The Twelve Days of Christmas: Day 8, Eight Maids-A-Milking

Illustration courtesy of Thinkstock

We are finally done with the birds and on to the labor/entertainment gifts. If you didn’t know, we have been exploring where to go to obtain or achieve everything from the song, “The Twelve Days of Christmas,” here is day number eight. If you would like to re-read the journey, go to our Holiday Travel Guide.

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Jessica Zickefoose

Eight Maids-a-Milking

Where oh where are you going to find eight milk maids in today’s day and age? That I am not sure of, but we do have a place to go to get trained to become a milkmaid. So if we grab all of your ex-girlfriends, put an ad out on social media and maybe grab your sister and mother, we’ll have eight women all together and we can go get some training at 59 Heifer Farm in Questra, NM. 

There isn’t much in this small town, and funny enough the owners of 59 Heifer Farm, Robert and Joy Smith live completely off the grid.  So far off the grid in fact, that when you look up their address to the farm, it comes up as the National Labs at Los Alamos. They are however, bringing back something that may seem trivial to some in this modern world: hand milking of cows.

Ever since 1995, they have been training men and women how to milk cows by hand and train cows how to be milked by hand. By the time that a cow is done with their six- to eight-week course, the cow will come when called, stand tied, lead and of course, hand milk. Joy and Robert expect all new cow owners to come and learn on-site how to milk cows if you are purchasing one from them, but you don’t need to buy a cow to take the two-day class.  During the class you learn everything from what supplies you are going to need to proper care of your cow and even how to make butter, soft cheese and yogurt.

The $575 all-inclusive package includes accommodations (in a shared housing environment), two dinners, two lunches and two breakfasts plus the workshop in a small group setting.

Once you are trained in the fine art of hand milking, it is time to explore the local area (you didn’t come all the way out here to the middle of nowhere and not want to take a look around?). 

Santa Fe

Santa Fe is just an hour or so south and there is a plethora of things to do in the area. Historic sites, Indian Pueblos, hiking, river rafting and even a chile cheeseburger tour await. That is chile, as in green chile (spelled like the country), of which Santa Fe is the green chile capital of the world. If you get the chance check out the Second Street Brewery which appears on the tour. See if they will make you their “Best-Burger-Winning," Alien Burger with blue corn chile relleno, pepperjack, more green chile, guac, bacon, stout queso, fried red onion, and chipotle mayo. Holy guacamole! 

Well there it is, out to north of Santa Fe for day eight.  With all of the nuclear research that went on at Los Alamos, do you think the cows’ milk is green?  I will let you ponder that while you watch today’s video:

Happy Thanksgiving!

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