Llamas thrive...

...near Burns Lake

You're planning a hike in the mountains with friends. This time, you won't need to carry a heavy pack full of tents, sleeping bags and food. You have a pack animal to do that. No, you won't need a pack horse. You have a llama which can carry 80 to 100 pounds of camping gear for 8 to 10 miles per day. Don't worry, your llama adapts well to high mountain paths. After all, the llama is native to the high plateaus and mountains of Peru, Bolivia and Chile in South America. They are descendants of camels and their fine coat makes them comfortable in our cold weather.

Two young llamas and an adult

Note the long "banana"-shaped ears of the llama

Llamas are intelligent, gentle and make great companions on the trail. Fine, you say, but where would I find a llama in Canada? That's easy. Go to Burns Lake, turn south on Highway 35 and drive 15 minutes to Francois Lake. That's the home of the Omineca Llama Ranch owned by Sharol Briere and Doug Montaldi. The idea for a llama ranch came from watching a TV program about llamas. Sharol thought that having one llama as a pet would be fun. She started research and soon became so fascinated with llamas that plans were made to start a new llama ranch on their property at Francois Lake. The plans soon included more than just llamas.