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1990:
We held the first alpaca breeders meeting in conjunction with the LANA (Llama Association of North America) and ILR (International Llama Registry) conference. Llama and alpaca breeders from all over the US came to this conference. Most alpaca owners were Llama owners as well. We were hoping the Llama group would including the alpacas, but to no avail it was to remain the llama association, alpaca would not be added to the name. One of the first organized alpaca meetings was held at Castle Hill Farm, the former home of NGG alpacas. The talk was to organize the alpaca breeders of America and talk of plans were made for first alpaca shows. One of the first alpaca shows was held in Grass Valley, California in conjunction with a llama show. Castle Hill Farm alpacas took first and third in this show and made the front page in the local paper.
1991:
First alpaca show held in conjunction with the Estes Park Wool Market was held in Estes Park, Colorado. This show mostly consisted of fiber bearing animals. It was a perfect place to promote the alpacas and their luxurious fiber. The guidelines were under the ALSA (American Llama Show Association). There was not a lot of knowledge about fiber. So conformation, coverage and soundness were the judging criteria. The more educated we all became on fiber the more emphasis was added to the show criteria.
AOBA started a show committee and was a active board member from 1991-96.
1992:
The first alpaca fest was held, The International Alpacafest in Hillsboro, Oregon at Northwest Alpacas Ltd. It was the first pen sale in which several farms participated in joint marketing in alpacas and their farms. Mike had arranged for a Peruvian breeder to attend the pen sale and to educate us on the breeding of alpacas. The Peruvian Breeder name was Don Julio Barreda. When I heard this, again another dream of mine was about to be fulfilled. I had been reading about him since 1985 and the work he had achieved within his breeding practices. How excited I was to be able to meet the man who I regarded as the most knowledgeable alpaca breeder in the World. Not only did he have the knowledge of the Huacaya, but also of the Suri. Suri’s had just come into our country via Bolivia and were imported by Bill Barnett of Alpacas and Llamas of America. . Never did I think Suri’s would be in North America, as the Suri was regarded as a national treasure in Peru.
I have always dreamed of them being imported as I had only known of Suri’s in being in Peru. I jumped at a chance of owning a Suri. Again the Suri’s were offered in pairs and you could only purchase the crias. In which I purchased two pairs, another dream fulfilled. I was quite anxious to talk to Don Julio at the festival after he gave a talk about his opinions on cross breeding and he pointed out the positive and negative traits of both the llamas and alpacas. After his speech was over we took a break and soon after Walter Bravo and Don Julio came over to my pen and we ended up speaking for about three hours. I shared with him about the purchase of my Suri’s and how I wished I could’ve started with Suri’s. It was because of his writings that my heart had opened to the idea of being an alpaca breeder. He let me know in Peru, the fiber capital of the world, alpacas were bred for solid colors and not multi-colored. Animals that were multi-colored in Peru were culled. He shared that the alpacas were bred for density and fineness, which is very hard to get together. Good conformation was also very important for the soundness of the animal. He liked the larger boned animals. As people were waiting in line at my pen to speak to Don Julio, we decided to meet later in that week at the LANA show where he would assist in judging so others could have their turn. Nola was chairman of the Alpacafest International until 1994.
1993:
Started her herd with 6 alpacas and has raised over 500 in the last 20 years and served on the AOBA board of directors in 1993.
Went to the second annual AOBA conference and was elected to the board of directors of AOBA she served for one term. Started a publication called Alpaca International News in 1993 until 1999 in which she published over 30 issues in the 6 years of running. Attended the first Peruvian importation held in Traverse City in Michigan. There she met Roger and Clyde Haldane from Australia. Arriving to the sale late she missed an opportunity to buy six pack packages of alpacas that were sold in the event. So Roger and Clyde sold her three Suri females from their selection and spent the afternoon talking Suri. They had spent some time in Peru and with Don Julio and were very willing to share their experience and knowledge they gained from their visit.
1994:
Nola was a part of the importation in 1994-95 where she bought her Suri’s.
Castle Hills Farm participated in one of the first parades of champions Accoyo America one of the first private farm auctions
At the Peruvian Elite Alpaca Sale in Michigan, in which Don Julio’s animals were first brought into the United States, the Huacaya and Suri Accoyo’s were first introduced and Nola was not going to miss this! Because the sale was so well attended we had to draw numbers for picking order so it was fair for everyone. The first pick was picked by a gentleman whom decided he did not want to purchase a six pack. So he forfeited his place in which Nola was able to obtain. Long story short Nola ended up with first, third and fourth pick of her choice per six pack. How it worked is you got five females and one male per six pack selecting the males first. My first males were Uribe/Durazno, Torbio, Inca. Don Julio took me to the barn in the back where there was an animal named Ganador that was pulled from the sale due to eye injury. I asked him if Ganador was as good as the male he had previously spoke about in his clinic on breeding the perfect Suri fleece. He said, “Better”! I could see Ganador’s luster and penciled locks in a dark barn, absolutely stunning. So I inquired in purchasing him and they sold him to me “as is”. I asked him, “How old were the males that I just bought”? He proceeded to tell me that Durazno was approximately five years of age. Torbio, Inca and Ganador were approximately two years of age. The next day was the selection of the females. It was a battlefield, but I was fortunate enough to obtain genetics from Accoyo Alianza and Antacalla ranches. The next day was the selection of the females. It was a battlefield, but I was fortunate enough to obtain genetics from Accoyo Alianza and Antacalla ranches.
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