A Zoo Review: The Topeka Zoo

It is no secret that I love zoos and that I enjoy giving my thoughts on things so I have decided to start giving reviews on zoos that I have gone to. What better one to start with than with one that is not very well known. Not even by the people who live in the city, it’s in. So for my first Zoo Review, I give you my review of the Topeka Zoo in Topeka Kansas. Located at 635 SW Gage Blvd, Topeka, KS 66606 it was about an hour drive for me to go to from my house on the Missouri side. Yes, the Kansas City Zoo is closer however I remember going to the Topeka Zoo with my mom and dad when I was little. There fore I made the journey to see what it looks like now. It is a smaller zoo the entire park is only 80 acres. It only cost me 10 dollars to get into which was a plus for me because thought it would cost slightly more. For reference, the Kansas City Zoo costs 20 dollars. The first exhibit I was greeted with was the Asian forest exhibit which had Orangutangs and Sun Bears. It had both outside and indoor viewing. Unfortunately, the Sun Bear was not out and the Orangutangs were sleeping in a corner. When I came out of the forest I arrived at the sight of construction on the African Savannah exhibit on my left and my right were the rest of the African animals. Hunting Dogs, some Monkeys, birds, and Lions are all in some small enclosures. After making the turn from Camp Cowabunga (yes that's the name of it) I was greeted by the Elephants. Which was a combo of both African and Asian Elephants which was a welcome sight to see as I don’t remember the last time I saw an Asian Elephant. Next to the Elephants are the Tigers exhibit and the Hippo enclosure on either side of the path. Going along the side with Hippos is Animals and Man where you can see Giraffas, Hippos, Elephants, and Cranes where they sleep at night. Which is a cool place to be in because you can see the size of the animals up close and personal. Across from, there is their Tropical rainforest exhibit which beyond the Caiman doesn’t have a lot in there that I could see. They also have a children’s zoo, but I don’t have any kids nor did I want to go there. The final themed area is that of Kansas. Mountain Lion, Pronghorns, Turkeys, Eagles, River Otters, a Badger, Possums, Owls, Skunks, and a Black Bear. A very cool part of the zoo mainly for the overlook into the Black Bear cage. And that ended my time at the Topeka Zoo I spent about an hour and a half there. The biggest issue was the toll roads on I-70 to get there. Other than that for as small as it is it’s an alright zoo. I wouldn’t go out of your way to go there, but if you ever find yourself in Topeka for whatever reason go check it out. A final rating out of 5 for the Topeka Zoo is a 2/5. A small zoo that’s in a city that you wouldn't think would have a zoo and sufferers from that but has some interesting ideas that I would like other zoos to take into consideration. The Kansas part is probably the highlight for me however a big part of Africa was under construction.