekend, like I did at Easter. The Museum has many activities planned for busy family-oriented weekends. There may be a line-up to get inside, but it’s really worth the wait.

My family and I stood in line for half an hour before getting inside for the 11 o’clock set of activities, but once in we were very happy to have ignored the size of the lineup and persevered anyway. The Easter bunny that walked up and down along the lineup was a really good distraction for some of the fussy kids, and the staff were very accommodating and quick at getting everyone in with the least amount of hassle.

Those with memberships for the Museum don’t have to wait in line at all, so it may be worth looking into if you’re a regular at the Museum.

The tour started with us meeting the new baby rabbits. There are specific times during the day where staff members bring out the bunnies for the children to see. We met a tiny and fluffy six-week lion head bunny, and Baby H was absolutely mesmerized.

After the bunny meet, we headed towards the dairy barn to see the cows. Last year, when Baby H first saw large cows, he got really scared. This year, he was very interested in the creatures and spent some time watching them eat and drink. He walked around the barn, saying “Moo” to every passerby and eventually ended up seeing the new calves that were just born.

Our next stop was the tractor exhibit. We saw different and old models, and sat in the John Deere simulator tractor. I think there’s a future for Baby H in farming, as he was very happy with his Grandpa in the simulator swaying back and forth and pretending to drive it around. Baby H had a giant smile the entire time he was fake-driving and was very happy for the duration of the visit.

Baby H made some more tiny furry friends when he spend some time watching little chicks that were waddling back and forth in their cages. There was an entire process in the Museum showing children the egg hatching process, with some of the older kids designing their own eggs and some colouring pictures of chicks.

The Easter bunny that kept us company at the lineup was walking around the farm handing out chocolates to attendees. Baby H participated in the Easter Egg Hunt, and traded in some colourful eggs for special chocolate treats.

And finally, a quick visit to the demonstration kitchen showed us how the delicious hot cross buns are made. We couldn't pass this up, as the buns are one of my family’s favourite treats.

If you’re looking for a fun outing with your family on a holiday or long weekend, head over to the Canada Agriculture Museum and brave the lineups for some of their special events and activities, and put Easter at the Farm on your to do list for next year! Your children will definitely enjoy their time there.

Natasha is a new mommy to her first born, Baby H. She runs ShopHaven, a blog that reviews products and profiles local businesses and individuals from the Ottawa area. Natasha is also the creative force behind ShopHaven Baskets; a highly customized gift baskets service.