Social - December 2002

Pint-sized crowd delights in farm fun

Two not-so-tiny reindeer, slippery hay bales

By JEREMY ASHTON, LTN Staff Writer

December 13, 2002 - IRON STATION — Harrison Hall couldn’t have been much happier Wednesday morning.

Harrison, 4, was bundled up in a heavy coat and toboggan. It was cold enough for him to see his breath, and the ground was covered in mud after a night of rain.

None of that mattered to Harrison; he and his friends were quite content scaling a small mountain of hay bales.

“You see the hay bales out in the fields, but you never get to climb on them,” said Tamra Hall, Harrison’s mother.

Harrison and 15 of his classmates from Discovery Village, a preschool in Cornelius, were on a field trip to the Cedar Lake Christmas Tree Farm on Highway 27 in Iron Station.

When they arrived, the 3- and 4-year-olds found a holiday village.

They got a chance to feed a couple of reindeer. They sat in a sled where their parents could take their pictures. When they left, they got candy canes.

“They have loved it,” said Christie Fisher, who runs Discovery Village. “They’ve loved feeding the reindeer. The favorite has been the acrobatics on the hay bales.”

Bill Cline, Cedar Lake’s owner, has been setting up Christmas scenes like this one for eight years.

Occasionally, he sells some Christmas trees, too.

“I feel like I’m in the entertainment business more than I’m in the tree business,” Cline, 44, said. “The trees just happen to leave.”

Progress on a new segment of I-485 around Charlotte forced Cline to move Cedar Lake 14 miles northwest from its long-time home in Mecklenburg County.

In Charlotte, people could pick out trees from Cline’s lot and get the satisfaction of cutting them. Since he’s just uprooted, Cline said it will take four or five years before he will again have trees ready to be freshly cut.

Many of his customers don’t appear to mind, following him from the Charlotte area for Fraser firs and Virginia pines priced between $35 and $45.

Since his move, he has also picked up a few new customers like Tamra Hall, who suggested the field trip to Fisher.

“We’re real pleased with the turnout we’ve had,” Cline said.

Cedar Lake’s customers, however, seem to come back as much for its holiday atmosphere as the selection of trees.

Seven years ago, Cline bought two reindeer to help draw people to his lot. At the time, he was the only tree farmer in Charlotte who could boast having the animals with the majestic antlers.

The two Cline has now were raised from the original pair. Each year around Christmas, he puts his “pets” on display, giving children the chance to feed Santa Claus’ favorite animals.

While some of Discovery Village’s students couldn’t get enough of the reindeer, many were preoccupied with the hay.

“I like climbing on the hay,” Fisher’s 4-year-old son, Ryan, proudly proclaimed.

Cline said the idea for the haystack started by mistake one year. The hay was set out as feed for his cows, but some kids just started playing on it.

Since they enjoyed it so much, Cline decided to make it a permanent feature of his holiday scene. When the Christmas season ends, he simply gives the hay to his cows.

In his first year in Lincoln County, Cline promises his festive farm will be even better next year.

Santa may even drop by to check on the reindeer.

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Cedar Lake Christmas Tree Farm is located at 5829 Highway 27 approximately halfway between Lincolnton and Stanley.

© 2001 Lincoln Times-News  

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