SNAPSHOTS: The Cincinnati Zoo

After our first visit in July, the Cincinnati Zoo fast became my favorite. It's wonderfully laid out, the exhibits are huge and they do a great deal of work behind the scenes at helping reintroducing species back into the wild - to the point it's often considered the sexist zoo for all the breeding programs that help repopulate wild populations. So when we had a long weekend just after my birthday, I couldn't really turn down a road trip back there. 

It's always great returning to the zoo after a couple of months (one of the reasons why I love my Detroit Zoo membership) those lion clubs were getting so much larger and daddy Lion was back in the exhibit, Tofu the baby Red Panda was out and about, those baby Flamingo's were just as big as their parents. Plus we managed to catch a glimpse of those animals we missed the first time around - like the crazy cute Sloth to those calling the Gibbon island home. Plus the zoo is home to my favorite penguins - those baby blue ones and with the cooler weather overhead they were being adorably active - splashing, swimming around in their pool. 

OHIO: The Cincinnati Zoo

The Cincinnati Zoo fast became one of my favorite zoo's, and I've been to a far few over the years. Not only because of those penguins. But there's great natural exhibits, encounters, great landscaping and it's huge. And it's not just a zoo, it's also a botanical garden and, as a result, offers a beautiful blend of gardens and flowers as you wander around between the exhibits. Plus gives the animals that all important privacy if they want to keep away from the crowds.

From rain gardens, a green (low input plants) garden and a conifer garden to name but three, the flower borders are also filled with plants butterflies and pollinators love are bright and bold. My favorite, the Pollinator Garden is found on the main loop by you guessed it, the insect building. Borders are crammed full of nectar rich, long flowering plants and shrubs perfect for butterflies, bees to birds. If you're anything like me, a wannabe butterfly garden gardener, you'll leave with so many ideas and plant names.It's all certainly a great approach to landscaping and wildlife and I wish more places would follow suit.

The Cinci Zoo is rather historic too - opening in 1875 it remains America's second oldest zoo. While located in the heart of Cincinnati's Avondale district you'd be forgiven thinking you were miles away from the hustle and bustle of city life with how peaceful and green the zoo is.

It's home to over 1,800 animals over 500+ species. From the huge Elephant reserve, the new African exhibit (more on this to come) special night creature exhibits to gorillas and manatees, there is so much to see. We even managed to spot some baby flamingos which I have to admit, after the penguins came close to being a favorite. There's also a great mix of inside and outside exhibits, so if you're visiting on one of those hot summer days like we were, there's plenty of ways to cool off. 

While it might be a three and a half hour drive from Detroit, I think we'll certainly be popping back for another day trip, it's well worth a visit. 

View Larger Map  |  Get Directions  |  View Bird's Eye
 Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Gardens
3400 Vine St, Cincinnati, Ohio

OHIO: Penguins at the Cincinnati Zoo

With penguins being my favorite creature, I thought i'd start my posts about my visit to the Cincinnati Zoo with a post entirely dedicated to them. You'd think having a Penguinurium at the Detroit Zoo i'd have my fill of penguins, but with visiting the Cinci Zoo and the chance to see some different species you can never see too many. Any chance to see some penguins I haven't seem before, yeah i'm all over that. 

There are two chances to capture a glimpse of these birdie creatures at the Cincinnati Zoo. Inside the Wings of the World indoor exhibit you'll spy the gorgeous huge King Penguins as they splash around in their pool - it was actually great to see such a deep pool too. There is something very majestic about King Penguins swimming. But over in the Children's Zoo you'll find African Penguins and Little Penguins (also known as Fairy/Little Blue). 

Little Blue's - a name owing to their blue tinted plumage is the smallest of all penguins happen to live in a warmer climate than most penguins calling southern Australia and New Zealand home. And they are adorably cute as they sunbathed in the warm Ohio heat. 

The Children's Zoo is also where you'll come across the African Penguin and a certain character that wandered around the fence as if on patrol. This charmer of a penguin loved to follow you back and forth along the fence, it was rather funny to watch. I think he was making it his mission to safeguard the penguin flock.

Aren't they just the cutest?!

OHIO: Kings Island Amusement Park

Record breaking coasters? Tick. Eiffel Tower replica (one third of the size of the original in Paris)? Tick. Awesome funnel cake? Double tick. For part of Joe's 30th birthday celebrations this time two weeks ago we decided a trip to a theme park was in order and so began the start of our road trip.

Kings Island located just north of Cincinnati, Ohio is America's second most visited seasonal amusement park just behind it's sister Cedar Point. It's known for being the home to many world breaking attractions, some of which titles still remain. One of which is the Racer, which during the 1970's often considered to be the attraction that triggered interest back into the roller coaster industry. Like the Racer at Kennywood, PA two cars (unfortunately one was only working on our visit) race alongside each other around the track. While it might be a wooden coaster, it certainly gets your heart racing. 

Speaking of wooden coasters and one of my favorite rides of the day happened to be on The Beast . This coaster is not only the longest wooden coaster in the world, but also the longest of all coasters in America with a grand travel time of around 5 minutes. When it opened back in 1979 The Beast was the longest, tallest and fastest wooden coaster in the world, and while it may have had over 45 million riders, it remains a pretty exhilarating ride.

While i'm not the most experienced when it comes to riding coasters, there's plenty to ease you in at Kings Island, I mean there is 14 of them after all. Take the suspended swinging coaster The Bat (2nd and 4th photo), the Backlot Stunt Driver with flames and helicopters (awesome ride), inversions galore upon The Vortex (a rough ride I will admit) to my favorite - Flight of Fear.

Flight of Fear is one of those coasters where if i'd of known what was going to happen, I probably would never have considered riding it. A launch start, track going everywhere - rolls, twists, corkscrews and breaking, and in the dark. No thanks. But my word, it gets your blood pumping. After that ride, I think I really did earn that funnel cake with huge spoonful of strawberries - delicious!

Are you a roller coaster lover? What's your favorite theme-park to visit?

View Larger Map  |  Get Directions  |  View Bird's Eye

Where to find Kings Island?

6300 Kings Island Dr,

Mason, Ohio, 45040

PS. If you want a tip - download the free Kings Island app, not only will you get wait times for the rides, maps and extra info, but they have some money off coupons for things inside the park.

LIFE: Travels and Ponderings on a Roadtrip

The Ohio -  West Virginia border

Last week we decided to take the long way around to our nephews joint birthday in Pittsburgh PA and spent a couple of days in Ohio. Part of Joe's birthday present was to take a trip to a theme park so the plan was for an early Wednesday morning drive down to Mason OH, ride coasters all day, spend the next day at the Zoo, drive over to Pittsburgh on the Friday and spend some time there over the weekend.

Our little trip turned into five nights, visiting five states - including two new ones for my visited list (Kentucky & West Virginia) and travelling over 800 miles in one huge circle. 

Cincinnati, Ohio

Spending a lot of time on the road with hours and hundreds of miles between all the cities you find things to past the time. Like punch buggy game (I lost), watching every single cars licence place to see where they've travelled from and wondering where they are heading to, and pondering odd things like;

• How bloody huge America is
• How the hell do you comfortably drive from California to Pennsylvania in a Fiat 500?!
• If only the camera would stop focusing on the windscreen damn it
• How road signs warning about a "bump" in the road is just an everyday occurrence in Michigan 
• Thus leading to thinking ... wow everyone has better roads than Michigan
• And public transport while we're at it
• Wait I don't know if I picked up my camera ... 
• Oh look there's a truck with a Confederate flag 
• Does eating in a McDonald's count as visiting a state?! 
• Constantly wondering how the hell houses in Pittsburgh don't slip down the hills

But at least since I ditched TMobile and switched to Boost I know have phone signal in the middle no nowhere, especially on the turnpikes to not only GPS track every single mile but to wiki search anything that makes my fancy. Always leaning, always learning ...

Ohio

Learning things like how farming is Ohio's number one industry so it's no surprise when you're driving around the state how many fields and farms you come across. While born a country lass, my life is now spent hidden away in the burbs of Detroit so it's always nice to see fields, trees and animals as far as the eye can see. As for the countryside smell, yeah not missed that so much. It was particularly eerie with the mist rising come Friday morning as we left Cincinnati and headed east.

Ohio Interstate 70 by Zanesville

Driving on American roads is always filled with history, even if it is a little more on the modern scale of things. Interstate 70 is one of America's major highways stretching from Maryland all the way west to Utah. In many places it mirrors the former path of Route 40 of which the mile marker (above) was one used for. I always have a great love for state historical societies and their plaques.

Ohio - West Virginia border

So we followed I-70 as far as Washington, PA which meant getting to tick another "new" state to my visited list - that of West Virginia. Granted it was only a 14 mile stretch but we did stop at a McDonald's so I'm counting it all the same. But even with that short drive through the state, I can certainly see why it's a state known for it's mountains and rolling hills.

The Cuyahoga Valley National Park

Sunday rolled around and it was time to head home and back to normality. We took our normal route back along the Turnpike. Normally we visit the in-laws in November/December when it's all gloomy, snowing, wet and leafless so seeing all the green fields was a particular delight. Well it was after all the rain stopped.

I actually got really excited back in May when one of my favourite blogs the Dainty Squid shared her walk around the Cuyahoga Valley National Park which lies between Akron and Cleveland in Ohio. That huge bridge in all her stunning photographs - well that's the bottom of this one I managed to catch a gloomy photograph of. We've driven over this part of the national park so many times coming back and home Pittsburgh and it's always looked so beautiful down in the valley.

Detroit, Michigan

And while I'm still suffering from post holiday blues, it is always a welcome sight seeing Detroit's skyline as we travel north up I-75. Home isn't too far away with you see those towers of the Ren Cen (told you you could spot it miles away!).

I have a lot of blog posts about this road trip in a lot more detailed planned out for the forthcoming weeks (and probably months because I'm slow at times and I love sharing details and history) so bare with me!

But let me know how you cope and past the time on road trips and when travelling?!

LIFE: 30 Days Wild #3

So here rolls out the final part of the #30DaysWild challenge. This last part actually sees me getting out of the burbs and travelling through the countryside between some of America's big cities which made a nice change. It's always a welcome sight seeing cows and horses when you haven't seen them for months on end. The countryside smell, not so much - I'm a proper townie these days can't you tell?!

Day 21 // stuck inside a hospital for hours on end made me welcome the sight of a fluffy cloud afterwards

Day 22 // poppy appeared in my wild patch

Day 23 // my little Eastern Tiger Swallowtail has been in and out of my garden for the last month or so, always too fluttery for a picture but this time she settled long enough for a quick snap!

Day 24 // Wednesday saw us driving to Kings Island, and in the rather warm midday Ohio heat, the shade from the old trees was much appreciated between rides.

Day 25 // lusting over this vertical garden at the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Gardens.

Day 26 // Taking Interstate 71 across Ohio to Pennsylvania we had a quick stop at a rest stop right in the middle of the countryside. Hay bails and all.

Day 27 // Totally missed this day - crazed dog and a kids party to blame.

Day 28 // Pretty blue skies, fluffy clouds and green fields along the Ohio Turnpike.

Day 29 // First sweet peas of the year picked, fresh from the garden.

Day 30 // morning working in the veg patch and picking some fruit & veg fresh from the garden

Missing only one day on my first of such photograph challenge I think was pretty good. #30DaysWild has certainly made me more aware of what nature is around me, that you don't necessarily have to be out in the wild per say to enjoy it.  Which in turn has made me even more grateful for my garden and having a park (even if it's more of a playground) close by. And even if you're just travelling through the countryside, it's nice to see and appreciate it. It's encouraged me to get learning more about the wild flowers, the birds, the butterflies that pass by, being able to put names to things is always an advantage in my book.

If you missed the first two parts to #30DaysWild you can find them here and here.