A playground, a cafe, and a wetland wildlife refuge _______________________________________________________________________________________________

side·track (sīd´trăk): n. 1. A diversion from the main course. 2. A detour taken with children that you would never, ever take without them.
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Who and What:
Myself, my husband and our daughters, Zoe – 4 and Cora – 2 were driving from Kerry Airport to the town of Dingle, Ireland when we saw a sign for Wildlife and Seal Sanctuary.  Recently opened in June of 2010, the Sanctuary is set on 22 scenic acres of wetland where the hardworking volunteers care for not only seals, but any orphaned, wounded or abandon animal on the coasts of Kerry and Cork.

Why:
Generally speaking, I’m a calm traveler. As it turns out, when the steering wheel is on the right side of the car, and the traffic on the left side of the road, I am not a calm traveler. We would have pulled over at ANY attraction to get out of the car, and just happened to luck out that it was a great place to spend a few hours.

The High Point:
The volunteers we met that day were all really fantastic. One in particular, Kate, made our visit quite memorable by letting the kids feed all the ducks, geese, swans and peacocks with her. She also took the time to tell us about all the different wildlife at the sanctuary and introduced us to Alexis; a rescue ferret found wandering a beach.

There was only one rescue seal, Buddy Holly, at the sanctuary during our visit, and he was not on ‘display’ due to his fragile condition at 4 weeks of age. They have the capacity to care for up to 5 seals at a time, which are then released back into the wild once rehabilitated. The website is great, as you can track progress of a seal you visited, so I can happily share that a week after our visit, Buddy’s health is improving.

The Low Point:
There is a huge playground on the grounds, that includes a three story castle the kids can climb on and a swing set, but it was too wet the day we were there for the kids to explore.

The Kids’ Take:
Zoe has declared her love for trumpeter swans and Cora shrieked with delight while feeding the ducks by hand. They also loved the café, as there was a toddler table set and chairs where they could hang out and eat their grilled cheese.

The Bottom Line:
A great stop for any group traveling in this part of Ireland. It’s open from 10-5 everyday and is very family friendly with a changing room for baby, a huge playground, clean restrooms, and high chairs in the café. There is lots of room for the kids to move around, learn about the local wildlife and the importance of taking care of animals in need.

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March 28th, 2011 | by Julie Breitigan 3 comments