We could not check into our hotel room until 3pm so we headed across the bridge into St Ignace to do some souvenir hunting and to visit some of our favorite places. The first stop was the Deer Ranch where we went and saw the new deers. This year they had 3 fawns and they were very cute, although they were sleeping while we were there. James once again fed the deers and had a great time doing so. The deers looked very good and very healthy and happy.
Category: Zoo
Zoo visits
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St Ignace Deer Ranch 2025
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Mackinaw Second Visit (August 2022)
Our second trip to Mackinaw was a quick one, but we still had a blast. It was a one day visit and the weather was perfect. James got to spend a little time at the beach and Mary got to see a sunset. Our main purpose in this trip was to see the Northern Lights which were supposed to be very visible, but unfortunately we did not notice anything special in the night sky except the lights from the bridge.The next day we visited the Deer ranch in St. Ignace (which was our reason to cross the bridge. James fed them carrots but kept his mask on as he wanted to make sure the upper peninsula was safe from any lower peninsula germs. (more…)
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Sea Life 2019 (Great Lakes Crossing)
There is a really cool corner of Great Lakes Crossing which has the Rainforest Cafe on one side and the Sea Life aquarium on the other. We thought about going into this before but never really did due to time restraints, but on this day Mom needed a little time to shop so James and his Dad decided if it was ever going to happen it would be today.The visit was much fun, took us a little over an hour to see everything, and has many activities for young kids. There was much to do for older kids as well but most of the activities were for the younger variety. The main reason though to visit is to see the fish and they have them all, from sharks to stingrays to glowing jellyfish. There is a section where you can pet some of the lifeforms such as starfish which was fun to do.
James and his dad had a blast on a very warm Saturday! (more…)
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Heritage Park Petting Zoo 2013
James visited this park a long time ago, once to see President Bush and the other time visiting the petting zoo, you can see the pictures still on this blog.This summer his VIP camp visited Heritage park and James had so much fun he brought his family back the next Sunday.
James favorite animal is Stormy, a Gray rabbit. He loves all the barnyard animals but Stormy is his favorite. The turkey who kept strolling around the barn was pretty cool as well.
Many barnyard animals this day and all were very tame and friendly, a lot of fun for the entire family and only $4 per person.
Dads favorite was the Duck
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St Ignace Deer Ranch 2012
The first stop after we crossed the bridge was the Deer Ranch in St Ignace. They just had a few new fawns and you can see some of them in the pics. James got both carrots and crackers for the deers this year and made some of the deers a cracker sandwich with a carrot in the middle. This year none of the albino deers came up for food, only the brown normal colored deers did, which was just fine with James.While Dad and James were out feeding the deers, Mom was shopping for souvenir shirts for everyone. James got a Deer Ranch sweater which he wore on the Soo Lock boat tour. James enjoyed running around outside and the deers would run along side with him. He said that was his favorite part of the Deer Ranch this year, even more so than feeding the deers.
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St Ignace Deer Ranch 2010
On our way back from Mackinaw Island we realized that outdoor activities were really going to be curtailed due to the oncoming storms so we grabbed a quick bite to eat, hopped in the car, skipped past the high wind escort on the bridge, and got James to the deer ranch. James certainly remembered it from past years because when he went in he did not say hi to the teller but instead said “crackers please”.The cost for going through the deer ranch is $5 per person plus carrots and crackers (we got a dollars worth which was plenty) so for a relatively low cost James had a lot of fun. About the time he finished, the first drops of rain were hitting St. Ignace so we got out of there just in time.
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St Ignace Deer Ranch 2008
James loves to feed the deers and whenever we can take him to a petting zoo or ranch we take advantage of the opportunity. This deer ranch specializes in albino deers as well as the standard deers we have all come to know and love. They sell crackers that you can feed the animals and James used up all his crackers in about 15 minutes. A great experience for James and I am sure the deers enjoyed it as well, getting all those crackers from James.For those who do not know, St Ignace is the city on the other side of the bridge in reference to Mackinaw City. St Ignace is in the upper peninsula and Mackinaw City is in the lower peninsula.
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Nottawa Farms Petting Zoo 2008
We were working on a magic site and had to attend a magic auction/flea market in Colon so that we could take pictures (the pictures are pretty much to promote the next year one so that we can show what a good time it is at the flea market and auction). We promised James that if he was good we would take him to the petting zoo which was about 15 minutes away. James was very good and we went to Nottawa Farms which is a combination greenhouse, nursery, playground, and petting zoo. James had fun then we returned back to the magic auction where James was able to played in the playground there.
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Nashville Zoo 2006
Mary lived just across the street from here as a child, although it wasnt a zoo then. The property was owned by a family who donated it to the city of Nashville to be used as a zoo. This is a very new zoo so a lot of the exhibits are fresh and fun, it is set up like a safari adventure and you can easily miss things if you don’t have a map. A carousel is right in the center for the kids, and you can visit the family’s original farm as well. James had a blast here, and despite all the cool animals that he enjoyed, I think he liked the carousel ride the best. I guess its one thing to look at an animal but another to ride one on a merry go round.
If the weather is nice out, and most of the time the weather in Nashville is pretty decent, I cannot think of a better outdoor place to visit.
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Detroit Zoo 2006
James was a little taller and it was easier for him to see the animals this year. I think his favorites were the penguins and the monkeys. He also enjoyed the polar bear exhibit, being able to make a snowball in the summer was a big thrill for him.Our first stop is the play area where James can climb, bounce, slide and swing on a variety of playground activities designed for young kids of his age. Also it doesn’t hurt to let him expend some of that pent of energy from the car trip which makes the day go easier for everyone.
