Fiber Farm & Studio Tour~Day 2

On Sunday I headed back out with my daughter to check out two more farms: one a camel farm and the other a feather and natural dye farm.

I was very excited about visiting the camel farm, as I've always had a 'thing' for camelids, which include: camels, llamas, alpacas, guanacos, and vicuña. I actually own an authentic camel saddle that I was given as a gift over 20 years ago. And when I volunteered as a docent for the Rio Grande Zoo, about 13 years ago, I used to handle the alpacas on a weekly basis taking them out to show the public in what was called "Alpaca Cruising". I loved it!
And of course, the first time I saw the 'Push Me-Pull Me' on Dr. Doolittle, when I was 9 years old, I just knew I wanted a llama of my own one day.

The camel farm, aptly named "Camel Lot Farm" is only about 7 miles away from my house, so it was a quick little drive over there to visit the camels and see what the hoohah is on using camel fiber for knitting and fiber arts.

But first, did you know that camel down is the soft warm inner down of a camel and has a fiber structure similar to cashmere? The down is usually 1-3 inches long with a micron count of about 15-22 microns.

The dromedary, one-humped or Arabian camel has a single hump, and the Bactrian camel has two humps. They are native to the dry desert areas of western Asia, and central and east Asia, respectively.

And I bet you didn't know that camels can run up to 40 mph in short bursts and sustain speeds of up to 25 mph. My llamas are pretty fast like that, too. And they literally fly when they run, because all 4 feet are off the ground at once. It is awesome to see!

And contrary to common belief, camels do not store water in their humps; they are actually a reservoir of fatty tissue. When this tissue is metabolized, it acts as a source of energy
Their ability to withstand long periods without water is due to a series of physiological adaptations related to their red blood cells.

Besides their use as meat and fiber animals, camel milk is a staple food of desert nomad tribes and is richer in fat and protein than cow milk. Camel milk cannot be made into butter in the traditional churning method, but their milk can be made into yogurt.

This handsome fella is a Bactrian Camel. Bactrian camels have two humps, they weigh about 1600 pounds and stand about 7-9 feet tall at the top of their humps. Their gestation period is between 370-445 days and give birth to calves weighing 80-130 pounds. Their life span is 40-50 years! Bactrian camels have two coats: the warm inner coat of down and a rough outer coat which is long and hairy. They shed their fiber in clumps consisting of both coats and is normally gathered. They produce about 5 pounds of fiber annually.
I also discovered that Camel Lot Farm provides the camels that the Rio Grande Zoo uses for their daily camel rides. Pretty cool!

Notice how the wool just sheds off all by itself. No shearing is necessary! Of course, its quite the chore harvesting camel wool on very windy New Mexico mountain land. hehe
I enjoyed the camels in front of our beautiful Sandia Mountain backdrop. Did you know that a camels mouth is very sturdy, able to chew thorny desert plants and that their kidneys and intestines are very efficient at retaining water. Urine comes out as a thick syrup, and their feces are so dry that they can fuel fires. Weird!

I was told this guy's name is Gobi. I actually was invited to keep some of his wool that I found on the ground. Cool.


This is a Dromedary, or one-humped/Arabian camel.
I really enjoyed getting close up and personal with this goofy camel.
"I'm a very tired camel"
"ZZzzzzzzz". Check out all those callous pads.
"Do you mind? I'd like some privacy for my nap, please"

Now that's one relaxed camel! "Blublublublubub" Check out that rubbery loose lip. hehe

Now apparently I am a photo hound and have totally used up all of my photo allotment on Blogger.(gasp!) Yes, I can pay $20.00 a year for some extra space, but I'm going to try something different (and free) first. Let me know what your opinion is.....

Our last stop on the Fiber Tour was a to a farm that translated literally to "Hens of the Sun", Gallinas del Sol. This farm grows plants used for natural fiber dying.
They also raise chickens and heritage breed turkeys for feathers, as well as to sell to customers. This farm is located about 15-18 miles east of our house, in Stanley, NM, where the ground flattens out into the plains, but views of the mountains can still be seen.

While at the farm, I had another moment of realizing again what a close-knit local community our East Mountains truly are and how everyone seems to know each other or someone that knows someone else, etc.
The owners of Gallinas del Sol had actually been to my house last year to pick up a large rusty stock water tank I had offered on Freecycle. They had plans to use it as a pool for their ducks and geese.

Unfortunately they hadn't used the tank yet because of the fierce winds and the cold, hard ground and also because they need to get a backhoe to dig the hole for the tank first. But it was still kind of cool to see the tank there and to meet these folks again.

So, for more photos from our second day of the East Mountain Farm Touring,
click:
Fiber Farm Tour Day 2