Jacksonville Zoo & Gardens

My family is a Disney family and from Raleigh and now Charlotte it is anywhere from an 8 to 10 hours drive from North Carolina to Orlando. We have been to Disney five times since 2014 and with now two kids in tow, we typically split the trip down with an overnight stop along the way. And where possible be able to do an activity that afternoon following the drive. One of the places we have frequently stayed at is Jacksonville, Florida. In January 2016, we visited the Jacksonville Zoo & Gardens before heading to our hotel.

The Zoo is located on over 120 acres along the Trout River and has been in operation since 1925. The first zoo in the city opened in 1914. Known as the Municipal Zoo, it was located at 3rd and Broad Streets near downtown Jacksonville. Eleven years later, the Zoo moved to its current location north of the city along the Trout River.

Over the decades, the zoo expanded to include a number of well known exhibits. The Range of Jaguar, Dinosauria, Great Apes, and Plains of East Africa are some of the zoo's best known exhibits. In the early 2000s, the Zoo expanded to include botanical gardens that are integrated within the various exhibits.

When we visited, we didn't see the whole zoo; however, we greatly enjoyed the grounds. Most areas of the zoo loop off of the Main Path making it easy to navigate the grounds. The exhibit habitats for many of the animals were open spaces. One of our favorites was the feeding of the giraffes and how close we could get to them. Over the years, we have learned that feeding giraffes is a common attractions at zoo; but this was our first time and we all enjoyed it.

The Jacksonville Zoo & Gardens are open from 9am to 5pm seven days a week. Admission ranges from $24.95/adults - $19.95/children for general admission to $32.95/adults - $25.95/children for a total experience package that includes carousel and train rides, animal feedings, and other in zoo attractions. It is definitely worth a visit and if you are making a long trek further south into Florida, the Zoo and an overnight stay in Jacksonville may be a welcome relief.

Sources & Links:

Jacksonville Zoo & Gardens
The humble beginnings of the Jacksonville Zoo & Gardens ---Jacksonville Magazine

How To Get There:

Comments

Interstate 40's Tumultuous Ride Through the Pigeon River Gorge

In the nearly 60 years Interstate 40 has been open to traffic through the Pigeon River Gorge in the mountains of Western North Carolina, it has been troubled by frequent rockslides and damaging flooding, which has seen the over 30-mile stretch through North Carolina and Tennessee closed for months at a time. Most recently, excessive rainfall from Hurricane Helene in September 2024 saw sections of Interstate 40 wash away into a raging Pigeon River. While the physical troubles of Interstate 40 are well known, how I-40 came to be through the area is a tale of its own. Interstate 40 West through Haywood County near mile marker 10. I-40's route through the Pigeon River Gorge dates to local political squabbles in the 1940s and a state highway law written in 1921. A small note appeared in the July 28, 1945, Asheville Times. It read that the North Carolina State Highway Commission had authorized a feasibility study of a "...water-level road down [the] Pigeon River to the Tennessee l

Mines Road

Mines Road is an approximately twenty-eight-mile highway located in the rural parts of the Diablo Range east of the San Francisco Bay Area. Mines Road begins in San Antonio Valley in Santa Clara County and terminates at Tesla Road near Livermore of Alameda County. The highway essentially is a modern overlay of the 1840s Mexican haul trail up Arroyo Mocho known as La Vereda del Monte. The modern corridor of Mines Road took shape in the early twentieth century following development of San Antonio Valley amid a magnesite mining boom. Part 1; the history of Mines Road Modern Mines Road partially overlays the historic corridor used by La Vereda del Monte (Mountain Trail). La Vereda del Monte was part of a remote overland route through the Diablo Range primarily used to drive cattle from Alta California to Sonora. The trail was most heavily used during the latter days of Alta California during the 1840s. La Vereda del Monte originated at Point of Timber between modern day Byron and Bre

Interstate 210 the Foothill Freeway

The combined Interstate 210/California State Route 210 corridor of the Foothill Freeway is approximately 85.31-miles. The Interstate 210/California State Route 210 corridor begins at Interstate 5 at the northern outskirts of Los Angeles and travels east to Interstate 10 in Redlands of San Bernardino County. Interstate 210 is presently signed on the 44.9-mile segment of the Foothill Freeway between Interstate 5 and California State Route 57. California State Route 210 makes up the remaining 40.41 miles of the Foothill Freeway east to Interstate 10. Interstate 210 is still classified by the Federal Highway Administration as existing on what is now signed as California State Route 57 from San Dimas south to Interstate 10. The focus of this blog will mostly be on the history of Interstate 210 segment of the Foothill Freeway. Part 1; the history of Interstate 210 and California State Route 210 Interstate 210 (I-210) was approved as a chargeable Interstate during September of

Gribblenation

Search This Blog