My parents and I took Birch to the Museum of Life and Science in Durham, NC over spring break. Here’s our recap!
Spring Break Visit to NC
Birch and I spent the better part of last week at my parents’ house in Hillsborough, NC. (Mazen flew to Palm Springs with his dad!) We took Birch to the Museum of Life and Science on a perfect, warm sunny day. I’ll share the rest of our trip recap tomorrow!
Museum Of Life and Science: A Blast From My Past!
I grew up going to the Museum of Life and Science! We took school field trips there, and went a few times with our own grandparents. My main memories include the dinosaur trail and eating astronaut ice cream from the gift shop.
Is scary to think I hadn’t been back in probably THIRTY YEARS!
The museum is better than ever, and perfect for children of all ages! My parents took Mazen when he was 3 or 4 and we’ve been waiting for a good time to take Birch. With a day forecasted to hit 85 degrees and sunshine, we found our day.
We got to the museum around 11am to buy tickets. It was a ZOO inside (funny because there’s a zoo outside!) with field trips of school kids, so we breezed through the inside exhibits to get outside faster.
Carolina Wildlife
I remember this tornado simulation from my childhood!
The Museum Layout
The inside part of the museum isn’t huge, but the outside is expansive! It’s kind of like a hybrid museum, zoo, and playground. The exhibits were some of the coolest I’ve ever seen for kids and very well done! I would definitely recommend going on a day with nice weather though because you’ll spend most of your time outside.
Exhibits
Sound Garden
We kicked off our outdoor tour at the Sound Garden!
Gateway Park
And did some climbing at Gateaway Park.
The Farmyard
Further down the path was the Farmyard. Birch enjoyed seeing the donkey, a potbelly pig, alpacas, and cows.
Dinosaur Trail
The Dinosaur Trail loop was a big hit.
B was scared of the Trex but got braver to approach the raptors.
The brontosaurus was my favorite!
The Butterfly House
We walked through the Butterfly House.
And spent a lot of time in the Insectarium studying roaches. EEK!
Into The Wild: Bears, Red Wolves, Lemurs + Tortoises
The black bear did some good climbing while we were there.
And the Red Wolf ran right across the landscape for us! Can you spot him?
Into The Mist
The Into The Mist land was a wonderful rest stop from the heat. It reminded me of Hobbiton! So cool and a great place to chill out (ha).
Earth Moves
There is also a cool new area called Earth Moves where children can explore the elements. Lots of waterfalls, streams, and even a big sand area to dig in. Birch wanted nothing to do with it (I think because there were too many kids all around.)
He loved these rock tunnels though!
Hideaway Woods
Our last stop was Hideaway Woods where there are the most amazing treehouses!!
Birch did not hesitate to climb right up. Mom and I went too! It was awesome up there.
The Train
Was sold out when we arrived. Oh well 🙁
Lunch at Sprout Cafe
The line for lunch was really long, and I had to wait about 30 minutes. For some reason the mobile order wasn’t turned on. That would have saved us so much time! The menu was good though, and we had a round of turkey sandwiches, fruit cups, and french fries. Plenty of choices for kids. There’s even a beer and wine garden!
If you are in North Carolina during the warmer months, I can’t recommend this museum enough!
Laura says
We live in Durham and love the museum! Members get in one hour earlier than the general public so it’s a great way to beat the crowds.
Kath Younger says
I was thinking my parents should have joined to take both sets of grandkids 1-2 times per year!