First Day of Fall Field Trip

             We said farewell to Summer officially this weekend- Fall arrived with a storm of epic proportions. Wind and rain on Sunday morning forced us to scrap our original plans to play outside and look for something a little dryer! Originally we had planned to head out to the Fraser Valley and explore Fort Langley- this was not to be- but we were still pretty keen on the idea of a day in the country so we loaded up the truck and headed East to Abbotsford.

          Our trip was very spontaneous and we weren't really sure what we would end up doing- we paid a visit to down town Abbotsford and I stopped by for a quick browse at Spruce Collective- of course. We were headed home when we decided to stop at the red barn we always see from the highway when we are heading to the Okanagan- we have always been curious about this spot and it felt like the perfect time to stop.

           The red barn is home to Nature's Pickin's- a local deli and produce store- lots of local goodies including Monkey Butter and some really yummy cookies! In addition to the store there is a learning dairy Bakerview EcoDairy- lots of cute little animals to visit with as well as plenty of space to run around- The Boy was pretty excited about the tractors! Tours of the dairy barn happen regularily throughout the day- visitors can see the robotic milkers working and visit with a few of the happy cows.

        The Eco Dairy is the first demonstration farm of it's kind in Canada- incorporating green technology with tradition. You can see evidence of this every where you look- most noticeable- the giant rain water collectors. Surrounded by 80 acres of farmland- including blueberry bushes- the dairy can only be described as bucolic in nature- no wonder they have happy cows!

         We loved visiting the goats and sheep- Miss Lo really liked the sheep a lot and spent some time feeding them grass through the fence- aside from the cow smell- which she really did not like- she enjoyed the animals. I really feel it is important to get out of our comfort zone once in a while and try new things- Miss Lo was definitely out of her comfort zone- mud and cows- two things she really doesn't care for but she gave it her best.

        We drive through this area often- on our way home in either direction- I love the scenery- flat and open- so unlike the valley I grew up in. Even with the cloud cover down low it was easy to admire the lush greenery broken up by tall poplars starting to change colour. It was nice to stop and explore a place that feels so familiar yet not at all as we only see it from the window of our vehicle.
       

          After thoroughly exploring the tractors, barn and pens out back we did stop and do a little grocery shopping- such a small well stocked little shop- everything local and fresh. It's fall harvest season now so the pumpkins are coming out as are apples and corn. This was such a fun little stop- I mean where else can you grocery shop with roaming chickens?

        If you are looking to go Nature's Pickin's or the Bakerview EcoDairy both are located at 1356 Sumas Way and is open seven days a week- family owned and operated you will find only high quality, local goods here. I am so glad we stopped- after all these years I finally got to find out what was in the red barn on the side of the highway!