Connect to Your Wild Side with Inner Peas Goat Yoga

What better way to escape suburban mundanity than by retreating to the holistic red rocks of Southern Utah and opening a farm centered around community, natural wellness and achieving self-awareness? Inner Peas Farm owners Camille and DJ Zolman found themselves craving a more rural lifestyle after the COVID-19 pandemic, leading them to flee the suburbs and find healing on one-and-a-half acres of land in Hurricane, Utah. Now, Inner Peas is a fully-functioning farm with plans for an upcoming fall season of veggie growth, over six varieties of planted fruit trees, 30 chicks and hens and an outdoor goat yoga space with 11 adult and seven kid goats.

Speaking to why they initially decided to leave Northern Utah and purchase their land in Hurricane, Camille says, “We wanted something a bit simpler, and it’s definitely not simpler, but it’s really nice to be able to have something that connects you with the earth and other living things—[to] find respect for the food that we eat and the land that we live on.” As someone who has been practicing yoga for 10 years and teaching it for eight, Camille notes that there is peace and tranquility to be found in the red rocks of Hurricane and an abundance of healing energy due to their proximity to Zion National Park. She says, “There’s a special energy in the landscape down here. It offers peace and the lack of busyness creates a nice container for people to practice [yoga].”

“I tell people not to take it too seriously. It’s just a chance to get outside and move your body…by the end, everyone is just happy and laughing and connected.”

Inner Peas first introduced three goats to their farm as a way of controlling their pasture and for companionship. Because Camille has been involved with yoga for the past decade, it made sense that their next move would be to offer goat yoga in May of 2023 as a way to provide funds to support the animals and let the community experience the joy of being around the goats. “Goat yoga is definitely a different feeling than a studio class,” she laughs. “I tell people not to take it too seriously. It’s just a chance to get outside and move your body. We’re outside in the sun listening to the birds chirping and the goats bleating—by the end, everyone is just happy and laughing and connected … It’s an opportunity to move and breathe.”

A typical goat yoga class at Inner Peas is about an hour long, with the last 20 minutes reserved for goat snuggles and pictures. Sessions are accessible for all experience levels and usually filled with a bunch of strangers—although you can also book a private class—gathered together to enjoy a new experience in nature. Mats (and goats) are provided, and the weekly class schedule is typically determined about a month in advance. “All of our goats are Nigerian Dwarves so they are a little bit smaller … They normally don’t do goat yoga after they’re a year old,” she says. For those who are not familiar with goats, Camille notes that they are the perfect yoga companions due to their inclination to jump around and nuzzle up to participants, though you may experience the occasional nibble or playful headbutt.

“The more I learn about yoga, the more I realize it’s so much more than the physical poses.”

Beyond goat yoga, Camille also teaches at local studios around Hurricane, is currently finalizing an online yoga teacher training program and has recently wrapped up the annual Zion Yoga Fest in June which includes music, meditation, lectures and a variety of yoga classes and offerings focused on community building. “The more I learn about yoga, the more I realize it’s so much more than the physical poses,” she says. “It’s about connection, love and acceptance for the self and for every living being, seeing other humans as equal and recognizing that we are all one. Yoga is for every body and every person.”

Check out innerpeasfarm.com and @innerpeasfarm on Instagram to stay up to date on the farm’s future offerings and to sign up for upcoming goat yoga classes.

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