Sandhills Alpaca Trekking
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NOTE: Once a booking has been made automatic emails will be sent to the email address provided by you. Please make sure this information is correct and check your junk/spam files if you do not receive booking or confirmation emails. Please contact us if you do not receive these as they do contain payment information and our terms and conditions.
Kind Regards Paul and Maggie
Would you like to come and walk one of our beautiful alpacas across the open fields and countryside?
We are located in the heart of the beautiful North Yorkshire village of Tockwith which is steeped in history and close to the site of the Battle of Marston Moor. We are easily reached from Harrogate , York, Wetherby and Leeds
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We are breeders of elite huacaya alpacas, bred for their beautiful fleeces and wonderful temperaments.
We will be running our treks daily from our farm on a circular route across fields on wide tracks and back down a quiet country lane. We are on a working farm which can get quite busy, especially late summer, with tractors and farm machinery. We can also accommodate pushchairs and wheelchairs using a route that does not go through rough terrain. (please specify on the booking form)
The experience starts with a short health and safety briefing. Please make sure you arrive on time so we can get away on time.
The walks are every day at 10.30am. Alternative afternoons and party bookings are available on request.
Each walk with take between 1 and 1.5 hours which leaves plenty of time to take those all important selfies and little stops the Alpacas take on the way round.
Prices
Currently a maximum of 5 alpacas will be available for each trek – this will help with social distancing.
£25 per person with their own alpaca (min of 2 alpacas per booking)
Minimum age to walk an alpaca is 10 years old. Children under 18 must be accompanied by an adult.
£10 spectators / accompanying the walk
Book Alpaca Trekking – Request Form
DAILY TREKS AT 10.30am – WE ONLY ACCEPT ADVANCE BOOKINGS
****Note: Payment is required within 48 hours of booking. Details will sent to you by email once we have received your request form. If you do not receive an email please contact Maggie on 07791 881556. ***
To start your booking request please select the date you wish to attend on the booking calendar.
NOTE: Alpacas are herd animals so there is a Minimum of two alpacas per booking.
BOOKING HELP: Please enter the 4 digit code to the right of the last box into the last box prior to submitting your booking.
***Gift Vouchers Available***
Wondering what to buy for that someone special?
How about a voucher for an Alpaca Trek with our beautiful boys.
Please email any requests to sandhillsalpacas@aol.com
Testimonials
Hi Maggie
Thank you so much for yesterday. Our walk with your 3 boys was wonderful, your passion for the alpacas oozes from your every pore, we especially enjoyed learning about these very beautiful creatures. Once again thank you Teresa, Tasha and Ellie xxx
We had a lovely afternoon alpaca trekking. The kids loved these adorable and peaceful animals. Maggie was a pleasure to chat with. A great time.
Oct 2020
Just wanted to say thank you for a lovely afternoon & making us feel very welcome. We thoroughly enjoyed our walk with your beautiful alpacas. we found it very informative and relaxing too.
Sept 2020
A day al-packed full of fun!
Our day at Sandhill Alpaca farm was one not easily forgotten. At the end of our time there, whilst we were all exhausted, I felt so thrilled with my experience that I remember asking Maggie if I’d be allowed to spend every weekend at the farm ( much to my mother’s approval ). On the car journey home I remember happily recounting all the memories we had just made whilst reminiscing about the strong characters we had just met in the three alpacas that we walked with. Overall the day was incredibly wholesome and a genuinely lovely experience ( although I still don’t think my walking boots have recovered from the mud ) .
Maggie greeted us as we all laced up our walking boots ( or lack of walking boots in my sister’s case as she had only brought a pair of old trainers ) and we began the short walk down to the alpacas’ field. Upon entering the field ( or more accurately as soon as Maggie had entered the field ) the alpacas turned to watch as my sister, my mother and I slowly followed Maggie’s lead. Quickly the alpacas, realising it was time for food, bounded towards Maggie and the pod in which they were to be fed ( a pod which was amazingly made by Maggie and her husband as were all the pods on the farm ). After the alpaca’s had all made it in, which took a few minutes longer than expected due to Snitch ( a wonderful yet somewhat stubborn alpaca ) wanting to take his time in getting to the pod, three alpacas were chosen for the walk. The three alpacas that were chosen were Helios, Hagrid and Firenze and after Maggie had expertly explained how to correctly handle the alpacas ( including everything from the amount of lead the alpacas like to be held on, to the distance in which you should stay away from the back of the alpacas in case of a rare, self-defensive kick ) we then chose which alpaca we would walk with.
As was tradition in the family, my sister had the first choice of her alpaca in which she chose Firenze. Firenze was a beautiful, earthy hazel coloured alpaca who was as soft in texture as he was in nature; extremely. He quickly came to like not just my sister but also my coat and would come for brief cuddles throughout the walk which consisted of him resting his head on us ( probably to get a sense of our scent more than anything ) whilst we had stopped for short moments during the walk. I then had next choice of the alpacas and so I chose Hagrid, a gorgeous jet black alpaca who, whilst slightly shorter than the other alpacas, made up for it with his incredibly intriguing and lovable personality that he gradually revealed to us throughout the walk. My mother then gladly accepted Helios, an absolutely stunning white alpaca who had a handful of hazel flecks at the top of his chest that made him clearly stand out from the herd. Helios, like Firenze, had recently been on a walk and therefore had no difficulty in leaving the herd. This was not the case for Hagrid, however this didn’t change my experience at all as, whilst it took Hagrid a few minutes to leave the gates of the field, I found that we both warmed up into the walk which especially helped me to feel more at ease.
The walk had begun and quickly Firenze had taken the lead by wanting to follow and give affection to Maggie ( which was adorable ). My mother and Helios, and Hagrid and I were not far behind as we continued our journey along the road. We then took a right onto a long grassy walkway, which due to the recent, unfortunately wet weather had become quite muddy. The mud really didn’t bother the alpacas too much however it was hilarious ( and very understandable ) to see the alpacas move across us to reach a drier part of the path. Also during our journey across the grassy walkway we came across pools of water that the alpacas saw as hurdles, and decided that it was much easier for them to leap across the pools of water and leave us almoststuck in the mud ( emphasis on almost as both Maggie and I had our fair share of slips on that grassy walkway ). The sudden leaps of the alpacas really didn’t bother us as it was all part of the fun and personally I found it extremely interesting, as well as hilarious, to watch the personalities of each of the alpacas unfold as we continued our walk.
We made our way back across another field ( this one much less muddy than the aforementioned grassy walkway ) which had a small stream at it’s rightmost border. This stream was of particular interest to Hagrid who took every possible moment to stop and look at the ducks gliding across it’s surface. Much to Helios’ and Firenze’s annoyance, during these periods, they would have to wait until Hagrid felt perfectly satisfied that he had truly absorbed his surroundings before we could continue. I found this aspect of Hagrid’s personality especially endearing as, during these not so brief waits, it allowed me to follow Hagrid’s example and stop to look at the beautiful scenery that surrounded the farm.
Back at the field, we said our goodbyes to the three alpacas who were welcomed back by the gathering of the herd around it’s entrance. Whilst the walk was sadly over, fortunately, our time at the farm was far from finished. We then made our way into the field which housed Kiera and 5 baby alpacas ( or crias ). As Maggie approached the pod in the field, the alpacas, who realised it was time for them to be fed, bounded toward the pod in a similar yet more enthusiastic fashion than the older male alpacas that we had seen at the start of the day. Maggie then explained that one cria, Jammie Dodger, had a problem with his oesophagus and found it extremely difficult to keep his food down. This is when my sister, eager to help as much as possible, was asked to enter the pod and help Maggie to hold and feed Jammie Dodger. My sister really loved this part of the experience as, whilst it was difficult to hold Jammie Dodger at times, she found it amazing to be able to help the baby alpaca. She also appreciated how supportive Maggie was as she constantly reassured my sister to help her firstly, know what she was doing, and secondly, feel more at ease. Maggie was always close by to take over if needed which also helped when Jammie Dodger, on the hunt for even more food, managed to wriggle out of my sisters gentle grasp. After the alpacas felt that they had been sufficiently fed, or more accurately when Jammie Dodger had finished everyone else’s leftovers, the alpacas were let back into the field. Kiera, now surrounded by the baby alpacas, was Hagrid’s mother and had a perfectly matching jet black coat to prove it. There were three white crias, one of which was Jammie Dodger, and there were two earthy hazel alpacas with coats slightly darker than that of Firenze, one of which was a small alpaca named Autumn. Autumn was an adorable little alpaca whose appearance perfectly reflected her name, as everything from a dark and earthy brown to a light and reddish hazel were woven and perfectly blended across her wool.
Deciding to leave Kiera in charge for a while, Maggie lead us across the field to the entrance to the stables which housed a gorgeous horse named Gweny. Quickly shutting the gate behind us, as to not release what seemed like hundreds of beautiful chickens ( although, in reality, the number was probably around 30 ), we made our way towards Gweny. For me, this was really the main event of the day as I absolutely adore horses especially those which are as lovely and lovable as Gweny. Maggie introduced us all and, as I wanted to be as close as possible, I asked Maggie if it was possible to stroke her to which Maggie replied of course and told me that once she had attached the lead to Gweny, I could take her to the field opposite so that she could stretch her legs. After watching Gweny gallop into the field, we all decided that now would be a great time for a tea and a sit down.
Being greeted by the baby alpacas and an attentive Kiera, we started to make our way back across the field towards a larger pod that was perfectly equipped for a tea, coffee and cake. Fairy lights marked the entrance to the homely pod and inside there were: two chairs ( one two seater sofa and one armchair, upholstered in an adorable bespoke cover of a white background with different vibrantly coloured alpacas patterned across it’s surface) ; a log burner which kept the room warm and toasty ( especially as I stood near it for the majority of my time in the pod) and a tea, coffee and cake station which also had an assortment of chocolates and biscuits to compliment whichever beverage you had. We all sat down for a chat with Maggie and her husband who were both extremely knowledgable about not only the alpacas but life on the farm in general. Maggie’s enthusiasm about the alpacas was contagious and I found myself growing a real interest in the lives of the alpacas and even the details of how to make thread and how hats and scarves were knitted from their wool. To demonstrate this, Maggie showed us some examples of hats and scarves and, feeling the wool between our fingers, we were all astounded by how soft the alpaca wool was. Returning the examples to Maggie, my mother noted that they would make a perfect extra special gift for anyone interested in the amazing comfort of the hats and scarves. After finishing our drinks and reluctantly leaving the warmth of the pod, we went back across the field towards Gweny.
Seeing Maggie at the edge of her field, Gweny slowly made her way back to the entrance ,where her lead was again attached, and Maggie allowed me to walk her back to the stable. Now hungry from her run in the field, Gweny rushed towards some hay kept in netting on the left wall of her stable. Whilst Gweny was feasting on the hay, Maggie allowed me to brush Gweny which removed some of the mud that she had managed to get on herself during her time in the field. Gweny was such a lovely horse who was extremely calm and affectionate and by the time I had finished brushing her I didn’t want to go.
Unfortunately it was time to leave the farm and after saying our goodbyes to all the animals and expressing our gratitude towards Maggie and her husband, we unlaced our now very muddy walking boots and got into the car. We waved goodbye at Maggie and began retelling the tales of the day, already planning our next trip to Sandhill Alpaca Farm.
Overall the day was a wonderful experience and one that we would love to repeat. Thanks again to Maggie and everyone involved who made this amazing day possible!
Denva
It all began when I woke up and go to the farm. The alpacas where warm and soft much good loved em a lot Maggie was a great laugh big up mega respect the walk was fun and just the right length loved the babies the looked cute xxxx would go again 10/10 nice polite alpacas and staff.
Makayla
Hi Maggie xxxx was thrilled with the walk yesterday. she has been unable to work for over 5 yrs for many medical complications Inc. hands, feet back legs hips etc.
So it was an achievement as well. end of July is already in her diary.
Thank you very much.
See u then
Nun Monkton WI
Afternoon what an enjoyable evening and thankyou to you and your daughter for making the evening very special with your Alpaca Family. The way they looked through the door so graceful we have some nice photos. Another request having spoke with my daughter this morning re last night.
Birthday Party
We had our daughters 10th Birthday party here and it was amazing! Maggie the owner is lovely & so accommodating, she stayed in touch from booking right up until the party. The location is fab and the pod is so cosy. The children and parents loved everything about it and nobody wanted to go home! The alpacas are adorable and I would highly recommend the whole experience. We will be back! Thank you so much Maggie & the boys 🦙🦙🦙🦙🦙🦙
Trekking
Hi Paul & Maggie,
Julie informed the whole world about Sandhills Alpacas ( hope that’s ok) had a great time highly recommended .
Best regards
Paul & Julie
