Farmer Flory Sanderson in her shoppe at Island Hill Farm.
Milk ‘n’ Make A day at Island Hill Farm
STORY AND PHOTOS BY DARCY RHYNO
C “
utest place on Earth,” reads a sign hung beside the barn door. Beneath the sign sits a salvaged church pew painted baby blue. I park beneath a tree next to four vintage one-speed bicycles— burgundy, orange, purple and blue—resting on their kickstands. Two pink Adirondack chairs sit on the veranda where another sign in the same cheerful font reads “Farmhouse.” Island Hill Farm in central PEI might indeed be the cutest place on Earth. “Hi, I’m Farmer Flory,” says a woman emerging from the goat barn wearing denim overalls and a big smile. For the next few hours, I’ll be participating in the farm’s Milk and Make experience. With a warm handshake, Flory Sanderson says, “Today, you’ll get a tour of the milking parlour, then we’ll make a little soap.” The goats are overdue for their milking so there’s no time
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to lose. Inside an air-conditioned room, I find a tidy, automated, one-person operation that efficiently milks about 20 goats. When Farmer Flory opens the door, the goats peer inside, hesitant because of the stranger in their midst. I’m instantly taken by their bemused, inquisitive faces with those furry, upturned mouths and the floppy ears. As she passes, each goat gives me a look that seems to doubt I’m up to the job. On the raised platform, the goats turn to feed from their trough and Sanderson clips them into position. I’m now facing a long line of goat tails. She hands me latex gloves and grips me by the thumb to show me how to milk a goat by hand. It’s an awkward, amusing moment. She sets a small container beneath a goat and with quick movements, squirts two streams of milk. Then it’s my turn. I grip and pull like Sanderson showed
me, but only a dribble of milk drops into the container. I suddenly have a new respect for the skill and dedication of farmers and the animals they care for. Sanderson adjusts my technique and I finally get the milk to flow. “I used to milk 15 goats twice a day by hand,” Sanderson says. “I love hand milking.” She still bottle feeds up to 30 baby goats every year. “It’s a big task, but lots of fun.” To speed things up, we use the milking machine to complete the job. It doesn’t take long and we’ve got several gallons of frothy goat milk. We pour it off into containers that go into the freezer, either for transport to a cheese making facility or to the basement in the farmhouse where Sanderson makes soap. That’s where we’re headed next. Shelves and shelves of goat milk soap bars are stacked against the walls. Essential oils and other ingredients like the lavender
