it's a zoo out there::part three

Okay, this is my final post about our trip to the NC Zoo. These pictures are all from the North America side of the zoo. We spent our morning in Africa, went out to the car for a nice picnic lunch, then drove to the North American side to begin the second half of our day. I must confess, we did rent a nice double stroller for this part. I know, my kids are 7 and 4 and they shouldn't need to ride when they've got perfectly good feet for walking. But let me tell you...there is a lot of walking. Tim got a nice workout pushing the stroller, especially on the uphill parts. The girls did get out and walk a lot, but when they were tired and hot it was nice to have that stroller with a canopy to keep the whining at bay. Anyway, on to North America. First stop...seals, sea lions, and polar bears. The sea lion was taking a nap with her snout in the water, the seal entertained us with her underwater acrobatics, and the polar bear was getting a light snack. Evidently he didn't want me to catch him eating...but I did anyway!

Then we were on to the stream and river section. Oh, there's a lovely, yet dark, indoor exhibit with many types of fish, snakes, bats, and owls. Most of those pictures didn't turn out very well. But, when we went outside the next animal we came to was the river otter. Seriously, one of the cutest little mammals out there.

Next up, after a nice stroll through the woods, was the grizzly bear. So cute and fuzzy, but seriously scary claws. Looks like someone could use a mani/pedi.

Then we made our way over to the black bear. These guys are everywhere around here but I've never seen one up close. This one at the zoo was loving the attention and after a nice bath by the waterfall and posing for a few close-ups, he decided to stretch and out be cute.

Lastly, we encountered some frontier animals. The bison were so big and majestic. They were very calm and quiet as they munched on the grass. Every time I see one it reminds me of Dances with Wolves. And then there were the elk. The female obviously didn't want me to take her picture. I assume it was because she was shedding her winter fur and was a little mangy...but did she have to stick her tongue out? Sheesh! And the male, well, he sauntered around with his newly growing antlers like he owned the joint. Amazing creatures.

So there you have it...our trip to the North Carolina Zoo. We all had a great time and if you can make your way there I know you'll love it, too. Happy Friday! xoANG