Clinton Corners Day 8: Trevor Zoo & Dinner in Germantown

Today was an intentionally low key day. I had a suspicion that after the camping adventure last night, (not usually known for restful sleep) half our crew might be a little tired today.

We hung around the house until about noon then made our way towards Trevor Zoo at The Millbrook School, only to find we needed reservations. Only issue with that was we had no cell service there to make said reservations, so we drove into Millbrook with two goals: lunch at the Millbrook Diner (delicious) and use the wifi to make zoo reservations. Done and done.

Trevor Zoo is a unique landscape tucked into the woods of the school surrounding a fast-moving stream. As you enter, river otters greet you as they splash and play below a wooden bridge that spans the stream.

Bridge from the parking lot to the walkway up to the zoo

The zoo is small and intimate, with attendance limited to less that 50 people at any time. Unlike many zoos, it had zero overlap with an amusement park and was more the character of a nature conservancy and place of learning (logical given its affiliation with the school).

There were lots of water fowl, three species of lemur and a host of birds of prey. The indoor exhibits feature reptile and fish tanks, a little bit of everything.

#1BigSis found an area with stumps all aligned in a circle. Another little girl was jumping from stump to stump, but initially #1BigSis said she was too little to do the same. With a little encouragement from both of us, she gave it a try, and without a misstep was going round and round all her own.

After Trevor Zoo, we took a short drive to Germantown, NY to eat dinner with our friends, Chris and Adri. Chris and Amir were freshman hallmates at William & Mary. They bought a house about a year ago and moved out of the city to the countryside, complete with backyard mountain views, an enclosed garden and 5 chickens. We enjoyed pizza, salad and ice cream, but had to skip an evening stroll to get #1LilBrother back home and to bed.

No big plans tomorrow for the day as we plan to drive back to Virginia tomorrow evening. I have some laundry to tend to, a propane tank to refill (we did some good grilling), and bags to pack. It’s sad to see this trip coming to a close, but with so much in store for our team these next few months (new house, new baby, new car and then the holidays), I’m excited for things to move forward and to find our new normal.