A return visit to Fair Oaks Farms

 I had guests over the Memorial Day weekend and we went to Fair Oaks Farms. I think the last time I was there was in 2017 when there was a free-admission day for Jasper and Newton County residents. I was curious to see what had changed.

We started our visit in the Welcome Center where we purchased tickets. The one-day pass cost $20, which I believe is lower than it has been in the past. A season family pass is available for $80, so any family of four or more is better off buying that. The family pass includes some extras, such as admission to the ropes course in the Pork Education Building. 

We caught the first bus to the Pig Adventure. Not much had changed in the pig barns, but if I recall correctly, in the past the visit was less structured. This year we had guides for each of the three barns and they made sure we all got back to the same bus so the entire group would load at the same time.

The Pig Adventure shows visitors a farrowing operation. It produced piglets that are then shipped to other facilities where they are raised to maturity.

The trip to the Dairy Adventure was much different this year because it did not include a stop at the milking carousal. Instead it had a stop that showed robotic milking machines in action.  The carousal had a couple people preping the cows but the robotic milking machines are completely automated.

The cows decide when they want to be milked and the milking machine has video that guides the computer for all the needed steps so no human intervention is needed. I believe that the robotic milking machines are the better technology, producing milk at a lower cost, but the carousal is more memorable and visually interesting.

This year I was very impressed with how many families with children were visiting and how much fun the kids had with the outdoor play equipment. They loved bouncing on the big inflated dome behind the Dairy Adventure building. The climbing wall on the giant bottle of milk took more supervision and could accommodate fewer people.

On the way to Fair Oaks Farms I snapped a picture of the Indiana Face Masks buildings. The one on the right is new and does not look like it is completely finished. The building on the left was previously Greene's Furniture and the one in the middle was an antiques mall.

On Wednesday I took a picture of construction of the new veterinarian clinic east of Fountain Stone Theaters. The roof trusses have been installed.

The softball tournament scheduled for the past weekend did not take place. Perhaps the heavy rain on Friday made the fields too wet. An introduction to disc golf on Wednesday evening had a big turnout. The course had had a lot of use. There will be a free movie at the LaRue Pool on June 13, which I guess means that the pool will open before that. Last I looked there was still no water in the pool.