Travelsmartplanet

The 24th edition of CoastFest, Georgia’s largest celebration highlighting their state’s unique coastal environment and natural resources, takes center stage on Saturday, October 6th from 10 am ’til 4pm with a family-friendly day of fun and education.

Over 70 environmental, educational, research and resource organizations from around the southeast will be represented at CoastFest 2018, offering visitors a chance to learn about Georgia’s coastal resources through interactive exhibits and displays and have some fun at the same time.

Visitors of all ages can participate in activities from recycling to learning about coastal weather, native plants to sea turtles, water conservation to archeology, herpetology to geology, sharks to shrimp.

Be captivated throughout the day under the Big Top by many unique events: Arthur Atsma and his Science Circus amaze the audience with science and Newtonian physics taught through fast-paced circus stunts and magic tricks keeping you on the edge of your seat. Jim Sawgrass and his Creek Indian encampment entertain with Native American songs and ritual dances, master juggler Rhys Thomas performing amazing juggling feats with tons of audience participation and Bubble-ologist Keith Johnson uses imagination and science to explore how bubbles work, and reptiles and raptors from the Center for Wildlife Education at Georgia Southern University will take center stage for two shows throughout the day.

CoastFest 2018 will offer new experiences around every corner. Put your hands into the touch tanks with unique coastal Georgia sea life, participate in living history demonstrations with military re-enactors from the Revolutionary War through the Civil War and witness cannon firings. Learn boating safety, master kayaking, try your hand at archery, or how about holding live snakes or even an alligator. You can tour the US Coast Guard boats, Plenty of ‘make-it-take-it’ projects, walk up to a bull moose, a bear, an elk, a wolf, and too many more activities to list.

Catch the excitement at this fun and kid-friendly, family-friendly FREE event with an abundance of educational games, activities and experiences.

Location: MaryRoss Waterfront Park , Bay Street at Gloucester St., Brunswick, GA 31520
Date: Sat, Oct 6, 2018
Time: 10am – 4pm
Tel: 912-264-7218
coastalgadnr.org/CoastFest
For Regional Accommodations, Restaurants & Attractions: goldenisles.com

If  you’re in the Montreal or Ottawa area,  you are only 1 1/2 hours away from an exciting safari adventure. Parc Omega is the perfect day outing for kids (and folks) of all ages. It’s an 800 hectare park where the animals roam free and you are “caged” in your car. It’s such an easy drive to be able to come face to face with Canadian wildlife: reindeer, elk, arctic wolf and fox, bison, musk ox, turkey, boar, coyote, black bear, and many kinds of deer.

Along a 12-kilometere safari nature route which takes you past lakes, meadows, small valleys, forests and rocky hills, you meander at your own pace. You can pick up bag of carrots at the visitor center (or bring your own), and as you slowly make your way through, you are allowed to open the windows to feed the wildlife. Kids are thrilled that they do not have to be in their car seats here and can flit from side to side of the vehicle to say hello to the animals.

You tune your radio to a station which fills you in on all sorts of information about the species you will be seeing.

• We learned which males are good daddies and stay around to raise the youngsters and which ones only show up for mating season.
• I never knew that the musk oxen’s heads are strong as hammers and they butt and knock everything down. Their quarters are specially built to withstand their strength.
•  You pass by low slung “condos” for boars designed to keep the big predators out.
• Coming here in winter gives you the opportunity to see how the arctic fox blends into the snowscape.

About 2/3 through, there’s a place to stop,  get out to stretch legs and visit some wooden buildings for bathrooms, gifts, food and hot cocoa. Friendly deer are in the parking area to get a snack too – those carrots – buy lots.

This is one experience that all Canadian families should take advantage of. It’s not only educational and fun, but will bring lasting memories for the whole family.

Location: Parc Omega is a safari park in Notre-Dame-de-Bonsecours, Quebec, Canada
Address: 399 Route 323 North, Montebello, QC J0V 1L0 Click for map 

Phone: (819) 423-5487
www.parcomega.ca

Daniel Boone first came to the mountains of NC in 1752, and he roamed around the area of Grandfather Mountain, which is today one of NC’s top scenic attractions. This is a replica of his famous carving on a Beech tree that reads “D. Boon killed a bar o this tree 1775” which you will find in The Grandfather Mountain Nature Museum. The tree was actually in Kingsport, TN.

At the Nature Museum, you can find this scale model of Grandfather Mountain, which is one of NC’s top scenic attractions. The museum houses more than 2 dozen exhibits about the natural history of the area, and there is a nature conservancy on the grounds.