On Friday, September 27, 2024, Hurricane Helene made landfall and wreaked havoc across several states. The Appalachian Mountains in NC, SC, and TN were hit particularly hard with rain, wind, mudslides, and power outages. Even 14 days post storm – thousands are without power, water, and more. This was a truly historic storm – one of a kind.
We are blessed that all of our animals and team members are safe, healthy, and in one piece. Our farm only suffered from property damage – around 40 trees down in fields and pastures, several broken fences, and a handful of roof repairs. We have been fortunate to have some amazing neighbors and volunteers come by to help us get things put back together again. Half of our team members were displaced by Hurricane Helene due to loss of power and water, loss of bridges and roads, and even loss of their cars.
Our area has received tremendous support over the past weeks, and things are improving daily—roads are being repaired, power is being restored, and life is slowly returning to normal. We are fortunate that where we’re located has been on the outer edge of the worst damage. As Boone and Blowing Rock gradually return to business as usual, we are also formulating our plan to reopen to the public.
When will we re-open?
Friday, October 18! Utility crews and road crews have been working daily since the storm, and the roads from Boone to our farm are now safe and secure!
How can you help?
Our webstore remains OPEN, and we are shipping orders Tuesdays through Saturdays! We offer a variety of socks, yarns, dryer balls, and Lee’s memoir, “Farm Family”, on our website, alongside hats, gloves, blankets, and vests. While our full inventory isn’t online, we’re happy to send you pictures and process orders via phone or email!
All proceeds from our farm store and ticket fees directly support our animals and team.
Shop our online Apple Hill Farm Store.
We also offer Gift Cards for our Public Tours! These cards never expire and are easy to redeem. When you purchase a Farm Tour Gift Card, your loved one receives a digital gift card via email, complete with booking details for their farm experience.
Purchase a Farm Tour Gift Card!
You can further support our farm by commenting, liking, and sharing our posts! Additionally, we’ve introduced Hurricane Helene Sponsorships on our website, allowing you to sponsor a bag of feed or a bale of hay to help keep our animals happy and healthy.
Explore Hurricane Helene Sponsorships!
For those interested in supporting our broader farm community, WNC Communities is a wonderful organization aiding farmers like us in recovering from Hurricane Helene: WNC Communities.
Any support helps, but to give you an idea on how much feed and supplies cost, see this list:
- 1 bag of alpaca feed (feeds our herd of alpacas for 1 day): $28
- 1 bag of goat feed (feeds our herd of goats for 2 days): $16
- 1 bag of horse/cow feed (feeds our herd for 2 days): $12.75
- 1 bag of chicken feed (feeds the chickens for 3 days): $15.50
- 1 bale of horse hay (we feed 3 a day): $9.25
- 1 bale of alpaca hay (we feed 3 a day): $15
- Pine Bedding (5 bags a week): $7
- Pine Shavings (7 bags a wek): $5
