Sunday, July 1, 2012

Looking For A Budget Friendly Summer Activity?


Include a visit to World Bird Sanctuary in your  summer plans for something educational, entertaining, fun and free!  Get the kids out of the house and into nature and the outdoors. 
 Look for our entrance--on the right--just before Lone Elk Park
World Bird Sanctuary offers outdoor and indoor exhibits that include birds of prey (eagles, owls, vultures, hawks, falcons, etc.), parrots, mammals, reptiles and more.

Check out the interactive displays at our Environmental Education Center.  Visit our 15’ Burmese Python and our 9-banded Armadillo at the Nature Center. Visit Dorothy, our juvenile Andean Condor, on our exhibit line.  Also on the exhibit line, bring some quarters and feed some of the  most unusual chickens you will ever see.  Peek in on some of our patients through the viewing window at our Wildlife Hospital.   

You can see most everything in just a few hours, or pack a picnic lunch and spend the whole day.  WBS is open daily from 8 am – 5 pm, 363 days of the year (except for special/private events and occasional bad weather closures).  There are several picnic tables and a few pavilions available on a first come – first serve basis.

Need to burn off some excess energy?   Take the family on a hike on one of our trails.  For a short hike, try the Hickory Trail or Turtle Bob’s Trail.  If you want a serious workout, take to the Chubb Trail (14 miles round trip).  The Chubb Trail Head is located just 200 yards past the WBS entrance, as well as parking for the trail.
 Be sure to catch one of our free weekend Animal Encounters
Make sure to catch one of our Free Animal Encounters shows (every weekend, Memorial Day through Labor Day).  Animal Encounter times on Saturday are 11:30 am and 2:00 pm, and on Sunday there will be a show at 1:30 pm.  All shows are held in our Amphitheater, located just outside of our Nature Center.  No two shows are alike.

Want to make your visit even more educational?  Purchase a Bird Bundle in our Raptique Gift Shop, located in our Nature Center.  Bird Bundles can be purchased for $5 each and are available in two levels.  Level I is for K – 2nd grades and Level II is geared for grades 3 on up.  Bird Bundles include activities that can be completed during your visit.

Looking to keep idle minds occupied this summer?  Check out our Resource Nest Boxes.  These boxes are available in four different topics and are filled full of hours of educational entertainment.  They can be rented for a two-week time period for a fee of $25, subject to availability. Topics include: Protect Our Planet, Rocks Rock, Talon Tote and Where We Live.  See our website for more information.
 Join us for our free Birds in Concert performances every Thursday in August
Be sure to check out our online calendar for upcoming events such as Birds In Concert which is a FREE CONCERT held every Thursday in August at 7 pm.  These concerts feature a different guest musician or group each week, as well as our own in-house band, The Raptor Project.

When you are ready to depart World Bird Sanctuary, you might want to visit our neighbors at Lone Elk Park.  This drive-through park features Elk, Bison and Deer.

There’s plenty going on this summer at World Bird Sanctuary to ward off boredom and to answer the age-old question, “What are we doing tomorrow?”  Hope to see you soon!

Submitted by Billie Baumann, World Bird Sanctuary Outreach Coordinator


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