The Brush Bar | Highland Cow Experience | Review

Set in the charming town of Strathalbyn, the Brush Bar Highland Cow Experience is one to put on your must do list!

Review by Angelica-Hazel Toutounji

There is something so soul soothing about a country drive. Maybe it’s the open road, vast farmland or cute little cottages along the way. Whatever it is, taking time out to visit the town of Strathalbyn and meeting the lovely owners of The Brush Bar, Carina and Wade and their cute fluffy cows, provided the perfect destination for a drive and the ultimate happiness hit.

Parking the car at the property, we were immediately greeted by their friendly guinea fowl, Steve. This was a great start to the experience as the children loved interacting with him as soon as they got out of the car. After many giggles and squeals we were met with two friendly faces, Carina and Wade. They welcomed us to their property and then came eye level with the kids to go through some safety guidelines for meeting the cows. This was great because it put both kids and adults at ease and got us even more excited for what was to come.

After the briefing we made our way to the paddock to meet their two highland cows, Freddie and Peanut Butter. Freddie was very much at ease with our presence and loved to hang about for pats, feeds and to be brushed. Peanut Butter on the other hand, came over for an initial meeting but didn’t stick around for too long.

One of the most important things to know about meeting and interacting with the cows is to be mindful of their big horns. Despite their big size and pointy horns, they were playful, gentle and quite calm. The children initially squealed and jumped feeding the cows but before long calmed right down. It was particularly special seeing the bond between Wade and Freddie and you could tell that there was a lot of love between them.

After spending a good chunk of time playing with the cows we made our way over to meet the miniature goats. The goats had much higher energy and it was impossible not to laugh when they made their bleating noises. We were guided by Carina to hand-feed them dry blocks of wheat biscuits through the fence and all of the kids gave this a go. These goats were so social, fun and playful, the kids equally loved their time feeding and meeting them.

Before we knew it, we had been chatting and playing for over an hour and it was time to get back in the car and make our way home.

We loved the experience from start to finish, the animal interactions were special and so much fun and the warm and relaxed disposition of Wade and Carina made us feel so welcome at their home business.

We chose to just do the meet and greet experience with the cows but you can also do a grazing option where you get a platter and refreshments before you start. There are also plans in place to add on a coffee shop to the premise at a later date, so watch this space. Alongside cow experiences, Carina offers a range of art events throughout the year including hat and bag burning.

If you have been considering a highland cow experience, we absolutely recommend this one. Not only did it tick all of the boxes for family fun, it was really nice having a reason to visit Strathalbyn and take in the beauty of the Alexandrina region.

What we liked about it:

• Great hospitality in a lovely country location and the chance to get up close with cows and miniature goats 

Things to consider:

• We went in peak summer so there can be a few flies, it didn’t dampen our fun but just a heads up
• There is a small portaloo on site, it was very clean but at present there is no additional space for a baby change table
•  If you are hoping to capture the nicest photos it is recommended to visit later in the day towards sunset.
• It can be very hot during the middle of the day so plan accordingly
• Make the most of your visit an plan your day so you can also get out and explore the township of Strathalbyn

Coffee and food options nearby:

• Strathalbyn is your closest town and has a few good options for food and coffee

Location:

Rushburn Homestead, 621 Alexandrina Road, Sandergrove

For more information and all enquiries please visit the The Brush Bar website, or follow them on Facebook and Instagram.

At Play & Go Adelaide we make every effort to provide accurate information to the best of our knowledge at the time of publication. We recommend confirming times, dates and details directly before making any plans as details may be subject to change.

As per all our Play & Go reviews, this is not a sponsored post and our review is done completely independently. All photos are by Play & Go (unless specified).

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