The Cow Carousel

We're back!

After an extended time away from our adventures,

we've hit the road again.

We'd heard about Fair Oaks Farms from a friend who told stories about a cow carousel and about being able to witness the

birth of a calf. How could we resist?

Along the way we came across a wind farm in Benton County. According to their website, 87 wind turbines generate power which is then sold to local utility companies in hopes of reducing

green house gas emissions and to lower energy costs.

We loved seeing the turbines. They're huge and mesmerizing.

I couldn't help wondering if accidents along this part of the

interstate had increased with the establishment of the wind farm.

Here's a photo from their website,

www.earlparkindiana.com/windfarm.html.

(Obtaining this photo from the website was much safer than

pulling over along the interstate and taking my own photo!)

Fair Oaks Farms is located just off I65, between Lafayette and Crown Point, Indiana. You can't miss the gas station at the exit with the beautiful farm mural painted on the side of the building.

The farm is an actual working dairy farm and is one of the largest in the country. It has several areas of interest for visitors. We visited the Birthing Barn first.

In a theatre-like setting, the cows are on stage behind plate-glass windows while giving birth to calves.

You can witness the birth from beginning to end. It's absolutely beautiful and done in a respectful manner. More than 80 calves are born on the farm each day so your chances of seeing a birth are good no matter when you visit--just check the stoplight outside the barn for the status--green means a calf is being born.

Within minutes of being born, the young calves are persistent in their efforts to stand on all four wobbly legs. While mothering time is limited, the mother cows do what they can to clean up their offspring before their calf is whisked away to its own enclosure.

Next, we climbed aboard an air-conditioned bus for the Dairy Barn Tour. The farm is particular about germs the cows may be exposed to by visitors, so the entire tour is conducted without direct contact between cows and humans.

The highlight of this tour had to be the Cow Carousel. The carousel allows 72 cows to be milked at once. With over 30,000 cows to be milked three times a day, the carousel isn't just an entertaining feature for visitors--it's a necessity. It's amazing to watch the cows enter and exit the carousel with limited human intervention. They know exactly what to do.

It's like watching a choreographed show.

Visit Fair Oaks Farms website at: http://www.fofarms.com/.

Our road trip wouldn't be complete without lunch and Fair Oaks Farms provided a wonderful farm-fresh menu with plenty of dairy product selections. The food was delicious and we also purchased dairy items from the store to take home.

Not only was this our first road trip in quite awhile, but it was also Cat's 70th birthday! We enjoyed spending time with her on this special day. Cat is an amazing woman who is the glue that holds the IndyGoGirls together. Her easy-going manner, sense of humor and thoughtfulness are just a few of her admirable qualities. Happy Birthday, Cat!!

It was a gorgeous day. We learned a lot, laughed a lot and were thankful for the friendships we're nurturing on these trips.

Seven Cows Standing (Dairy Queens) by Rumara Jewett

"Who was the first guy that looked at a cow and said,

'I think that I'll drink whatever comes out of those things when I squeeze them.'?" ~Bill Watterson

Road Trip

We decided to take our first road trip on Wednesday, April 1st. We visited Traders Point Creamery in Zionsville. This family-owned, certified organic farm--the only one of its kind in Indiana--is a treat for the eyes as well as the taste buds. Our visit began, of course, in the farm's restaurant, The Loft, where we each chose different meals for lunch.

The Grilled Pesto Chicken sandwich was superb! Each ingredient is a testament to the farm's reputation for quality and freshness. The boneless breast of the free-range chicken was topped with a melted slice of Swiss cheese which blended perfectly with the subtle flavor of the sundried tomato pesto slathered on the top and bottom of the sesame-seed roll. The rolls had just been delivered as we were being shown to our table. Along with my chicken sandwich, I had to have a tall glass of the creamery's chocolate milk. It is the smoothest, richest, thickest chocolate milk I've ever had! There is no going back to ordinary chocolate milk for me.

After lunch, we took a short, self-guided tour of the creamery grounds. The herd of grass-fed Brown Swiss cows are milked twice a day, at 6:00 am and 4:00 pm. If you're not fortunate enough to be there when this is going on, you can still peek into the milking barn and see the high-tech, computerized milking machines. Hey, they're an organic farm, not an old-fashioned, do-it-by-hand farm! You'll also see the bottling of the milk and yogurt just behind the big plate glass window. Standing at the highest point on the farm affords a spectacular view of the many pastures, where the cows can be seen grazing and the chickens and roosters seem to be busy socializing with each other.

Before piling into our car for the short ride home, we HAD to stop at the farm store to purchase some of Traders Point Creamery's aged, artisan cheese, Fleur de la Terre, our own bottles of that fabulous chocolate milk and a box of their beef patties which are from 100% grass-fed cows. One last look at the beautiful and serene farm, nestled in a valley near Eagle Creek, reminded us that we don't have to travel far from home to commune with nature and to connect with Hoosier roots. How fortunate we are to live in this place at this time. What a great day!

Visit Traders Point Creamery on-line at: http://www.tpforganics.com/.