I live near Buckingham Pond in Albany’s “campus neighborhood,” and so I see all the ducks I want.
My streets are also full of cats, squirrels and crows; so backyard wildlife is never lacking. My neighbor, Dino, said he saw a falcon the other day. The fast flier punished a hapless blue jay for his insolence. I hope this noble bird develops an appetite for crows next.

Now if I wanted to see spring lambs, alpacas, goats and fiber products, I’d head into Washington County this weekend. The 16th annual Washington County Fiber Tour will be held Saturday and Sunday, rain or shine, from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. It’s a free event, and a self-guided tour. So people can save money and mosey along at their own paces.

I think something like this is a perfect diversion for small children. Those spring lambs are darn cute, and unlike the noisy, loutish crows and mischievous, yowling cats in my part of town, they are gentle, well-mannered and relatively quiet. I can take a little bleating before a little cawing, which around my house is a LOT of cawing.

Fourteen stops are listed in the tour brochure, which people can access by clicking HERE.

Among participating farms are places with great names that both kids and adults will get a kick out of — like “Crazy as a Loom” in Kingsbury, “Sheepy Hollow Farm” in Argyle and the “Enchanted Farm” in Cambridge. A lot of these places have old barns and farmhouses on the grounds, and I’ll bet the current stewards will be happy to share stories about their country places.

At Ensign Brook Farm in Greenwich, Karin and Eric Kennedy on Saturday will host the “Sheep-N-Kids 4-H Club,” and this crew will be spinning and dying wool. On Sunday, shearing will be demonstrated.
People can even buy souvenirs. Wool-related items, fleece, art and even maple syrup from the Moses Sap House will be available at Ensign Brook; so will educations — parents can show their children that socks and sweaters don’t just magically appear in stores.
“It gets them in touch with nature, and they can see the whole fiber process,” Karin Kennedy said. “They can see the animal, they can touch the animal.”
There will be extras at several stops on the tour. Sunset Ridge Alpacas in Valley Falls has its own gift shop, for example. And folks can buy home-produced yarn at the Simple Pleasures Farm in Salem, home to a “Handspinners” flock of sheep and Angora goats.

The whole thing sounds full of scrapbook moments. “Our friendly animals are ready to welcome you to Haven Hill” say the folks at Haven Hill Alpacas, another Greenwich farm. “We have nine alpacas in colors from white to black, as well as fiber-producing rabbits and dogs. Horses, cats and chinchillas live here, too.”

I might cruise through Sunday.
As for Saturday, it will be the first Saturday in May and the roses are ready in Kentucky: I’ve got to spend some time with the horses!