October 28, 2015
This post takes you on a fun desert adventure in Ramona at a local Camel Dairy, and shows you how to take this family-friendly tour.
One of my favorite modern-day adventure stories is the tale of Aussie-outback explorer Robyn Davidson. In her beautiful story Tracks, which charts her epic adventure, she details her solo journey from the middle of the continent to the coastline with nothing but four camels and her dog. It’s a journey many thought impossible for even seasoned adventurers, but she is quoted as believing that “ordinary people are capable of extraordinary things.”
These are what are known as dromedary camels (one hump). One of the most fascinating things about them is the fact that they are the only mammals with oval-shaped red blood cells, instead of round. When temperatures rise, those cells can shrink down and still move effectively through veins and arteries, delivering much-needed oxygen and nutrients despite an internal temperature of as high as 108 degrees.
Our other two children riding Cleopatra.
Me with Camelot. He was so sweet!
Because Oasis was the first camel dairy in the nation, their biggest challenge was obtaining legal authorization to sell camel milk for consumption. The benefits of camel milk are many; nonetheless, the State of California has yet to allow it. Instead, the dairy makes skin and beauty products from the milk, adding lavender, honey, and pomegranate for variety.
Another challenge faced by camel-keepers is access to a veterinarian qualified to treat camels – their issues are much different from other farm animals like horses or cows. Oasis has even taken in camels that had been given up on for health reasons, and with time and patience, nurtured them back to health using experience and gut instinct… no pun intended (these are ruminants, after all!)
Come on out to Ramona and patronize this sweet local farm.
You might even make a new friend!
Check out the Tracks movie trailer here, and get ready to be inspired:
Thanks for looking! xo
