Maine Wildlife Park

Maine Wildlife Park

Park Website 
Park Map 

If you are traveling through New England and you want to visit a Zoo, good luck.  The winter cold makes it very difficult to keep zoo animals comfortable.  As such, there are very few zoos in this area.  Hope Elephants was an elephant sanctuary, but due to a recent tragedy those elephants will be moving back to the South.  The Maine Wildlife Park mainly showcases native North American animals, with just a very few other examples that can be kept indoors.

Despite the scarcity of regional wildlife parks, this one is very cute and relaxing.  There are wooded trails and large modern exhibits with deer, moose, bear, elk, and more.  Some of the exhibits are so large in fact, that animal viewing can be difficult.  The deer  enclosure is over 3 acres and there are upwards of 20 deer in there but You can barely see them.  It is like a real life Beverly Doolittle painting or a nature hidden picture game.  I had a great time searching for what would normally be an animal I wouldn't spend time viewing due to there very common nature.

They also have a great audio tour via your cell-phone that gave great information.  You can even listen to the audio tour in the car as you drive away to help complete the visit.  The gift shop is small and there isn't much as far as food service.  There are special events held throughout the year such as an Indian Pow-wow that was on this summer.  the price was very affordable and there was ample parking.  I say skip the L.L. Bean Factory Store(Maine's largest tourist attraction) and try to find your way here for a great afternoon of exploring!

Rating:



Visited: 8/13/14

By: Josh Ledebur

Lobster Pot

Union River Lobster Pot Restaurant

http://lobsterpot.com/ 

After a fun filled day of exploring Acadia National Park, a great place for a traditional lobster meal is the Union River Lobster Pot restaurant in Ellsworth, Maine.  Situated on the edge of the Union River the place not only boast one of the best meals around, but also a wonderful view of the meandering waters.

The menu has a full range of local seafood as well as many other selections.  The seafood chowder was great.  The Bread which was served in a unique loaf was fine, but as a west-coast native I would have preferred some delicious sourdough.  The seating is very casual, but this place is a big hit and fills up quickly so expect a wait or make a reservation.  

Of course the area is full of this type of restaurant and there are several options much closer to Acadia that I felt were too much of a tourist trap.  This place was great because it was easy to get to, but enough out of the way that it seemed more authentic.  If you are in the area and are looking for this type of meal than you will be glad to choose the Lobster Pot.
 
Rating:




Visited: 8/9/14

By: Josh Ledebur 

Granby Zoo

GRANBY ZOO 

Zoo Map 

The Granby Zoo is located just outside of Montreal in the province of Quebec.  It is both a zoo and a water park with many great exhibits, rides, attractions, and activities.  The price of admission is high when compared to other zoos and it also varies by the season.  There are some months when the Zoo is closed so be sure to plan ahead before visiting.

The zoo has many fun additional activities that cost an additional small fee.  The best was the tram/monorail as it takes your through various exhibits and into some areas that are not accessible to other park visitors.  My favorite was the back area of the tiger enclosure.  On my visit two beautiful tigers were playing in the back of the exhibit and could only be seen by tram guests.  They also have 4D movies, camel rides, photo ops, and many gift shops and food stands.

Speaking of food, that was one of the highlights.  Of course they have the traditional fare but they also have some delectable regional favorites including Montreal Smoked Meat Sandwiches and Poutine.  These are not fancy version of these quebecoi favorites but they were pretty good for an attraction.  Even the cheese curds were squeaky as they should be!  They also have a great deal of drink options and even a beaver-tail dessert, but sadly the line was too long.

The water park section is very small by American Standards and in August was so crowded that it was uncomfortable.  The wave pool seems to have no limit to the number of guests allowed and the lazy river had a 45 minute wait!  There is also a small amusement ride section but that was an additional cost and looked to be most appealing to kids.

One of my favorite areas was the new walk-through Australia section.  It was beautiful and spacious.  Most of the animals were far away from the guest but there was one particular emu that seemed to enjoy getting closer to people than the people enjoyed being close to him.  I spent a good 30 minutes enjoying his antics as he chased guests through his section of the park.

Overall a fun zoo that would be recommended to those with enough money to burn to truly enjoy the experience.

Rating:


http://www.zoodegranby.com/cgi-bin/zoo/process/locale/en_US/page/index_en

visited: 8/12/14

By: Josh Ledebur