We didn’t plan to stop at an Australian Zoo or visit a Shaker Village, but that’s how this lovely day played out!
Don’t you love happy accidents – when in the course of one thing you happen upon something completely different!
Such was the case on a random Wednesday morning in February. We were headed to an estate auction, taking the back country roads. It threatened to be a slog of a drive – I didn’t realize the auction was almost at the Tennessee border! – but I knew a great Amish bakery along the way. And there, in a shared parking lot with the bakery, was Kentucky Down Under, an Australian-themed zoo.
Before you could say Waltzing Matilda, we were tooling around the zoo in a golf cart with a bag of Amish pastries. We had the place practically to ourselves, and they were dog-friendly. Win-Win!
Kentucky Down Under is a big, rambling park. You follow a paved path through the woods to various animal exhibits. The kangaroos have their own barn and a couple of large fields to bounce around.
For a small fee, you can buy a cup of Roo Chow and feed the kangaroos and wallabies. You’re allowed to pet them – but only on their side, not the head or ears. Maybe they nip? Kangaroos do have surprisingly soft fur, just like a bunny rabbit!
Oh, and there’s a couple of persistent emus that follow you around looking for a handout.
Dingos and wolves had their own enclosures. No hand-feeding those guys!
The lorikeet habitat was my favorite. Here you’re given a paper cup of nectar to feed the birds. But watch out – they definitely nip!
We spent a couple of hours here, then remembered we were supposed to be on our way to the auction…
Sixty miles later, still on the back roads, we came across South Union Shaker Village. It’s a preserved village from two hundred years ago where the egalitarian Shakers lived and worked.
I was impressed with the large number of Shaker artifacts on display. There’s more here than at the Pleasant Hill Shaker village.
The Shakers were ahead of their time with women’s rights and equality among races. They were also known for adopting the latest technology to make their work more efficient.
We spent a couple of hours here, then remembered we were supposed to be on our way to the auction…
By mid-afternoon we finally made it to the auction. Picked up some vintage stuff I had won online, then headed home. Happily tuckered out.
What a lovely day it was! Accidental tourists all the way…
7 comments
Nice. That looked fun. 🙂 Did they sell Kangaroo-meat too? It´s so tasty.
WOW. Good for you and your adventurers, always discovering and sharing.
Learned it from you!
Wow! You really did find some interesting places to lure you in. Helped that you had already landed items at the auction, I’ll bet. No specific time schedule to keep to. Looked like a lovely day to visit the place on your list and those tripped over!
Pure luck stumbling into some tourist fun!
Richie… thank you for your exciting a nd thoughtful posts…
Come join us, Denise!