Photo Tour of Como Park Conservatory—Minnesotan’s Favorite Eye Candy!

A visit to Como Park in St. Paul, Minnesota brings back so many wonderful memories. As a kid it was a place for the annual summer family reunion with all of the cousins, aunts and uncles. I enjoyed skipping along the stone walkways, through the beautiful flowers in the Como Zoo Conservatory and begging for pennies from my grandmother and great aunts, Ida and Ann, so I could make a wish in the rock fountain Koi pond. It was wonderful to dream of my future wedding where I would have photos taken in this lovely building.

As a college student, the first warm spring day would inspire many of my dorm mates to join in a jog to the park and around the lake as it was a short distance from the Hamline University campus. My husband and I spend several of our first dates walking around Como Zoo, feeding the bears apples and marshmallows. They used to be in open enclosures and we were told they were former circus bears. If you held up a treat, they did tricks.

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 house interiors and exteriors. Many others must have been bitten by that same bug, as the park was full...there were lots of zoom lens and cell phones out for taking photos rather than talking for a change. It was a challenge but I managed to keep the people out of my pictures.

Here are a few of my favorite shots from the flower and plant side of Como Park:

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

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/