While many folks may not believe it, there are plenty of non-Twilight related activities on the Olympic Peninsula.
On 2010-08-28, The GF and I hopped on the Edmonds-Kingston ferry to head over to Sequim and visit the Olympic Game Farm. It started as a training and storage facility for animal actors from Disney movies. While the farm doesn't do much with the movie industry these days, there are still plenty of animals at the farm waiting for people to visit.
Unlike many zoos, most of the animals aren't in cages. They roam free and visitors drive throuh the area. The staff will be happy to sell you loaves of bread at the gate (I recomend you get at least 5) so you can feed the animals. That's right, you can actually feed them by hand. The critters will lumber up to your car window to take the sliced bread right from your hand.
There are really three sections to the drive. The first section is filled with bears, llamas, zebras, yaks, and more. The second section isn't as much fun. It's a caged area for big cats like lions and similar animals. That part actually looks like a zoo from years ago. I imagine the animals are well cared for, but it seems a little more depressing. The third part is another drive thru zone, but the animals are bigger and potentially more dangerous, so you are supposed to keep your windows closed an not feed the bison. This three minute video shows parts 1 and 3.
We had a great visit. And despite the ability of many of those anamils to kill people if they chose, they are still adorable.
You can see more of my pictures of the Olympic Game Farm here. A few of them also appear below.
One of the first things visitors see is a prarie dog mound.
The prarie dogs apparently decided to entertain some birds, too.
Llamas were some of the most aggressive animals. Or maybe it's just because they were so many. They walked from car to car looking for bread.
Several zebras sought out their own bread, too.
The yaks certainly enjoyed their snacks, but they were less assertive. Instead they just milled about. Once they would get their bread, or realize they weren't getting any, they just sort of leaned against the car or stood in the middle of the road until they came up with something better to do.
The Shoebox Chef decided she was running low on chicken stock while we were there and decided to do something about it.
I'm guessing Peacocks don't make the best soup, and that they are not prey for llamas, zebras, or yaks.
Of course, the bears stole the show.
The Olympic Animal Farm isn't that many miles from Seattle, but because all that darn water and those mountains tha get in the way, it takes several hours to get there. If you've got a free day in the Seattle area, and like to get close up to animals beyond cats, dogs, and squirrels, be sure to visit. Just keep the top up on the convertible.
More pictures available here.
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