Long Island Farm

Owners Neil and Glenda Watson are descended from a long line of Falklands farm managers and workers, and a visit to their 20,000 acre station conveys an exclusive understanding of the islands traditional sheep farming practices.

Your experience will begin with an hour-long coach drive through countryside abundant with intriguing geographical features, and fascinating historical evidence of the fierce battles of the 1982 Conflict with Argentina; all of which will be explained to you by your local guide.

On arrival at the farm you will be greeted by Neil and Glenda, along with their family, and any visiting friends. Neil’s son will demonstrate the dying art of peat-cutting, the back-breaking work of chopping sods of turf from the land in order to dry them and use them for fuel for cooking and heating.

From the ‘peat-bog’ you will take a short stroll towards the shearing shed where Neil will demonstrate the penning of a small flock of sheep by his skilled sheep dogs. These hard-working stylish collies and the noisy New Zealand hunterway are a friendly lot and won’t object to a pat of appreciation if they happen to pass you by.

At the shearing shed you will witness the shearing of a sheep (the removal of its fleece by an experienced shearer). Neil and the shearer will explain how the fleece is thrown onto the table where various parts will be removed before the fleeces is ‘rolled’ and then classed depending on its quality or fineness.

Next you will enjoy homemade tea, coffee and cakes in the family kitchen where Glenda will happily chat to you about the farm and the family history and show you the peat-fired Rayburn in which she cooks and bakes. Don’t forget to check out the colourful family photos and the gigantic antique map of the Falklands, not to mention Neil’s certificate for bravery awarded to him by the Royal Humane Society.

The Watson’s are family of horse-lovers and your final stop will be by the ‘Old-House’ which is filled to the brim with not only Falklands-style horse riding ‘gear’ but supplemented with his children’s preferences for everything from English tack to Australian and Western saddles. Outside the Old House (which also doubles up as a cow shed where Glenda milks her cows) Neil or a member of his family will saddle up a horse with traditional ‘bastos’, the saddle used throughout Falklands history by gauchos and farm-hands.

Neil owns around a dozen horses and the majority are used in the summer to carry him and his family around the vast farm in order to gather up flocks of sheep at shearing time. Feel free to ask him questions about the history of the horse tack and how their farm is run.

If time remains it is only a short stroll to the mile long sand beach in front of the farm house where you can admire a variety of land and seabirds and, if you’re very lucky, witness a curious pod of dolphins playing in the impressive surf.