MLHS Class of 2016 takes senior trip to South Dakota
Members of the Mountain Lake Public High School (MLHS) Class of 2016 – along with their Class Advisors Brenda Feil, Shawn Naas and Kim Syverson – were all a Su Fu crew for a day
On Wednesday, May 18, the Senior Class Trip was a day spent in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. On the agenda was a visit to the Great Plains Zoo and Delbridge Museum, lunch at the Phillips Avenue Diner and energy expended at Sky Zone.
Here is the “skinny” on the places the students and their advisors visited:
+ The Great Plains Zoo spreads out over 45 acres and is accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums. The associated Delbridge Museum houses a collection of 150 mounted animals – including 36 vanishing species.
The zoo dates back to the 1880s. At that time, South Dakota Senator Richard F. Pettigrew kept a few animal specimens housed for public viewing in local Sioux Falls parks. In the 1930s, the Sioux Falls Parks System assumed responsibility and added animals to a permanent display in Sherman Park. The Zoological Society of Sioux Falls was established in 1957, and helped developed the Great Plains Zoo, which opened on June 30, 1963.
In the 1970s and 1980s, the zoo had a growth spurt, with a Children’s Zoo, the Black-footed Penguin Rookery, Birds of Prey aviary, a Primate Complex and a 10-acre North American Plains Exhibit – that includes brown bears, black bears, pronghorns, bison, swift foxes and red wolves – all becoming a part of the display. The Delbridge Museum of Natural History was added to the zoo in 1984 through the donation of more than 150 mounted animals from the C. J. Delbridge family collection.
In the 1990s, the zoo renovated several of the aging facilities, and added new habitats including the Asian Cat Habitat, Wild Dogs of America exhibit, the Australian Outback, Bear Canyon and Galapagos Tortoise exhibit.
In 2005, the zoo made major changes, improving animal care and better visitor care. Since then, the zoo has rehabilitated the zoo’s ponds, brought in traveling exhibits like the albino alligator, and renovated old exhibits to house new animals.
The Asian Cat Exhibit was renovated in 2008 and includes Amur tigers, snow leopards and Palla’s cats.
In 2009, the Hy-Vee Face-to-Face Farm opened. This area brings kids up-close to animals with feeding and petting opportunities. It also features goat bridges and camel rides.
Added in 2010 was the “Rare Rhinos of Africa” exhibit, an immersive and interactive experience engaging visitors on topics related to Africa, rhinos and conservation.
And, in 2013, the zoo opened a snow monkey exhibit in conjunction with a renovation of the zoo’s entrance. The zoo is currently one of 13 United States zoos to care for snow monkeys – also known as Japanese macaques. The project also added a state-of-the-art education classroom and a play-and-learn area called Kids’ Clinic.
The Savannah Express train runs every 15 minutes from mid-May to Labor Day – and on some weekends in the fall. In addition, the custom-designed Sanford Carousel, located near the African Savannah, is open daily during the summer.
Each year, the zoo reaches more than 40,000 kids and families in unique educational settings including summer ZooCamps, ZooCub classes and ZooMobile programs.
+ The Phillip’s Avenue Diner is a retro eating experience. As the story goes, once upon a time there was a cool silver Airstream trailer that really wanted to be a vintage restaurant. In 1996, this nostalgic piece of Americana was located on Louise Avenue and known as the Market Diner. A few years later, the owners moved the building to its downtown location.
+ Sky Zone is the world’s first indoor trampoline park. Sky Zone offers multiple trampoline playing courts in a system of wall-to-wall trampolines, and a variety of programs.
Activities include the Main Court free jump, Foam Zone freestyle jumping into a pit 10,000 cube-sized blocks of foam, Ultimate Dodgeball and SkySlam basketball, where trampoline launch pads launch one 10-feet into the air for some major dunk swag opportunities.
Below are some photos for the day’s activities for the soon-to-be MLHS graduates:
