Wild Ropes and Taronga Zoo

One dose of high wire acts wasn't enough for Alex and B. Today it was another zoo and another tree tops adventure at Wild Ropes in Taronga Zoo.

This time there was no pressure on me to join them and we bought zoo entry tickets as well, catching the ferry across from Circular Quay and riding the Sky Safari cable car up to the top. Along with chairlifts that's about my limit for high wire transport.

The verdict from Alex and B was that, despite the easier continuous belay system of Wild Ropes, the Trees Adventure at Nowra was more fun, though Taronga had the better views from the top.

While I wasn't photographing them from below I checked out the platypus and nocturnal animals display of the zoo. The bilby was cute, but watching a bat eat a chick was the highlight.

Afterwards we raced down to the seal show, which was enjoyable, but I think the message on sustainable fishing needed to be said in a few languages. By now the wind had greatly picked up and it was cold.

We watched a bit of the gorilla feeding, then the raptors, owls and cockatoos fighting the wind in the bird show. To our great disappointment the chimpanzees were nowhere to be seen, but the reptile house provided some welcome relief from the chill outside.

Once you discount the harbour views we really weren't that impressed with Taronga Zoo. It seems to lack character and we didn't feel involved with the animals. I would say it was the least enjoyable zoo visit of the last few years and that's a pity.

Maybe it was the weather. The Sky Safari was slowed down due to the winds and at one point we were stopped, suspended and shaking in the wind.

Fortunately we stayed indoors for the ferry ride back as those at the front of the boat were splashed by the waves in the rough waters of the harbour.

When we arrived back at Padstow we discovered the Indonesian restaurant gone, but fortunately there was a new and really nice Vietnamese place, Four Seasons, to dine at instead.

I'm pretty certain we'll find ourselves back at a tree top adventure park sometime in the near future. But that's enough for now.

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