If you love fluffy alpacas, a trip to Serenity at Stony Point Alpaca Farm just outside Statesville, NC, about two hours from the Upstate, is the place to go, especially if you’re planning a trip nearby! Thank you to Visit Statesville for setting up our trip to their beautiful town.
I love alpacas, especially the fluffy kind with big eyes that look like they are judging me. Even better when I can get up close with them, which is exactly what you can do at Serenity at Stony Point Alpaca Farm in Statesville, NC, just two hours from the Upstate, SC.Â
We spent a couple of hours at this really cool farm and learned more than we could ever write in one story. Valerie, one of the owners, has a wealth of knowledge about alpacas and I left with a greater appreciation of these cool creatures.Â
About Serenity Alpacas
Serenity Alpaca Farm is just outside downtown Statesville, North Carolina, a quaint little town full of local shops and restaurants. While the town is actually known for its vibrant hot air balloon community, there are lots of local gems like the alpaca farm.
Valerie and Javi own the farm and Javi is from Peru, where alpacas are from, so it works out well. When they bought the acreage, Val asked Javi what kind of animals they should have and he immediately suggested alpacas. It was a done deal from there.
The farm currently has about 36 alpacas but several of the females are pregnant, which is a whole other story. I’ll give you the short version in a minute.
Serenity Alpacas gives public tours almost daily and does a lot of community events and shows where they compete to see who has the best alpacas. I need to find one of these and be a judge.
The farm is large and very clean. They even have a place down by a creek on the property where people will soon be able to reserve for camping. It’s truly gorgeous.
There is a playground for the kids and a covered picnic area where tours begin and guests can hang out and enjoy the alpacas as they check you out.
Alpaca Cool Facts
I’ve been to a couple alpaca farms and I always, always learn something new when I go. Our visit to Serenity Alpaca is no exception. So here are few things I learned:
- Female alpacas are usually bred 21 days after giving birth. They are meant to be pregnant all the time. If they aren’t, they are prone to uterine infections.
- Gestation for cria’s (baby alpacas) is about 380 days. Heck no, says this human mom.
- The younger the alpaca is in age, the fluffier their coats are, which makes for softer fibers.Â
- Alpacas are shorn every April.
- A baby alpaca is called a cria. Or just a really cute fluffball.
Touring Serenity Alpaca Farm
Once you hit the gravel road not far from downtown Statesville, you are almost to the farm. Upon arrival, you’ll be greeted by Valerie, who will talk to you all about the alpacas. If she has any alpaca scarves or stuffed animals, she’ll show you. These items are so incredibly soft. I had to use my willpower not to spend a lot of money buying winter hats and scarves.
On the day we went, several alpacas were hanging out at the playground and near the covered pavilion where we were learning about alpaca fibers and checking out the handspun scarves and hats. They were just wandering around, eating, and playing. It was really fun to watch them.
When Javi, Val’s husband and co-owner of the farm, stopped by, he picked up a two-month old cria and asked if we wanted to hold it. Hold a baby alpaca?! Oh my gosh, I almost lost my mind. Getting to hold the little guy was so soothing. He was the perfect little alpaca and gave great snuggles. I could feel anxiety leaving my body. They should really do alpaca therapy here.
After holding the cria, we learned more about alpacas while walking down to the campsite next to the spring-fed pool. They are almost ready to list it out for rent. The space is very private and beautiful and perfect for a nice little camping getaway.
We met some of the alpaca boys, whose only job is to get the ladies pregnant. They were also nice and fluffy and one liked to give kisses. Of course, he did.Â
We fed some of the female alpacas some grain treats, which they absolutely loved. It gave us another chance to get close and personal with the animals, which we really enjoyed. They aren’t small but they are gentle.
Tours last about an hour but ours went a bit longer since we just got to talking about the farm and the animals and since I had a lot of questions. There’s a whole other world out there of alpaca farmers that I just didn’t much about. Pretty fascinating.
Overall Review of Serenity Alpaca Farm
Being that I already loved alpacas, touring Serenity Alpaca Farm was amazing. Valerie is so knowledgeable and Javi gave me a baby alpaca to hold. It really doesn’t get much better.
Val is also a great tour guide and an open book about her life on the farm and the intricacies of raising alpacas. I also loved how much you got to interact with the animals. They are super friendly and funny and curious. Smaller kids may be a little nervous because the animals are about the size of a 12-year-old or a bit taller. My daughters really enjoyed them though and had fun interacting with them.
Alpacas are curious creatures so we had times where they’d sneak up behind us. It was so adorable! Being with the animals is calming and truly relaxing. If you’re in the Statesville, NC area, I’d certainly recommend a trip to Serenity Alpacas.
Touring Serenity Alpaca Farm
Tours are ongoing at the farm but you do need to make a reservation ahead of time.
Tickets are $10/adult, $5/children 5-12 and ages 4 and under are free. Please leave pets at home and wear shoes you are comfortable getting a little dirty – it’s a working farm.
To book a tour, use their online calendar or give them a call.
If you’d like to have a birthday party there, that’s doable. I mean, I’d love to have a birthday party at an alpaca farm. Just saying.
Serenity at Stony Point Alpaca FarmÂ
226 Walker Valley Drive, Stony Point, NCÂ
Serenity Alpaca Farm Website | Serenity Alpaca Farm FacebookÂ