Llamas grazed in fields on both sides of road as we trekked up hill. The idea of using Llamas for hiking was a foreign idea to me, but not one for history.

Known as probably one of first domesticated animals, early fossils have been found of these docile creatures in America dating back 5000 years. A member of Camelid family, llamas are considered a burden bearing creature, meaning they are work animals.

The Livengood family, owners of WindDancers, have been breading llamas for decades and love gentleness of animals.

The sight of surprisingly tall animals, made lodge feel comfortable and laid back, much as their demeanor.

We first meet some of Livengoods when settling into our room and they told us about llamas and lodge. There are hundreds of acres of wooded hillside that family takes visitors on their hikes. We were not able to hike with llamas due to weather conditions but we walked a small trail leading to a lunch deck.

To read this entire feature FREE with photos cut and paste this link: http://www.jetsettersmagazine.com/archive/jetezine/cabinweb/east/nc/llama/llama.html

John Ross, Jetsetters Magazine Correspondent – Read Jetsetters Magazine at www.jetsettersmagazine.com To book travel visit Jetstreams.com at www.jetstreams.com and for Beach Resorts visit Beach Booker at www.beachbooker.com

His wife charmed area she walked in with a vibrant smile and soft spoken voice that made whole experience feel more like a visit to distant relatives than a two-day squat around strangers.

Dinner was said to be at 6 p.m., so with a few hours to kill, we dropped our bags by room, grabbed some amazingly large carrots and headed out to numerous fenced in areas where over 50 Arabian horses were kept.

The horses were amazingly tame and trained to sight of carrots as they all converged, heads stuck over fence praying for a taste. They were a collage of colors and sizes and mainly female.

Surprisingly free, our walk never uncovered a closed door or keep out sign, but it did reveal some very friendly goats and dogs, one hobbling on a bad leg, but curiously pouncing forward looking for a good rub behind ears.

We rendezvoused at dining hall after dinner bell was sounded, where we all sat down at same table and stared at a feast of food. I learned Shawn was vegetarian and had been since early '80s. "I don't believe in killing animals and eating them," he said frankly, as he rolled what looked like soy meatballs onto his plate.

The other workers of ranch were introduced to us. Jade, 18-year-old fellow that another guest had so correctly stated his looks as a carbon copy of Billy Kid, grinned and tipped his hat in a shy manner—spoon full of food. Jade, I later learned, hailed from Texas and had spent more of his teenage years traveling country during summer and working at various ranches.

Our cook, Scott, was from Colorado and made most amazing homemade bread I had ever tasted.

There were two other couples on that evening, one from Kentucky who owned a few horses and was living cowboy dream but was there as a Valentines Day present to husband. The other couple was lively and exuberant, neither being an avid rider but served as comic relief whole weekend.

We retired to our respective rooms after dinner—all couples tired from their drive and ready to wake up in morning and ride some horses.

Breakfast was at 8 a.m., consisting of eggs, bacon and biscuits. Shawn told us he started ranch because he couldn't part with any of horses he had and after acquiring so many, ranch came to him as a means of financing upkeep on horses. To read this entire feature FREE with photos cut and paste this link: http://www.jetsettersmagazine.com/archive/jetezine/cabinweb/french/french.html

John Ross, Jetsetters Magazine Correspondent – Read Jetsetters Magazine at www.jetsettersmagazine.com To book travel visit Jetstreams.com at www.jetstreams.com and for Beach Resorts visit Beach Booker at www.beachbooker.com