I had distinct memories of The Popcorn Park Zoo from my childhood. I remember a range of animals from exotics, to farm animals, to wild creatures; Lions, lizards, deer. But mostly I remember them being rescued. I remember deer who had been saved from traps, aging lions saved from zoos, snakes rescued from small cages. In my mind it was all very dramatic.

I had been telling my husband and neighbors who have children about it ever since we moved back to NJ. Just after Summer, I got to go with my friends.

It was not as dramatic as I remembered, not as tragic as I had pitched it. But the rescued animals were still there, with stories of where they had come from and how their lives had changed since coming to the Popcorn Zoo.

Nestled in the Pine Barrens, this zoo isn't huge but it does have some interesting and exciting animals. It is considered one of the largest shelters of it's kind.

As the name might suggest, one of the main attractions here is the popcorn you can buy to feed the animals with. Some like it more than others, so our popcorn mostly went to deer, pigs, goats and ducks. It was very nice to see bears, lions and other big cats, and a steer that is, no lie, around 7 feet tall, even if they weren't craving popcorn.

I thoroughly enjoyed revisiting the Popcorn Park Zoo again and would recommend it for zoo lovers in the NJ area. I really like that this zoo isn't price prohibitive and the proceeds go towards maintaining the zoo and it's animals.

What are your favorite local zoos?