I’m torn on the idea of surprises; for true excitement to really build I need a little something to hold onto, at least a clue here or there. On the other hand, knowing that something is coming up that has been especially planned for you but you can’t even begin to guess what is surely an unrivaled feeling. How do you feel about surprises?
One thing I am certain of though, is that they don’t need to be reserved for special occasions. It turns out that my boyfriend Pete feels the same way about this and a couple of weeks ago informed me that he had a “super secret surprise” planned for that Saturday daytime. That was all the information he would divulge, other than the time we had to leave the house on Saturday morning. I wasn’t even allowed to know what I would need to wear and it was only after some digging I was able to gleam from him that hiking boots were recommended.
Come Saturday morning, I wasn’t allowed into the car until the sat nav had been secretly set up and the printed directions (with the name of our destination blacked out with marker pen!) tucked away just in case. As we began our journey it was clear very early on that we were heading to North Yorkshire but other than that I honestly had no inkling at all.
As we approached, I got thinking about an activity I’d spotted a while ago and thought what a great surprise it would be plan in return. I mentioned this to Pete and told him I had an idea of something he would love.
Pulling off the road and onto a bumpy track, I spotted a sign out of the corner of my eye. Can you guess where this is going? Yep, it was the very same activity I’d just remembered and never considered at all that it might be what we were going that day! The title of this post of course was a giveaway for you: we were going llama trekking.
Based in the Yorkshire Dales, Nidderdale Llamas is home to around seventeen llamas and a few alpacas too. For the trek, we were told we would be matched with the best llama for us. After hearing a little about all of their personalities, Pete leaned in and whispered that he hoped we would get matched with Tobie, a slightly dippy but affectionate 3-year old llama. As luck would have it, we were indeed matched with Tobie and so off we set on the trek.
Something I learnt on the day was quite how loving llamas are – Tobie loved having his neck stroked (although he wasn’t much of a multitasker and would halt if you stroked him mid-trek) and once he’d bonded us with us began leaning in for kisses.
It was wonderful to spend time getting to know such a beautiful animal and I left with even more love for llamas. I’d definitely recommend heading into Nidderdale Llamas if you’re ever in the area, but be sure to book in advance.
Thanks to Pete for an amazing for-no-reason-at-all surprise!
Have you ever been llama trekking?
