A Spring Walk in the Park in Pictures--A Como Zoo Tour!

A visit to Como Park in St. Paul, Minnesota brings back so many wonderful memories. As a kid it was a place for the Summer family reunion and a destination for school field trips. As a college student, I enjoyed riding my bike around the lake as it was a short distance from my Hamline University campus dorm. My husband and I spend several of our first dates walking around the park, feeding the ducks at the lake and seeing the Como Zoo animals up close and very personal in their original small cages. Almost every weekend, as a young starving college grad, I would head over to the zoo or conservatory with my nieces in tow to photograph the bears and throw fish to Sparky. It has always been free to visit Como Park and what a great way to spend an afternoon.

When I had children of my own, we headed to the year-round flower festival in the Como Zoo Conservatory in November for a colorful backdrop where we could snap a Christmas photo of the boys.

It had been years since we visited Como Park. Last Saturday, on a whim or maybe it was a bit of spring fever, we decided to visit the park and take some photos of something other than real estate for sale. Many others must have been bitten by that same bug, as the park was full...but I managed to keep the people out of my pictures.

Here are a few of my favorite shots from the zoo side of Como Park:

The lions were out and enjoying the beautiful spring weather oblivious to the gawkers above them.

The mama lion was wide awake keeping an eye on the tigers across the way.

The papa lion was snoozing!

The tiger was out and on the prowl!

A sleepy snow leopard opened an eye to watch me snap his photo.

A retired "Sparky" was quietly swimming in lazy circles waiting for the fish food building to open.

I guess trained sea lions don't bother barking unless they can see the fishy treats!

It was still too early in the year for the infamous daily Sparky the Sea Lion shows but his statue stands grandly at the entrance of the aquatic animal building.

The sloth was very "sloth-like"; lounging in a tree in the primate building. (I used a photo editing software to make this appear as a painting.)

And then there was the hungry zebra more interested in dinner than people in the hoofed animal building. It is much better on the senses when these hoofed guys are out of doors and they were very scent-ouous in their indoor abodes!

Copyright 2009 Teri Eckholm http://www.terieckholm.com/