America's First Zoo

During our PA trip, the buddies jumped at the chance to visit America's First Zoo. Although the zoo was chartered in 1859, it's opening was delayed by the Civil War until July 1st, 1874. This 42 acre zoo is home to 1,300 animals. We were only able to see a fraction of them during our day-trip, but the buddies enjoyed it all. They saw elephants, giraffes, zebras, and hippos for the first time and also enjoyed checking out the primate exhibit and the giant turtles.

Me-Mom, Aunt Amy, Daddy's cousin Rachel, and cousins: Finn, Alex, and Charlotte joined us for a fabulous time. All the kids loved running around and checking out the animals.


After viewing the animals and eating Nathan's hot dogs for lunch, we hit the many fun rides. Ben and I shared a swan paddle boat ride (although I had to do all the paddling). All five kids piled into the caboose of the train ride and went for a spin around the track. The Zoo Balloon was closed (much to Aunt Amy's dismay) due to impending storms and heavy winds, so we'll just have to return on a future trip.