The cost to enter is $4 a person for ages 3 and up. Then it's another $4 a person for the Safari (which is well worth the cost!). We also paid $1 per pack of crackers to feed the animals (again, very worth the money). Compared to the typical cost of a zoo, this was a cheap family adventure!
Here's a photo of our family and a photo of the Grubes, including their little girl Isabella.
After we parked the car, the first thing we saw were Capybaras (along with a big sign that warned that these creatures bite!). The Capybaras are basically oversized Central American Guinea Pigs that can weigh up to 120 pounds (I think they said theirs weigh about 60 pounds roughly). You can get an idea of the size of them when you compare them to the Bean in the photos below. I've never seen or heard of such a thing before!
Next as we walked, we saw the two lions coming out to play - a girl and a boy (although the male was by far the more exciting of the two as he pranced around with his big mane). Joshua said "Roarrr!!!" as soon as he saw them - he was so excited!
Next we decided to buy our Safari tickets. Shawn found a buy-one-get-one-free coupon in our val-pack, so we saved $4. :) :) :) There was a bus leaving and we were the next in line for the bus coming up. These buses are SO cool - they are basically cut in half with no tops so you feel all the open air and get to experience the animals as they come up to you. Here's Joshua & Daddy as I parked the stroller and got Caleb out for our bus ride.
Here's the crew getting the best seats on the bus (meaning the least bouncey by sitting right in the middle. I also think we had a great view of everything since Shawn sat on one side and I sat on the other with our friends behind us so we could all go wherever the animals were at that moment).
And since Lisa was kind enough to take those pictures, I took her camera to get a picture of their family. Isabella did not want to look! Haaa!!! All of these photos are courtesy of Lisa's two digital cameras. I told her that our battery charger is lost (dangit!) and she gave us a camera to use. What a friend!
I brought a snack for the boys while we were waiting for the bus to take off... they both adore their Dadda!
And here's Joshua & Isabella playing while we were waiting (which was only about 10 minutes until everyone loaded up). They were playing peekaboo and having a great time. He calls her "Biz-a-bella" and she says "JOSH!" a lot. Too cute!
And soon the bus took off on the Safari ride, which lasted about an hour. The animals featured along the way were deer, elk, bison...
and Yaks, Audad Sheep, Ostriches, Z'Donks (which are a mix of donkeys and zebras...they had the bodies of a donkey but the striped legs of a zebra - how cool!!!), Lemurs, Camels, Llamas, Alpaca and more! Here are Lisa & Isabella enjoying the adventure on this brisk day!
And Caleb loved the fresh air and seeing the animals...even more than I thought he would. He didn't feed the animals, though, because he kept wanting to eat their food instead.
I love Lisa's expression in the picture below...what animal is she imitating? Haaa!!
The way the animals came right up to the bus was incredible!
Joshua highly enjoyed feeding the animals. We warned him that when the animal got the cracker into its teeth, he should immediately let go so the animal wouldn't mistake his fingers for cracker and bite. He did quite well (and no one got bitten, thank God!). 
Here are Chris & Isabella feeding the hungry animals, who all swarmed the bus since it was first thing in the morning.
This friendly creature came right up to the bus. First , we were afraid its horns would take out a small child (or poke their eyes)...it would whip its head and these things were right in the kids' faces. But, instead something worse happened. First, it ate a cracker from Josh while we touched the horns. Then...with no notice...it licked Caleb's face! It must have thought a snot wash-down went well with crackers. YUCK!
My hands also got accidentally licked as I was feeding these beasts. It was so cool to see and experience, though, so I didn't mind as much as I normally would.
Both the kids and the parents were having a blast!
Then the driver invited an elk onto the bus with us so the kids could pet it. Who needed to go to the front of the bus when they were right next to our seats? The driver was good, though, at making sure no animals were under his wheels before taking off. (We stopped along the way to see each animal grouping.)
I LOVE Chris' face in the picture below. Haaaa!!! I think we all looked like that as we fed these things.
Speaking of faces, doesn't this deer look like it's smiling a "thank you" for the food?
We were a little chilly, but otherwise the day was perfect. I think Spring or Fall are better than a really hot day because of the intensity of the sun but probably a little warmer with less wind would have been nicer. Praise God, though, it didn't rain until later in the day after we were leaving.
Love the expressions when the animals were near by...
And these two handsome fellas stole my attention...look at Shawn's cute dimple showing. :) :) :)
After the Safari tour ended, we got off the bus and sanitized our hands (I also washed mine). Then we spotted this llama from the petting zoo being walked around. To show Joshua it was safe, I petted it first (then had to re-wash my hands before lunch!). 
They walk the animals around to showcase them and allow people to pet them. Joshua wasn't sure at first, but then he did touch it and grinned from ear-to-ear.
It was lunch time, so we headed to the pavilions where the picnic tables were. We all packed a lunch, and Lisa made her amazing macaroni salad because she knows Shawn & I love it so much. They even had extra utensils (since we hadn't packed anything nearly that glamorous). Everyone ate well and enjoyed their lunches. We had ham & swiss sandwiches, and Caleb ate his beloved PB&J (and wore half of it!).
After we were done, Joshua helped clean up. You'll see the cool playground in the background of these photos. We were there four hours with the animals and lunch, so we didn't get a chance to play (plus it was a little chilly). Maybe next time!
From there, we offered to let Isabella in our sit 'n stand stroller since Joshua doesn't like to stand in it and prefers to walk. That saved Chris from having to back-pack with her and allowed her to get out and enjoy more of the exhibits. Unlike Joshua, she thought this was the coolest thing ever.
Other animals featured throughout the grounds (what you get for your original $4) include: Zebras, Donkeys, Baboons, African Lions, Capybaras, Wallaby, Cockatiels, Waterfowl Cranes, Hornbills, Prarie Dogs, Tonkean Macque, Cougars, Coatimundi, Green Monkeys, Camels, Lemurs, Tigers & Bears, Alligators, Binturongs, Reptiles, Pygmy Goats, Spotted Sheep, Patagonian Cavy, Lambs, Fawns, Guinea Pigs, Alpaca, Armadillos, Pot-bellied Pigs, Geese, Miniature Horses, Baboons, Turkey, Pheasants, African Tortoise, Peacocks, Ducks, Swans, Kangaroos and more! 
The first thing we saw was the pond with just the alligator eyes showing in it. This photo was from a friend who went there when the weather was nicer. I think I counted five pairs of eyes. 
Then we saw the monkeys, which had weird hineys (not shown here).
Next we moved on to the black bears.
And then we saw the tigers, which I thought were really cool.
We saw the zebras in this area, too, but I forgot to post the picture. Oh, well! You know what a zebra looks like! Next we headed to the petting zoo with more crackers to feed the animals. Below are Lisa & Isabella feeding the camels.
But most annoying were these darn goats. They attacked you, literally, as you entered. They are used to being fed and don't mind chewing on anything in sight. I thought this picture of Isabella was cute.
And here's Isabella next to what we called a "PORSE" ... doesn't it look like a cross between a pig and a horse?
The goat started eating Joshua's zippy, and he was terrified. They also tried to eat my stroller, along with the snacks in the back and got into Caleb's sleeping face. Grrr...I screamed at them, "BAD GOATS! BAD KIDS!" I think people thought I was nuts. They would not stop jumping on us and chewing everything.
They even ate Daddy's shoes (which you know are gross!) and his shorts. Thankfully they didn't destroy or tear anything...it was more just annoying.
You can tell by my face below that I am not thrilled.
Even my face in this photo below shows my displeasure at feeding these things that were a little too close for my comfort. I just wanted to get rid of anything that smelled like food so they would leave us alone!
At first, though, Joshua really enjoyed feeding them since they were close to his level. We also saw monkeys & guinea pigs, lambs and other tiny creatures in this area. But the goats were so overbearing that we soon left as I told them that Caleb and I were getting out of there!
The first thing we saw was the pond with just the alligator eyes showing in it. This photo was from a friend who went there when the weather was nicer. I think I counted five pairs of eyes. Then we saw the monkeys, which had weird hineys (not shown here).Next we moved on to the black bears. And then we saw the tigers, which I thought were really cool.We saw the zebras in this area, too, but I forgot to post the picture. Oh, well! You know what a zebra looks like! Next we headed to the petting zoo with more crackers to feed the animals. Below are Lisa & Isabella feeding the camels.But most annoying were these darn goats. They attacked you, literally, as you entered. They are used to being fed and don't mind chewing on anything in sight. I thought this picture of Isabella was cute.And here's Isabella next to what we called a "PORSE" ... doesn't it look like a cross between a pig and a horse?The goat started eating Joshua's zippy, and he was terrified. They also tried to eat my stroller, along with the snacks in the back and got into Caleb's sleeping face. Grrr...I screamed at them, "BAD GOATS! BAD KIDS!" I think people thought I was nuts. They would not stop jumping on us and chewing everything.They even ate Daddy's shoes (which you know are gross!) and his shorts. Thankfully they didn't destroy or tear anything...it was more just annoying.You can tell by my face below that I am not thrilled.Even my face in this photo below shows my displeasure at feeding these things that were a little too close for my comfort. I just wanted to get rid of anything that smelled like food so they would leave us alone!At first, though, Joshua really enjoyed feeding them since they were close to his level. We also saw monkeys & guinea pigs, lambs and other tiny creatures in this area. But the goats were so overbearing that we soon left as I told them that Caleb and I were getting out of there! We moved on and saw the Wallabys.
And the tortoises, who had lots of slop to eat in their area...
We also saw squirrel monkeys catching corn from visitors who were throwing food in their cage and the ponies and more. Each exhibit was cool to look at as we read about what they were. Here we are in front of the prarie dog exhibit, but Caleb is still sleeping in his stroller, so he missed the picture.
The reptile exhibit was closed for the season since it was chilly (but most of those things sound gross to me anyway!). It was getting past time for naps and Joshua asked to be held and snuggled into Daddy. Isabella's eyes began to droop, and we knew it was time to go home.
We no more than packed the car and started heading out until the rain started to drip. We left at the perfect time! All in all, we had a blast. The kids & adults both enjoyed the animals and the day. I would recommend this place for all ages as a cheap, fun place to go with the family. It was fantastic!
And the tortoises, who had lots of slop to eat in their area...We also saw squirrel monkeys catching corn from visitors who were throwing food in their cage and the ponies and more. Each exhibit was cool to look at as we read about what they were. Here we are in front of the prarie dog exhibit, but Caleb is still sleeping in his stroller, so he missed the picture.The reptile exhibit was closed for the season since it was chilly (but most of those things sound gross to me anyway!). It was getting past time for naps and Joshua asked to be held and snuggled into Daddy. Isabella's eyes began to droop, and we knew it was time to go home.We no more than packed the car and started heading out until the rain started to drip. We left at the perfect time! All in all, we had a blast. The kids & adults both enjoyed the animals and the day. I would recommend this place for all ages as a cheap, fun place to go with the family. It was fantastic!
1 comment:
Glad you had a great time at Lake Tobias! You obviously spent more time there than we did = and got some great pictures! Next time we will get there before lunchtime so we have longer to play. :-)
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