Longleat Safari Park

When Ben and his family were staying with us recently we all went to Longleat Safari Park in Wiltshire. Set in the beautiful parkland surrounding Longleat House, the family seat of the Marquis of Bath, its more than just a safari journey through the wild animals. There's an adventure castle for young people, a hedge maze, pets corner, parrot show, Postman Pat, miniature train ride, boat trip on Half Mile Lake, a tour of Longleat House itself and much more. The boat trip takes you past Californian sea lions, two hippos, flamingos and an island on which Nico, an elderly gorilla lives alone since his mate died last year. But he's not too lonely, he likes watching the passing boats and has a TV set, complete with Sky programmes. (How does he operate the remote with those huge hands?). The photos show Jenny, Sophie and Claire sitting on the steps on the magnificent 15th century Longleat House, waiting patiently for Ben and Thomas to bring the picnic rugs, and an upclose photo of Nico taken by Jenny - the electric wire stops him coming too close! If you want to know more about Longleat visit http://www.longleat.co.uk/