Or a better title….
Pipety Piper Pops in at the Park
And that is why we have an annual family pass to the state parks. Because whenever a small person stops by for a visit, they immediately ask to go to the Ellie Schiller Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park. (It even ranks higher than a boat ride!) Or as all of the grandkids call it, the ZOO! “Grandma, parks have swings. Zoos have animals.”
We could go to Weeki Wachee and see the mermaids, but the little ones always choose the local park. Which is great for me because it’s five minutes away.
We usually spend about an hour there and they are ready to go. That’s about how long my attention span is, too.
On this visit, Piper wanted to go all three days that she was here. And now she wants to be an alligator scientist. How cool is that?
Since I went three days last week, I was able to get a lot of really great pictures.
On day one we headed to the Fish Bowl first. Divers were in the water measuring the captive manatees.
Piper did her version of a flamingo.
The bears were both out and about.
What does the fox say? (Hey, I’m with a four-year-old!)
And an alligator
On day two, Piper did a quick study on the flamingos and realized that they tuck their head under their wing when they are relaxing.
Here’s day two’s version….
Not tucked here, but I like this snap!
Roseate Spoonbill with no fear.
And then we went to the Wildlife Encounter, which was an alligator on this visit.
A wee baby alligator.
And lots of dead alligator parts.
I thought Piper had zoned out during the presentation. Hey, she’s only four. But as we walked out she said “THAT WAS AWESOME!”
And now Piper has her career mapped out–she wants to be an alligator scientist. We went to visit the alligators in the reptile house and then back to the alligator pen where they keep the big ones and then back to the reptile house. And she repeated just about everything the Wildlife Encounter volunteer talked about.
Then we saw a wild manatee when we walked over the bridge.
And Piper needed to get her picture taken.
Day three was just a quick dash through.
We got there just in time for the Wildlife Encounter. This time we got to meet a Great Horned Owl.
And I thought the talk was fascinating. Piper was much less impressed. She will not be an owl scientist.
Here’s one of the Red Wolves. They usually hang out in the back of the enclosure so I thought this was a good pic.
We did visit the alligators and the reptile house a few times. (But not the owls!)
Piper also perfected her flamingo stance.
Piper learned to stay away from the back side of Lu when he’s on the land. I told her you couldn’t ever get that stink out. She liked to repeat that phrase for the rest of her visit. (The things Grandma’s teach their grandkids.)
Our very favorite part of day three’s visit was the otters.
They were being fed apples and melons. The otter rolled the apple into the water. Piper giggled. As only a four-year-old can giggle.
Best visit ever!
Although it was a warm day, there were many manatees hanging out in the area. Just catching the rays. There were a lot of swimmers and snorkelers, too, but unlike past years, they weren’t in the actual springs area. I thought that was pretty cool.
At the end of the 1/4 mile trail is the Laslinger tower with spectacular views of the Chassahowitzka Wildlife Refuge.
Knudsen Pavilion
There’s a kayak launch at the end of the trail by the tower. While the area looks tempting for kayaking, it’s just too far to carry them.
