[Image] My brother suggested we go to Hogle Zoo while we were in Salt Lake City, and as we had a free afternoon, we decided that sounded like an excellent plan, especially since none of us had ever been there before. Granted, a zoo is usually a warm-weather destination, but the animals don't take the train south for the winter, so the zoo stays open year-round.

A winter visit meant no line to get tickets and plenty of space. We did have to bundle up, though, and we put the kids in their snow pants, which worked out great.

[Image] Desert Boy immediately spotted the playground, and we had to drag him away from that to go see the rest of the zoo.

[Image] I enjoyed the canyon country walk, with the native animals and a replica of a Native American house.

[Image] Yes, this is a plain old rooster. But it seemed very colorful, so I couldn't resist taking a photo. Desert Girl wanted to capture it, but that will have to wait for another visit.

[Image] Here's something more exotic in the primate house. I told myself I was going to remember the name, but it's been over a week, and that is just too long. I should have made Desert Boy memorize the name--his memory is much better than mine!

[Image] Desert Girl and the chimpanzee looked like they were connecting. Or maybe the chimpanzee noticed the copious amounts of grapes that Desert Girl was eating (which we decided a few hours later really wasn't the best idea to give her a whole bag of grapes).

[Image] My, what a big mouth you have. And maybe you need a little dental work.
 
[Image] Desert Girl made a face like she was wondering if she really was safe.

[Image] Fortunately she and the chimp parted on good terms.

[Image] I liked the exhibit of different sizes of primates. Desert Boy fit right in.

[Image] Then I saw something I had never seen before at a zoo: an emergency ladder. That made me think twice!

[Image] I loved the detail of this iguana! It was nice to have some indoor exhibits where we could warm up a bit.

[Image] Uncle Ed was amused by the kids' reactions to all the animals.

[Image] Desert Girl had to climb higher to see better. She managed all by herself. We definitely have another climber on our hands!
[Image] Desert Girl is becoming more intelligible at a rapid rate, so she is really fun to listen to!

[Image] The meerkats were hilarious, scurrying around and then posing. Okay, they weren't really posing, but it seemed like it.

[Image] One came over to check out the kids, and that made them laugh a lot.

[Image] Desert Girl checking out something. She had this great expression on her face a lot of the day.

[Image] She loves cats, so she was fascinated by this one in the basket. I never did see its head.

[Image] Then we went into the giraffe house and I was fascinated by these odd-looking creatures.

[Image] What beautiful eyelashes!

[Image] And quite a tongue.

[Image] Yum, that branch must have tasted really good!

[Image] These two cool dudes were strutting around.

[Image] Meanwhile Desert Girl and Daddy shared a good time in front of the elephants.

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[Image] We tried for a family photo in front of the elephant sculpture, but once again we couldn't get the kids to look at the camera and smile.

[Image] The giant ball supported on water was fun to push.

[Image] And then it was back to the playground.

[Image]Desert Girl in the tortoise shell.