[RiDeWaRrIoR]

And yes, the bird building is still there (Aviary) - but I think I also remember "loose" birds in the African Pavilion and maybe the Sonora Desert.

And the $2 giraffe deck is not always a good buy - they can be on the other end of the exhibit and the deck doesn't help your view at all then - so just ask the deck attendant before paying.

Thanks for telling me about that giraffe thing. Do you think its worth it to do the full pass where you get the giraffe deck, dora 4D, and the carosel? anyone on here do the dora thing? My 4 year old of course wants to do that, along with see the flamingos haha, and i know they would ride the carosel so i figure the extra $4 would be worth it.... thoughts?

[jeffdavis]

I haven't done the 4D theater, carousel, or the giraffe deck. But I don't have a child. I think you should plan on doing the carousel and the theater, and the giraffe deck comes down to timing and I'm certain the giraffes will be at the deck at some point during your visit, so you might save that ticket for later in the day if the giraffes aren't near the deck on your first stop by.

On our last visit we parked at Africa so we passed the giraffes (zebras and ostriches are in there with them, too) at least twice before we moved on to North America and then passed them again on our way back to the parking lot in the afternoon and that's when we saw the giraffes near the fence. The giraffe deck closed early that day, like 2:00 so check on that.

You should go ahead with the combo tickets. I don't think you can go wrong and if there's rain that theater and carousel might be a nice place to hide!

And remember on the zoo society membership program the Columbia Riverbanks zoo is only 50% reciprocal witn nc zoo. (My membership only gets me 50% off at Riverbanks, and it might be vice/versa, too). http://www.nczoo.com/join/reciprocal/list

[RiDeWaRrIoR]

Thanks for the info! Looks like the rain is going to hold out so as of now we are still going to go. I think the combo tix will be fine and if we dont get to see the giraffes it will be OK. Thanks again for all the info everyone! I will post a few pics when we get back tomorrow.

[PhantomCat]

I'll be looking forward to seeing your pics. I'm sure they will even bring back some memories. Be careful at the rino exibit - if it's still there and setup like it used to be. They pee their golden showers straight out behind them. If you're too close...oh boy.

[RiDeWaRrIoR]

I will try to get some posted either later today or tomorrow, been busy since we got home yesterday. We had a good time at the zoo. The kids enjoyed it and they liked the dora 4D thing. We didnt get to see the giraffes from the deck because they were on the opposite side of there habitat, but that is OK. HAHAHA Phantom, I didnt get to see the rhino's not sure if we skipped it or what but I didnt see. Emma loved the flamingos so she was a happy camper. I wish they had some "hands on" type things were you could feed the animals or hold some or something, that would be fun, I didnt see anything like that though and with the amt of people that were there, I could understand why they dont haha. Overall it was a nice trip, easy drive, and a great day (weather and all). Thanks everyone for all of the information on the zoo etc. and I will post a few pictures when I get them on the PC and everything.

[PhantomCat]

I'm glad you had a great time, and got a chance to see a zoo you'd never seen.

[RiDeWaRrIoR]

Here are a few pictures that turned out well..

[PhantomCat]

Nice pics. Thanks for sharing.
That elephant is really red.
Those primates are always a hit, especially when they're cutting up and acting silly.

[jeffdavis]

Thanks for sharing the pics - glad you had a nice visit!

I don't want to take this off its topic (hijack), but we used our zoo society membership this past Saturday and Sunday, 4/23 & 4/24, while in Cleveland, Ohio to visit the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo. It's a nice zoo if any of you are ever in that area. The species count is much higher than we anticipated. It takes all day to cover it (including its Rainforest attraction). We went two days because the first day was with limited time and we just wanted to preview it. My wife took LOTS of pictures, just like she does at the NC Zoo. Just another reason to consider the zoo membership programs.

[PhantomCat]

Awesome, Jeff
It's great to know of other zoos worth visiting when plans to see something new are working.
Thanks a lot man, I appreciate it.

[PhantomCat]

Alright, RideWarrior,
When's the next trip, and where are you plotting your course?