Farm Sanctuaries to visit in NY/NJ

There are many farm sanctuaries in the New York area, and I recommend everyone going to visit at some point in their life. Just like you can make connections with dogs and cats, you can make beautiful connections with farm animals. They are in driving distance, but are a bit of a hike, but definitely worth visiting on the weekends!


1. Skylands Sanctuary & Animal Rescue 

This is the first farm sanctuary I have ever visited and truly changed my life. It is located in Wantage, NJ. The founder and owner of the farm, Mike Stura, is a popular animal rescuer in the Tristate area. He constantly drives all over in order to save animals from slaughter. At the farm, you get to interact with all the animals (as long as they want to as well!). My favorite is interacting with the cows because they are so gentle and loving just like big puppies. Not only do you get to see adorable animals, but after the tour, Mike has a huge vegan barbeque for all the visitors to eat.

Address: 50 Compton Road, Wantage NJ, 07461

2.  Woodstock Farm Sanctuary 

Woodstock is another magical place. Located near New Paltz, the farm is huge and you get a chance to feed some of the animals. The tours are guided, but in the end, you get the chance to walk around the farm yourself. They also offer lunch there. My favorite part of visiting Woodstock is that you get the chance to go into the pig's barn and give the pigs a belly rub!

Address: 2 Rescue Road, High Falls NY, 12440

3.  Farm Sanctuary- Watkins Glen 

I haven't been to this farm yet, but all I hear is positive experiences. It's a little farther than the other two, but Farm Sanctuary has done amazing things for animals. They also locations in California. They also have the option of staying for the weekend in one of their onsite cabins. 

Address: 3100 Aikens Road, Watkins Glen NY, 14891

      Photo Credit: Farm Sanctuary

Although this is a shortlist, these are some of the ones I've had great experiences with and heard wonderful things. I would highly suggest taking the time to go check these places out and connect with animals and the beautiful nature around them.

Narrative: My Vegan Story

Trigger Warning: Eating disorders 

Five years ago, I decided to go vegan. Going vegan was a huge life change for me; especially coming from a family where meat was in every meal we ate. I never thought I would make such a big lifestyle change. I vividly remember being in high school, talking to a girl who was a vegetarian. I said to her, "It's great what you're doing, but I could never do that. I love meat way too much."

Here I am, five years later, and I am a passionate vegan advocate. This is my story.

The summer going into my junior year of high school, I wanted to eat as healthy as possible. I struggled with an eating disorder all throughout high school and was on to my next way of staying thin, which was eating clean. 

I started watching all these vegan fitness YouTubers, and they were all so thin, and I wanted that. I saw them eating so much food, but still staying so skinny, and I was so surprised. 

I researched the vegan diet and found that because there were so much fewer calories in plant foods compared to meat, it was very easy to naturally stay thin. So that's where my journey started. 

I started eating so much fruit, beans, rice, and potatoes. I found that when I started eating these foods that I was so scared to eat before, I enjoyed them so much and didn't feel gross anymore. Once I stopped eating meat and animal products, everything changed for me. I had so much energy, I would go on runs every day (and I used to hate running!). The foods I was eating now truly fulfilled me and made me feel satisfied. 

The next time I went to the doctor, I had actually gained back all the weight I had lost when I was restricting, but I didn't feel bad because my body felt so good.

All the beautiful, colorful, foods I was eating were nourishing my body and giving me the energy to go and run, hike, bike, and more. 

I gained the weight back, but I also gained back so much happiness that my eating disorder robbed me of for so many years. Going vegan opened me up to so much more food than I wouldn't let myself eat before because society deemed carbs as the "enemy".

Initially, I did go vegan for the wrong reasons. But once I became vegan, I started educating myself more on the effects of animal products on our environment, and all the terrible things the animals go through. I watched the documentary Earthlings and my heart broke into pieces. 

I saw the way these beautiful animals were treated, and I knew I could never consume them again. I became an ethical vegan, and animals became the most important thing to me.

Becoming an ethical vegan gave me my life purpose. It might sound strange, but before animals, I never really knew what I wanted to do with my life. Once I realized all the horrible things that happened to them, I dedicated my life to saving them and advocating for them. 

Now, I want to be an investigative journalist and go undercover to expose the conditions they face. I also want to go to law school to become an animal rights lawyer.

As you can see, going vegan has done so much amazing things for me, and I can honestly say it was one of the best decisions I have ever made.

Favorite Vegan Spots In NYC

I am incredibly lucky to have attended school in New York City. Being a vegan in New York is so easy, and so fun. There are so many options, and below I will give you a list of some of my favorite places to eat out in New York as a vegan/vegetarian (in no particular order).

1. Juice Generation
This really isn't a restaurant, but it is my favorite place to get an acai bowl in New York. I have tried countless places, but none of them come close to Juice Generation. They have locations all over the city and do not disappoint. My go-to order is the PB Acai. All of their ingredients are natural and healthy. Especially in the summer, it is a great treat to cool off too.

2. Champs Diner
Possibly one of my favorite restaurants in New York. Champs Diner is located in Bushwick, Brooklyn. It is almost always jam-packed on weekends, but the food is worth the wait. All the food you loved before you went vegan, you will find at Champs Diner. It is known to be vegan comfort food, and it is just that. My favorite dish at Champs is the cookie dough pancakes.

3. Screamers Pizza 
Another amazing spot in Brooklyn. They have a huge selection of pizza, and the cheese is incredible. Definitely check this out if you are ever in Brooklyn.

4. The Cinnamon Snail
The Cinnamon Snail not only has great food but amazing desserts. They have endless amounts of pastries to pick from, that not only look delicious but taste amazing.

5. by Chloe
by Chloe is pretty well known in the city, and also has many locations. They have great healthy food, and my go-to is the Quinoa Taco Salad.