The UK Tour Schedule

Arrive in Edinburgh,Scottish Museum of Country Life

Visit the fully automated Ve-Tech Holstein farm; Robert Veitch, owner, Strandhead Farm, Tarbolten, Ayshire KA5 5NP. With 4 robots and an investment of more than $2.5 million you will have the opportunity to discuss subjects including robotic milking, automated feeding and nutrition, shed design, calf care and breeding

Waterloo Place for a city tour with a local city guide. See Edinburgh’s New Town and Old Town, travel along the Royal Mile, see the Palace of Holyrood House, and admire the landscape on the drive around Holyrood Park, view Edinburgh Castle from Princes Street, followed by sightseeing.

Team members and coaches meet at the Young Farmers Centre at the Royal Highland Show where several of the young stockmen will give pointers on how to judge the animals at tomorrow’s contest. https://www.royalhighlandshow.org/

The Royal Highland Show!

Following the competitions, you may choose to have lunch in any of the Showground restaurants. The main ring includes a variety of horsemanship events. Don’t miss the excellent farm machinery and horticultural exhibits, the Scottish foods building, and the forestry exhibits!

At 5:30 PM, gather at the restaurant for our awards presentation and “High Tea” – a two course meal Scottish style. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rh7N__ES9Ng

Visit The Kelpies. Standing next to the Clyde and Forth Canal and near the River are the impressive 30 metre high horse head sculptures called The Kelpies. Built in 2013 The Kelpies represent mythical water horses and are to represent the horses role in industry, agriculture and tow horses for the canals. In the first year alone over 1 million people visited these fantastic sculptures. Andy Scott the sculptor designed The Kelpies with a steel structure and stainless steel cladding and each sculpture weighs in at 300 tonnes. A full guided tour of the Kelpies is also included.

Continuing east through the lush farmland of Fife to St Andrews which is famous for Golf. On a Sunday you can walk on the Old Course which is great for photo opportunities at the well-known Swilken Bridge. It also has a ruined castle with a bottle dungeon and a huge, ruined cathedral and many tiny lanes and streets with small shops. Plenty of places for lunch and exploring.

The golden sands on the huge beach was where they filmed the movie 'Chariots of Fire!’ St Andrews University is also where Prince William met Catherine Middleton who eventually became his wife!

Late afternoon we drive a little north past Dundee that is home of the ship Discovery, built in 1901 as the last wooden three-masted ship build in Britain for explorer Scott’s successful expedition to Antarctica. Return to Stirling for overnight.

We then travel about 30 minutes to Milnathort for our farm visit with Arthur and Susan Lawrie at Cuthill Tower Dairy Farm and son James to see their herd of Ayrshires.

For lunch we drive over to Dunblane for lunch at the Highland Wagyu restaurant. After your good wagyu burger, you’ll have the opportunity to see the Wagyu finishing operation.

Then after lunch we continue to drive south west for our farm visit at Claylands Dairy Farm at Kippen, Balfron, J M Campbell & Son before making our way into Ayr, Scotland.

Culzean Castle is a beautiful furnished castle on a cliff top location on the Ayr coast.

The apartment at the top of the castle was given to Army General Eisenhower in recognition of his role as Supreme Commander of the Allied Forces in Europe during the Second World War. The General first visited Culzean Castle in 1946 and stayed there four times, including once while President of the United States.

We leave to Cairnryan Port and check in for the Stenaline Ferry departing for Belfast.

Drive past the Stormont Building, the Parliament for the Northern Ireland government, and see the shipyard where the mighty Titanic was built.

Our first visit is to the Brochan Cocoman dairy farm. With 75 hectares, 140 registered Holsteins, milking 120 year around. Cows on grass grazing, milk sold to Glanbia. In 2009 the farmer was Ireland’s top dairy farmer at the National Dairy Council’s Quality Milk Awards.

Later we arrive in Dublin with a visit to Trinity College Library, one of the world’s great research libraries, holding the largest collection of manuscripts and printed books in Ireland. Since 1801 it has had the right to claim a free copy of all British and Irish publications and has a stock of nearly 3 million volumes housed in a total of eight buildings. Visit the Treasury and see a display of Irish medieval gospel manuscripts, principally the Book of Kells which contains a Latin text of the four gospels copied and decorated by Irish monks around the year 800 AD.

Then a self-guided tour of Christ Church Cathedral. The cathedral was begun in 1038 by King Sitric Silkenbeard, the Danish Viking King of Dublin, and is officially claimed as the seat of both the Church of Ireland and Roman Catholic archbishops of Dublin. Contained in the cathedral is the reputed tomb of Strongbow, a medieval Norman-Welsh peer and warlord who came to Ireland at the request of King Diarmuid MacMorrough, and whose arrival marked the beginning of English involvement in Ireland.

The Hyland Dairy Farm is the first visit for today. The farm comprises 282 acres of both owned and leased land that supports grazing for 400 Cows. The Hyland brothers have a largely grass based farming operation using New Zealand principles. More statistics: 1.4 cows per acre. Herd crossed to Jersey for easy calving and management; production averaged 430 kg milk solids per cow last year; milking block is split in two, a 16 unit parlor on one block and a bigger 20 unit milking parlor on the larger land block.

Next we visit the Kilkenny Mart, along with the livestock tour folks. The Mart is a cooperative livestock market, open weekly. You’ll be required to wear your mask on entering the facility. There will be opportunity to get a sandwich and soft drink for lunch on the grounds.

Our afternoon visit is to the Seamus Holland dairy operation. 70 ha: 52 ha owned, 20 ha leased from neighbors; 125 Milking Cows – British Friesians; All calves reared on farm. Males sold at 4 months to local beef farmer. Females kept and used for replacement and expansion or sold freshly calved. 300 kgs of citrus pulp fed per cow; all low-cost extensive grazing systems.

Half of our group will head back to the Illinois for the State Holstein Show.

Ring of Kerry. This full day tour takes you via Killorglin, Glenbeigh, Cahersiveen, Waterville, Coomakesta Pass with it magnificent views over Derrynane, home of Daniel O’ Connell, known as “The Liberator”, to Caherdaniel. Travel on via Sneem, Moll’s Gap, Ladies View, Killarney National Park and along the Lakes of Killarney.

We’ll make a stop for lunch at O’Carrolls Cove Beach Bar & Restaurant and spend the night in Cork.

Blarney Castle! The Castle was built in 1446 as a defensive fortress. The castle which stands today is in fact the keep of a much larger fortress. All visitors should kiss the famous Blarney Stone, high up on the Castle battlements. Tradition holds that those who kiss the Blarney Stone will be endowed with the gift of eloquence - “the gift of the gab” as the locals call it.

The first afternoon visit is somewhat rare: the Macroom Buffalo Farm! With 200 head that yield 2000 – 2500 liters per year. About 70 buffalo are milked year around. And what do they do with the milk?? Make mozzarella cheese for your pizzas! And other cheeses as well.

We next visit a 182 hectare arable farm with some 100 head of Simmental and Charolais crosses. Cows calve in the springtime, and the males are finished either as young bulls or steers, heifers kept as replacement, or sold. The farm has 94 ha. Under grass, and 40 ha. For tillage and fodder beets.

To close the day, we’ll visit a lively Irish Pub in the village of Doulas, enjoy live music and a hearty pub dinner.

Clonmel Agricultural Show. You’ll have the opportunity to inspect Irish dairy and beef cattle, and observe the horse events taking place. We are working with the show management to have a small judging contest for you! And you will have the entire day on the showgrounds, and you’ll want to meet and talk with lots of farming families in attendance.

Drive over to Limerick to pack and be ready to check in for your flight home.