baby animals « Wandering in Heels

Hunter Valley Zoo is such a unique zoo!! It is privately owned and the owners sound like the nicest people ever. The cost of entry is totally reasonable and a lot of the fun extra activities are free. The owner believes that everyone should be able to experience the animals up close. So cool! You can even pat a wombat or koala at no cost! We missed the wombat one but I did get to pat a koala! Man, they are adorable! Of course feeding the kangaroos was a total blast! They even have a few albino kangaroos! I was really surprised how soft these little guys were! Of course, it was instant love for the little Joey in its mom’s pouch (photo above).

I also really love how open the animal enclosures are. You feel like you’re right up next to all the creatures. You can even get decently close to the alligators! I could have stayed here all day but we needed to get to the wine tasting portion of our road trip.

For a fun day experiencing Australian Wildlife up close and personal, definitely head to the Hunter Valley Zoo!

For all the years I’ve been heading to Washington to visit family, I can’t believe I (the super duper animal lover) was the only one in my family not to visit the Olympic Game Farm. Not only is there a pretty incredible variety of animals in this little park, you can feed them while driving your car through it! Hello! This is a Chelsea dream come true! Have you ever gotten to feed a Yak? Or a buffalo? How about a BABY buffalo?! I knew I was in for a treat when the attendant tells you to “just keep moving” when you get to the Elk/Buffalo enclosure. And let me tell you, those Elk are just as tall as our Suburban!

I had the pleasure of going in the Spring after all sorts of babies had been born. I mean, come on! All baby animals are just plain cute. A lot of these animals are rescued from bad situations which makes me extra happy to see them roaming this beautiful place. Many of the bears are retired from show business and will sit back and give you a little wave for their treat too. Talk about cuteness overload! If only we could hug them…

For more information on this super fun game farm, head on over to their website here. My only recommendation is… get a car wash soon after. Hehehe.