Trip to Nemacolin Woodlands

It's funny....I was not that enthusiastic about going to Nemacolin Woodlands last week. Jack had a meeting/conference there and would be busy during the days. What I knew about the place was that it was a spa/golf resort in the middle of just about nowhere! Not being a spa gal, I was concerned that I would not have much to keep me busy during the daytime while he was in class. So, I packed my hand stitching with the intent of getting quite a bit accomplished.

The first day we were there, I decided to do a walk-about and check what the resort had to offer. I had noticed on the map of the place an area labelled zebra habitat and another labelled bison habitat. Curious, I hailed the resort tram and travelled out to the areas in question. Much to my surprise, I found some wonderful habitats inhabited by bison, zebra, tigers, bears, and a few other species. I wandered along the fences engaging the animals in conversation...one-sided, that is. After about an hour of exploring, I again hopped on the tram. The driver suggested that if I liked what I had seen, I might be interested in their Wildlife Academy. Intrigued, I asked him to take me there.

What a terrific facility that turned out to be. This wildlife academy is home to many animals that were once bought by individuals as exotic pets and then were subsequently rescued when their owners could no longer care for them. Amongst the residents in this facility were snakes, giant turtles, a coatimundi, a wolf pup, a Fenec fox, lemurs, and several other species. The wildlife academy is also home to all the baby animals born on the property. So I had the pleasure of bottle feeding and pettin a baby zebra and baby pigs. I also interacted with a baby Mini Jack, a baby bison and a litter of Alaskan sled dog puppies. What was billed as a one hour tour turned into an entire morning of animal babies.....what a blast I had! It was an amazing experience. I have so much more to tell you about this experience, but will start with just a few pictures. More to come....