Guelph Mercury

Vacationers walk along a mountain range leading a group of llamas in the Bavarian Alps on Dec. 28, 2013 near Oberstdorf, Germany.

Llama trekking operator Klaus Eberle organizes the tours in the Allgaeu region of Bavaria and cites the ability of the animals to sense whether the accompanying person is in a calm state or not. Llamas traditionally serve as an important means of transporting goods across mountainous terrain in parts of South America.

Eberle has a website (in German) at www.lama-bewegung.de. The Oberstdorfer Tourismus-Service can also arrange tours with Eberle. It has an English-language website at www.oberstdorfer-tourismus-service.de (click on the Union Jack symbol for English).

Photos are by Thomas Lohnes of Getty Images