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| Horseshoe Lake |
Being on the West Coast, so far away from beloved Walt Disney World, we are always on the look out for similar experiences and learning opportunities. So, this past weekend, the kids and I joined up with my parents to go to Northwest Trek. This place is like a wildlife reserve and zoo combined with some animals in enclosed areas, and others free roaming within the reserve. There is a wonderful tram ride (think Kilimanjaro Safari) that takes visitors along the reserve to observe animals in their natural habitat, along with some of the wonderful Washington State outdoors.
Both of my children love sitting in the tram, staring intently as it winds around the property. Guests are encouraged to keep a look out for animals to point out to the rest of the group, as the driver provides information about the land and animals.
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| Looking at a Moose |
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| Animal watchers |
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| Bison herd |
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| Up close with the bison |
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| Elk herd |
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| Mountain Goat |
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| View over property |
Once the tram ride was over, we wandered the property and looked at more animals native to Washington. Most of these are in semi controlled spaces: the birds have cages around them to stay in, the rest of the animals have open space towards guests with some sort of obstacle in front to keep from having full access. For example, the cats all have deep, wide spaces of water separating them from everyone else.
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| Cougar |
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| Lynx |
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| Bear |
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| Bear again |
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| Wolverine |
Along the tour of the animals is also a small cabin that has extra learning spots for children. They can learn to identify different animal sounds, see old wood stoves, look through binoculars, and control a TV that has a live camera feed on their red foxes.
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| Exploring Baker Cabin |
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| Controlling the live feed of the red foxes |
There are many more things to see than what I have listed here. If you're ever in Washington state, why not check it out? Go to
http://www.nwtrek.org/ for more info.
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