Over 90kg of chocolate and hundreds of treasures found during family run Windy Acres Farm Easter egg hunt
Hundreds of families have enjoyed a day among the lavender fields searching for chocolate eggs and hidden treasures at Saturday’s annual Windy Acres Farm Easter egg hunt.
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The fifth annual Windy Acres Farm Easter egg hunt has been hailed “the best yet” with up to 2500 guests enjoying more than 90kg of chocolate eggs on Saturday.
A true family affair, the Easter egg hunt has been running since 2021 when the Vohland family first opened their lavender farm and has grown in popularity every year since.
Windy Acres Farm owner Alicia Vohland said it was incredible to see crowds of families enjoying the sunny weather and Easter festivities.
“It was our best one yet, we had 2500 register over the three sessions, and we had about that through the gate,” she said.
“We ran things differently this year and held a quiet session at 8.30am which was lots of little kids and kids with sensory needs. We had 300 registered for that, and it was lovely.
“We invited them to stay on and have a picnic, my kids, nieces and nephews were in charge of providing eggs and they gave out over 90kg of Easter eggs throughout the day.
“The 9.30 and 10.30 session were also pretty busy, they were all given a scavenger card this year and people even brought along their own painted rocks which was really nice, some of the older kids even said it was even more exciting to hide their own eggs for other kids to find.
“I had one lady come into the shops, and she told me they had been every year coming from New South Wales and it was their family’s Easter tradition.”
Ms Vohland said she had started the event to give families who weren't going away for Easter something to do and it had since exploded in popularity.
“I could see there wasn’t much happening in Toowoomba on the Easter weekend, and I know traditionally a lot of people go away. I thought for those families who maybe have to stay in Toowoomba for work or can't afford to go away given the economic climate we could give them something to do in Toowoomba,” she said.
“I thought if we can run an event that is family friendly and gets people outside in the nice weather without costing an arm and a leg it could be good, it is about providing something for families to enjoy.
“ I think people think we have this big team organising it, but I organise it all and rally my family and close friends.
“My mum is in the coffee van, my sister and brother in-law run the breakfast barbecue, my dad and friend were on the gates and the kids were the ones hiding the eggs.”
She said it was amazing to see so many people in attendance.
“It is quite surreal, I was mainly in my shop and my dad took photos of all the cars in our paddock, and he said ‘they just keep coming’ it was crazy,” she said.
“I don't think I considered the grand scale of things, I just think we have the space to do it and it is privilege to be able to have people here.”
Mum Kelly Keleher, who was attending the hunt for the second year with her children and their cousins, said it was an amazing way to spend Easter with her family.
“It is a nice enjoyable day out in the sun, the kids get to have a look around hunting for eggs and treasures, they also enjoyed putting the eggs back for other little kids to enjoy,” she said.
“They found little chocolate eggs, you can find little treasures. You get a scavenger hunt card and with that you can find little wooden stars that say pocket hugs, coloured Easter rabbits and painted rocks and you can also bring eggs and deposit them for other kids to find.
“It is gorgeous, it is nice to be out in the sun, the lavender always smells nice and your hands always smell really nice after digging around looking for eggs. It’s just a nice day out.
“It is really nice they open up their own personal farm to thousands of strangers, it is a really nice community event, everyone is smiling and happy and it brings everyone together so I would recommend everyone to come along to it.”
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