Today we visited the Ty Warner Sea Center in Santa Barbara. We had a bit of a late start as we ran into some random traffic, but we made it out to the pier OK and Rachel got in a little nap, which was helpful. The aquarium had a lot of hands-on exhibits for the kids and most everything was low enough for the girls to look at. We were pretty impressed with the exhibits and displays. They had people at most of the stations to explain the stuff and answer questions. They also had some exhibits for older kids where you could act as a marine biologist and do some tests on the water, etc.
The first thing we did was touch the Swell Shark. This shark is named for the way it takes in water and swells up. For being so excited to touch the fish, the girls were only semi-impressed. We checked out some local fish from the Channel Islands area and the girls went through the tunnel to see the inside of the tidepools. Since the aquarium is right on the pier, there was an area with a hole that was open to the ocean. They had pulled up some water and put it under a microscope. We could see tiny, almost translucent spine shrimp and a little sea star. Tara and I thought that was cool.
Outside they had a "Clean Water" maze. You started out as a raindrop and had to make it through the water cycle to the ocean. At each decision point, they called it a "Human Interaction" and there was a wheel to spin. There were different options to see if you ended up clean or contaminated after your human interaction and it would tell you which way to go. The girls had a great time spinning the wheel and going through the maze. It took us a couple tries, but we finally made it back to the ocean. There was also this puzzle in the maze and the other picture was one of the walls at the end.
After the maze, we headed upstairs. We let Rachel out of the stroller and she got friendly with an otter while she enjoyed her freedom. The girls also learned about camouflage. Then they had this big board and the fish were magnets. They had to put the fish in the habitat that hid them the best. Very cute. We also saw the big tank with all the starfish and sea urchin that we could touch. The girls REALLY liked that part and touched as many as they could reach. We also saw them feeding some of the fish which was a highlight. At the end they also had a little puppet theater and some kids' ocean books that kept us entertained.
After the aquarium, we went to the end of the pier and ate our lunch while the pigeons picked up everything Rachel dropped. We walked to the end of the pier and got a great view of the Channel Islands, then we headed home. It was a fun day in Santa Barbara and we would definitely go back.
The first thing we did was touch the Swell Shark. This shark is named for the way it takes in water and swells up. For being so excited to touch the fish, the girls were only semi-impressed. We checked out some local fish from the Channel Islands area and the girls went through the tunnel to see the inside of the tidepools. Since the aquarium is right on the pier, there was an area with a hole that was open to the ocean. They had pulled up some water and put it under a microscope. We could see tiny, almost translucent spine shrimp and a little sea star. Tara and I thought that was cool.
Outside they had a "Clean Water" maze. You started out as a raindrop and had to make it through the water cycle to the ocean. At each decision point, they called it a "Human Interaction" and there was a wheel to spin. There were different options to see if you ended up clean or contaminated after your human interaction and it would tell you which way to go. The girls had a great time spinning the wheel and going through the maze. It took us a couple tries, but we finally made it back to the ocean. There was also this puzzle in the maze and the other picture was one of the walls at the end.
After the maze, we headed upstairs. We let Rachel out of the stroller and she got friendly with an otter while she enjoyed her freedom. The girls also learned about camouflage. Then they had this big board and the fish were magnets. They had to put the fish in the habitat that hid them the best. Very cute. We also saw the big tank with all the starfish and sea urchin that we could touch. The girls REALLY liked that part and touched as many as they could reach. We also saw them feeding some of the fish which was a highlight. At the end they also had a little puppet theater and some kids' ocean books that kept us entertained.
After the aquarium, we went to the end of the pier and ate our lunch while the pigeons picked up everything Rachel dropped. We walked to the end of the pier and got a great view of the Channel Islands, then we headed home. It was a fun day in Santa Barbara and we would definitely go back.
2 comments:
Wow, that place looks awesome!! We definitely miss being right by the ocean!!
What a fun day trip!! I love when I can find things to do here but you kids always do such fun trips! I love the picture with the girls faces in it!
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