Not yet knowing to be afraid of large powerful animals, my 18 month old squealed with delight when a gorilla nonchalantly lumbered over and plopped down mere inches away, safely behind glass. She laughed at the "mon-key" while we stood mesmerized by his leathery features, hands, feet and behaviors that mirrored our own. When he stood, we marveled at his magnificent bulk and felt privileged to study him at such close range.
Such is the sentiment at Como Park Zoo, where animals are wonderfully accessible to the visitors. No chain link fences to peer through or acreage-like pens where animals roam and disappear from view.
Kids love it here! I know I did. Revisiting as an adult brought back a flood of memories... watching polar bears, Sparky the Seal shows, riding the Tilt-a-Whirl, eating cotton candy, and walking through the Conservatory with my grandma to see the pretty flowers...all still here at Como Park.
Being October, the rides were closed for the season. We didn't visit the glass-domed Conservatory either, which houses tropical plants and specialty gardens a short distance away. Or the fully restored 1914 old-fashioned carousel where kids and adults ride carved wooden horses for just $1.50. We'll save that for a sunny, warmer day.
We were here to see the animals!
We saw a wide assortment of monkeys in the Primate House, but our favorites were watching three gorillas alarmingly close and the entertaining antics of a mama orangutan and her adorable baby rolling around, somersaulting and poking each other.
At Seal Island we watched seals swim around under watchful eyes of pelicans perched on limestone rocks. Kids can feed the seals here. During the summer (11am and 2pm), Sparky the Seal balances balls and jumps through hoops in a pool built into the base of a stadium. His 30 minute shows are a highlight of the zoo, and the reason why many birthdays are celebrated here.
Off season, we saw Sparky swimming in his own private pool in the Aquatic Building blissfully content in a rather small space, hamming it up for us and another family. He swam in circles and jumped out when he approached the children, surprising them. They giggled and clapped, and ham that he was, clapped back in response–much to their delight.
Elsewhere in the Aquatic Building we joined others on benches facing the bottom of a glassed-in pool to watch a polar bear swim. Repetitively he swam toward the glass, then surfaced, pushing his huge paws against the wall for extra oomph in his backstroke. My little daughter stood fearlessly at the glass waiting for him–exclaiming a reverent "Wow" each time his huge head appeared in the murky water at eye level.
Como Park Zoo is free and open 365 days a year (10-4pm). There are also lions, bears, giraffes, zebras, penguins, bison, flamingos, antelopes, a tiger, leopard, wolf and ostrich.
A wonderful place!