Courtyard by Marriott Fort Wayne Downtown at the Grand Wayne Center

Lindenwood Nature Preserve

by Ischyros

This beautiful woodland became a nature preserve in 1994 to put it under the protection of the Indiana Department of Natural Resources. The 110 acre park features a pond, 4 hiking trails (one of which is wheelchair accessable), a pavillion, and plenty of oppritunities for birdwatching and photographing nature without having to leave the city. The park is open in the spring and summer Tuesday-Saturday 9am-6pm and Sunday noon-6pm. Closed Mondays. To get there, take I-69 to exit 102 and head east into Fort Wayne and follow the signs to the University of St. Francis. The park will be on the left across from the large cemetery just before you get to the university.

Corvette Classics Museum

by Ischyros

If you love cars, this is the place for you! This unique museum has over 50 corvettes on display from the 50s through the 90s. And to make things better, it's right across the interstate from the huge Harley-Davidson showroom and just a couple minutes from the enormous 14/69 Auto Mall!! Eh, it's a guy thing. ;-) The museum is open Monday-Friday 10am-6pm, Saturday 10am-5pm, and Sunday Noon-5pm. Admission is $5 per person.

Fort Wayne Childrens Zoo part II

by Ischyros

Ah, the screaming tunnel. The number one pasttime for kids in the zoo is to scream at the top of their lungs as they walk through this tunnel that connects the African Veldt with Central Zoo. The concrete tunnel takes zoo visitors under Sherman Ave. to access the African Veldt.

One of the first animals encountered in Africa is the warthog. These creatures seem to do nothing but sleep in their mud pits all day long. However unless you absolutely love these animals, move along because the star attraction of the African Veldt is the huge savannah where several species of animals, such as zebra, ostrich, gazelle, and wildebeast, roam free.

There are two ways to view the savannah and the method you choose depends on two things: 1) whether or not you have children in your group and 2) how much money you have. These Safari Cars follow a track along the edge of the savannah to the back side. They cost money and will only take you one way. You can see the exact same thing from the boardwalk, but kids love the cars. If you need to take the cars, I recommend walking to the back of the savannah then taking the cars back to the front. On the return trip on the cars, you drive down the opposite side of the savannah from the boardwalk so you have the possibility of seeing things you can't from the boardwalk.

This boardwalk is the alternative to the Safari Cars. The advantage here is it doesn't cost money and you can stop and just watch the animals roaming the open savannah. A coin-operated set of binaculars about halfway down the boardwalk allow a close up view of the animals.

The African Veldt savannah. Herds of zebra, gazelle, and wildebeast roam this open area along side ostrich and flamingos. Pick up an informational sheet to at the beginning of the boardwalk to learn more about the animals on the veldt.

Once near the end of the boardwalk, it enters a wooded area where a side path leads to a close up encounter with a group of giraffe.

The end of the boardwalk trail and the safari car ride lead to a small African village. Several animals are on exhibit back here including this beautiful leopard. The only way back is either back down the boardwalk or pay for a ride on the safari cars.

The next stop on the tour heads up the hill toward the Indonesian Rainforest. But first, a pathway heads off to an overlook of Central Zoo directly over Sea Lion Beach. This red panda is a cute little creature, resembling more of a racoon than a panda. Surprisingly, although they aren't very well known, red pandas were discovered before the much more familiar black and white pandas.