Monday, October 12, 2015

Minnesota Zoo 2015 Part I

During our summer visit to Minnesota we made a trip to the zoo. The Minnesota Zoo is located just outside the Twin Cities. We arrived and saw the rather sparse entrance, which was not an indicator of how full the zoo is.

Minnesota Zoo entrance

Buffalo close up

Our first view of real live animals was of the monkey pit at the lakeside terrace.

Monkeys on logs

A parent dry-washing a child

The wet wash

Nearby was the food court, where we had lunch, and the 3M Penguins of the African Coast (I guess they are not allowed to say Penguins of Madagascar unless the exhibit was sponsored by Dreamworks Animation).

African Penguin hangout

We left Africa for Russia's Grizzly Coast by way of the Central Plaza, which was more of a central market place to buy tchotchkes and any clothing you may not have packed.

Central market plaza

Your destination up ahead, the Grizzly Coast!

The bears started out ferocious and downgraded very quickly.

Looks scary, but it might have been a yawn

Lazing in the sun

Snoozing in the shade

Why isn't there a comic book superhero team based on this?

As the sign above hinted, there's more than just bears in Russia's Grizzly Coast. We saw leopards and tigers too.

Photo-shy leopard

Tiger also photo-phobic

Of course, they have more than just predators. We saw plenty of prey as well, including takin, bison, pronghorns, and prairie dogs.

Takin' a rest

Finally a face shot of an animal!

Pronghorns enjoying a leisurely afternoon snack

Prairie dogs, who would probably be just a snack for Russian predators

We crossed over to a deserty area with camels who gave rides to people (though that cost money and the children were not interested, so we weren't taken for a ride) and Asian wild horses who wanted freedom from people.

Camel with riders

Camels enjoying a bath

Asian wild horses looking for someone to open the gate

The next post will have the rest of the zoo, featuring an amazing playground and the Wells Fargo farm stead!

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