Sacramento: Fairytale Town

Imagine the Enchanted Forest in Turner, except that it was right in the middle of state capitol Salem and it was more like a playground than displays and rides. 

That gives you a rough idea of what Fairytale Town in Sacramento is like.

Most things are designed for climbing on and sliding down.

Most of the attractions are inspired by Mother Goose rhymes.

You will also find some Aesop and Beatrix Potter, and even Anansi and Urashima Taro.

A key will allow you to hear the stories or songs.

There are also various animals, but it is not a petting zoo. There are scheduled feedings and introductions, but the animals are corralled.

As it happens, we know a few people who grew up in Sacramento and have strong attachments. Through them, we know that there are two features requiring special mention.

The Cheese Stands Alone appears to be the favorite spot for family pictures. Being able to put three different people in each hole in the cheese is probably a key feature for that.

Also, people love the Crooked Mile, though it could kill them.

The path is not even or straight, and it would be easy to pitch to the side and take out an ankle.

I do have to give them props for the inclusion of the crooked stile. Plus, if you complete the path without falling, you feel pretty good about that.

Fairytale Town is currently under construction, with some new spaces coming.

It's a fun little place to spend some time, though I was disappointed that there were no mice on the Hickory Dickory Dock clock. 

I assume they had already run down, but still...

Fairytale Town is very much for kids. In fact, adults not accompanied by children are technically not allowed. They allowed us to check in and wear tags, and were very nice about it, but make advance arrangements if you are an unaccompanied adult.

 (This appears to be a city ordinance issue.)

COVID: It is very much situated outside. Distancing should be pretty easy.

Accessibility: Some of the climbing would not be accessible, especially the Crooked Mile.

Also, the first bathroom we encountered -- the one set up to tempt Hansel and Gretel -- was impossibly small. There are other, more accessible stalls, so don't be too discouraged.

They do also have sensory-story time. 

https://www.fairytaletown.org/sensory-story-time/

We found them pretty responsive as we were arranging our childless-old-maids visit, so if you have concerns I would contact them by e-mail and get the information you need.

Most of the paths are wide and flat.

It should be possible to work things out.

https://www.fairytaletown.org/

Sacramento Zoo

The Sacramento Zoo is a nice little zoo with an emphasis on giraffes.

Perhaps the sign makes that obvious.

When I say "little", we were able to go through the entire zoo in less than an hour.

There are over 400 animals, but many of them are the tiny residents of the Reptile House (which includes amphibians, as the frog on the sign indicates).

They are currently planning a move that will give them more space and the opportunity for different experiences. It is a nice place to visit now, and conveniently located in Land Park across from Fairytale Town.

I will say that the Eastern exposure was not conducive to good photos, at least for between 9 and 10 AM on a late October morning. I am not a great photographer anyway, but everything seems overexposed, even for me.

I mention that because we had better experiences than are conveyed. We got to watch an orangutan playing with a sheet. They like building new beds every night, so need to have materials like that. This one (though it was morning) pulled a white sheet around himself like a cape and walked away, looking like he was playing ghost. A few days before Halloween, that was surprising and perfect.

Not everything is set up for the easiest viewing, but the animals can get their privacy, and that's important.

The primates were the most likely to be providing views and entertainment.

The okapi snubbed us completely (just showing us their butts), but we got a pretty good look at the zebras.

Feeding the giraffes was the highlight. 

For $5 each, we were able to feed one large leaf and one branch. This also gave us some time to talk about the animals with the keepers, and was well worth it.

I must add that staff was generally available, and glad to answer questions or share information about the animals. We had a nice talk about their capybara family.

While it is temporary, the zoo is currently featuring Dino Don's Dinosaur Safari.

https://www.dinodoninc.com/

 Displays are animatronic, with slight movements, and each dinosaur is labeled.

So, when I saw this and thought, Well, dimetrodon is not really a dinosaur, then I saw the sign, "Edaphrosaurus"... though apparently the edaphrosaurus is also a synapsid. I mean, there's more to big, scaly creatures than taxonomy anyway, right?

The carousel was not running while we were there, but there are also climbing attractions and scheduled events with the big cats, so it does not hurt to do some planning for which experiences mean most to you.

We were most determined to feed the giraffes, and that's what we did.

COVID: Everything is pretty outside except for the Reptile House, so I masked in there. It was not at all crowded while we were there, so distancing seemed easy. That may be different at other times. (We arrived right at the 9:00 opening on a Sunday morning.)

Accessibility: The paths were pretty navigable. There were ramps for the giraffe feeding situation. There were some places with steps, but there was always another way up from what I saw. I also appreciated this sign.

The zoo has partnered with KultureCity to help with the experience for those with sensory issues. You can read more about the resources available at https://www.saczoo.org/sensory-inclusive-information/.

It does look like the train would not accommodate wheelchairs, but that if you can do the ride outside of the chair it would be all right, and similar for the carousel. 

(The cobwebs were there for Halloween.)

 https://www.saczoo.org/

Lodi, California: Delta Market at Jellystone Tower Park Resort

You may or may not know that there are many Yogi Bear-themed camping locations. I thought it was just a few, but the map informed me otherwise.

https://www.campjellystone.com/

We visited the Tower Park Resort. The tower silhouette is included in the branding.

Actually, we only visited the Delta Market. We drove around a little, but we did not do any camping.

If we wanted to camp, there are many amenities. In addition to tent and trailer camping, there are cabins available, and attractions include mini-golf, a water park, and opportunities for going out on the Delta River.

There are also golf carts available, and many campers had decorated theirs for Halloween.

There was an impressive list of activities displayed in the store.

We were at the store for the Yogi-themed merchandise.

You could find Yogi, Boo Boo, Cindy and even Mr. Ranger in plush and on magnets and all sorts of things.

This included Halloween versions.

There were other camping supplies too.

Dinty Moore stew or beans, anyone?

There is also a restaurant and some other food options on site (the food truck is called Pic-a-nic Basket), and you are not too far away from full grocery stores. I was most impressed with the s'more options.

Yes, you have the standard display of graham crackers, marshmallows, and chocolate bars, but then there are also kits and sticks.

 Also, I have no idea what to look for in a wine selection, but it seemed like a lot of different bottles.

There are also cheap previously-viewed DVDs available, indicating that at least some of the campers have DVD players with them.

All of those things are good to know, but we never would have driven there if not for the merch.

If that's what floats your boat, you will be very happy here.

But then, if you wanted to actually go out in a boat, you could stop for a photo opportunity with this smarter-than-the-average bear.

COVID: Social distancing was pretty easy, but I was the only one wearing a mask.

Accessibility: Aisles were pretty navigable. I can't vouch for the camping part, but the golf carts could be handy for some mobility issues (though I think most people are just using them for fun.)

https://towerparkresort.com/