Little Ponderosa Zoo’s annual fall festival set for Saturday, Sunday
Visitors to last year’s fall festival at the Little Ponderosa Zoo and Rescue check out some of the goats. (photo:G. Chambers Williams III )
The festival is an important fund-raising event every fall for the Little Ponderosa, helping the zoo to buy the necessary feed and supplies to keep its animals warm and happy over the coming winter.
Besides the many animals on display both inside and outside the zoo’s buildings, there will be vendor booths set up throughout the property, and several food options to keep visitors fed, including a Kona Ice truck.
“We will have live music, vendors, face painting, games, pony rides, inflatables, great food, buckets of food to feed the animals, and a gift shop,” zoo officials said.
A bounce house and inflatable slide will be set up to keep kids entertained, and pony rides will be available for children, as well.
The zoo’s animals will be the real stars of the show, including plenty of baby goats, many of whom will be roaming the grounds and making friends with the visitors; and Baby Cash, a curious, friendly young camel that the zoo acquired two years ago as a rescue.
There is a marmoset monkey exhibit, built by zoo directors Cade and Corbin Cox.
Little Ponderosa’s Cookshack will also be open, offering food and ice cream treats.
School buses will be on hand to ferry visitors to the zoo from remote parking areas, and the Anderson County Sheriff’s Office will direct traffic and help keep visitors safe.
Little Ponderosa is at 629 Granite Road, in the Dutch Valley community of northwestern Anderson County between Clinton and Rocky Top Clinton.