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| - My first time to the Springs Preserve was on a field trip with 100 kids!
How many people can write that on a yelp review? It was a lot to handle, but Springs Preserve made the whole experience worth all the planning and stress.
At first, I was not sure what to expect from this place. I remember seeing the name Springs Preserve when I saw an ad for some beer event that I wanted to go to. When a colleague mentioned that this would be a great place for a field trip, I was a bit skeptic. Their website kind of makes this place look like a snoozefest-- a bunch of building that probably smell like an old library. I was not sure if the kids would really enjoy this place. Wow, was I wrong!
This place is AMAZING! It's clean. It's organized.
We checked out the Origen Museum which is home to different exhibits that rotate through. At the time, it was about the arctic tundra. The kids really enjoyed the flash flood exhibit! You stand there on this see through bridge and see the water rushing under your feet. There was also an outside portion of the museum that had desert animals. The fox and the tortoises were the most popular for my kiddos. There was a part with some spiders and other icky things, but I avoided that exhibit like it was on fire. Ok, next!
The next big stop was the train-- and it was closed! Womp womp! So we moved onto the butterfly exhibit. I am not much a butterfly person, but I really enjoyed this area. For an exhibit that is not permanent, this was done beautifully. There was someone managing the amount of people inside, so there was a wait time of about 20 minutes. Not a big problem at all. Once inside, they don't really rush you out either. I like how they give you time to explore on your own. We had plenty of questions and the museum volunteers were so helpful!
We were only there for a few hours, so it was back on the bus after lunch. However, the gift shop was well worth the look. I've been to many museums and zoos and I was very impressed with the prices! Many of my students brought $5 to buy something and I was very weary that they were going to be able to buy anything more than a pencil. However, the store had some reasonably priced items, like space goo or a pack of stretchy lizards. I appreciate that this store was family friendly, both in customer service and on the wallet.
I cannot wait to come back here just to explore on my own and have lunch at the cafe. The food smelled delicious and it was really busy when we passed by. Maybe its the nerdy teacher side of me but this place was really fun! I can see why so many people with families come here for the day or buy a season pass. I will be checking their website for fun events in the future.
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