52 New: #6 Northshore Goat Farm

Goat farm, there's something I didn't expect to add to my "52 New Things" list.  Sweet Land Farm is a cute goat dairy that makes handmade goat cheeses and other goat milk products only fifteen minutes away from our house and on the way to the Northshore.  I've driven past the farm hundreds of times and never even knew it was there.  And then a couple of Saturdays ago, my friend texts me a picture of a bunch of baby goats...my curiosity was sparked.  Tell me more.    

A couple of minutes of Instagram sleuthing, using Waze to pinpoint the exact location to turn off the main road, and a quick glimpse of their Facebook page, and I was ready to venture out with Isom and the boys to check out a Goat Farm.  I was on the fence (like the goats) on whether or not I could count the excursion as a "New Thing".  I have been to a goat farm on Maui.  I've been to other types of farms that have goats.  But in the end I decided it did count, since this was a "New O'ahu experience".  I hadn't gone to a goat farm on O'ahu until today.  Something new.  Something bah-mazing. 😂        

The drive to the goat farm was quick and pleasant.  It was a cloudy day but the mountains were still visible in the distance so we got to enjoy the scenery of the Wai'anae Mountain range.  As we pulled up to the parking area, I was surprised by the amount of folks there to visit the farm.  I'm still in Covid shock over everything.  When there's traffic, I'm shocked.  When there's more than five people at one place, I'm shocked.  I know it's a sign that things are starting to head in a normal direction, so it's good, but I have secretly been enjoying going places without any crowds.  Having entire stores, restaurants, and freeways to myself has been an incredible up side to this whole Covid Year.   

The first place we stopped after arriving at the goat farm was the Farm Shop.  There are stuffed animals, t-shirts, caramel, meats, water, and several different varieties of goat cheese for sale.  Inside the shop you can also buy bags of alfalfa for $3 to feed the goats (not the baby goats).  We each got a bag and after hanging out with the baby goats for a few minutes, we made our way towards the back of the farm---where the big (and always hungry) goats were.  Now the fun could begin.   

Each goat seemed to have a personality all their own.  We noticed that they each had a tag in their ears with their names written on them.  Strawberry and Roomba were the two stand outs.  The boys really got a kick out of how the goats lapped up all their food with their tongues.  Watching all the goats clamor to be the one to get fed by us visitors was pretty entertaining.  The farm was very clean and quiet.  It was the perfect lazy Saturday morning outing---wandering around the grounds of the farm with the clouds keeping us cool and protected from the hot Hawaiian sun, was just how I wanted to spend an hour or so after my morning cup of coffee.  

                                                                                                  

I'm not sure how other people came across this hidden gem.  Maybe their friends tipped them off too.  I'm so glad mine did.  I liked getting the kids out and around some farm animals.  It's always good to see where your food comes from.  And speaking of food, we still had cheeses to sample and buy.  Each of the flavors of Chevre looked tempting, but in the end we settled on the tomato basil.  Yum.  We picked up a triangle of Feta cheese, a block of cheese similar to Parmesan, and a Gouda block.  We are Keto friendly and cheese rich!  A morning of dairy makes everyone happy.

Sweet Land is only open for goat feeding and ogling and goat cheese buying on Saturdays from 9:00 a.m. until Noon.  It is a small window of opportunity, but you can pack a lot of goat fun into that time frame.  There doesn't appear to be a fee for just coming to check out the goats.  There also wasn't a set guided tour that we participated in.  There were a couple of farm workers around, but for the most part, it was a self guided experience.  We didn't take any goats home with us (just lots of cheeses) this time, but they sure had us wanting to.  

Sweet Land Farm

65-1031 Kaukonahua Road

Waialua, Hawaii

Visit Saturdays 9:00 a.m.- Noon