The Creation Museum and The Ark Encounter
Are you ready to get away to your next getaway? Ready to take all the information that has been provided to you, about road trips, and put it all into action? If you’re anything like Me, the travel bug is biting. Have no fear, Ms Trish is here. I was waiting for two things before I could think about an escape. One was clearance from my doctors on my illness and injury. I received the report that I needed to make travel plans. The other great news was seeing that some major attractions were reopening in different parts of the country. I was set, but where would I venture off to? I wanted a short, under seven hours, Road Trip. A place I hadn't traveled to before and a place that would be worth me traveling by car, during a pandemic. Safety was my top priority.
While strolling through Facebook, I saw a post that The Ark Encounter and Creation Museum had reopened after being closed for three months. Reading all the comments had me immediately thinking about how This could be the place for me. I had plans to travel there with our church before corona, but illness put my plans on delay. Delay, not Denial. I knew this was a place that I would have to experience for myself.
There is so much that I would like to tell you about this trip, and I will try to keep it short, but detailed enough for you to decide if this destination should make your bucket list. Go with me as I take a cautious, corona breather to two separate attractions. Buckle Up!
My initial plans were for a family trip, with my two sons and my grandson, but I had to make some quick plans for only my BabyBoy, Preston, to travel with me on this adventure. I contacted The Ark customer service so I could get details on corona safety, the best days and times to visit, and any details that would help make this a successful experience for us. I wanted to see both attractions, The Creation Museum and The Ark Encounter.
First - Customer Service Assistance was awesome, Fast, and Friendly. All my questions and concerns, Everything was addressed. I felt like our visit was just as important to them as it was to us.
I explained to my son that I had never been here before, and we would take our time and experience this together. We decided on a midweek trip, Tuesday-Thursday/Friday. Our Map App showed that the Creation was about 6 1/2 hours, 430 miles from our Wisconsin location. The Ark is about 40 minutes from the Creation. We left early and had a nice trip.
Note: - There is a time zone difference in Kentucky (Eastern).
I had read and been told that if you plan on seeing both attractions, you would want to plan for about 4-5 hours at both places. We planned to split it up in two days. We rested at a Marriott on our arrival day and decided to see how things would work out for the next couple of days.
First Stop - The Creation Museum -
https://creationmuseum.org/about/
Our day started early and once you walk through the Scenic garden and landscape, you walk inside this Beautiful Museum. I didn’t get a chance to see as much as I would have liked to outside because it was raining a little. I could have walked the Beautiful Botanical Gardens for hours alone. We picked the perfect time because there wasn't a lot of people. Guest associates were very friendly and helpful. Employees and Guests were All in masks.
What is the Creation Museum? Do you remember reading and studying the Bible stories about Adam and Eve, Cain and Abel, Noah and the Ark? The events that happen the first seven days when God created this wonderful world for us. Then there's the Seven C’s, from the Creation to the Consummation. Well, the inventors and masterminds at The Creation Museum have brought those stories to life. Even though you know that all this is just statues and man-made artifacts placed out so we could use our imagination to journey back in time, if you know and Believe what you have learned for years, this is an amazing little walk through some of the Bible. Someone really thought all this out and I would suggest to you to....Prepare to Believe!
This 75,000 square foot facility has so much to enjoy; planetarium, special effects movie theater, exhibits, cafeteria and so much more.
With ALL the pictures and writing that I could give you, I still can’t come close to showing just how amazing this was to me. We got a chance to take a good view of almost Everything, that weather permitted. We finished at a good time and I was excited to see more. Time and Circumstances had been in our favor thus far. So we carefully rushed
over to explore more. The Ark could not wait for another day.
The Ark Encounter
The Sister Attraction to the Creation is the Ark Encounter, again, it is located about 40 minutes from The Creation. If you plan on seeing them both, I would suggest the Creation first.
What is The Ark Encounter? Please do not confuse this Ark with one of Wisconsin Attractions, Noah Ark Water park.
Think about the story of Noah, his family, his Faith, the animals, and the Ark. If you don't remember it too well, read about it in Genesis. Now, Imagine everything. This Encounter is...
Bigger Than Your Imagination!
We made our way to the Ark, and I was so excited to see this that I didn't want to pause to eat lunch. I wasn't concerned about eating or the heavy rain that was now surrounding us. Besides, What better weather to have for our adventure. How can you really Imagine the Ark without Imaging the rain? We were told they ordered the special effects of rain just for us. I told you, awesome customer service. They took care of every detail. For health and safety reasons, I had a motorized wheelchair, so I was Ready!
I finally had my eyes on this realistic replica of Noah's Ark and even in the rain, this was AMAZING to Me!!!
This full-size Noah’s Ark was built 5 years ago in 2014-2016 and opened in 2016. A much shorter time than Noah and his crew's project. It was built according to the dimensions given in the Bible and it was Huge! The Ark stretches one-and-a-half football fields long and rises as high as a seven-story building. The creator, Mr. Ken Ham, said in one of his interviews, ”The reason for building the ark was not as an entertainment center. It's not like a Disney or Universal, just for anyone to go and have fun. It’s a religious purpose. It’s because we’re Christians and we want to get the Christian message out.” In my opinion, Mission accomplished.
Just like our visit to the Creation, we were here on a perfect day. There was no massive crowd so we could comfortably move through this encounter. The Ark houses three levels of exhibits with stories and animals and video presentations. There are snacks and plenty of restrooms available. We had a delicious buffet meal right across from the Ark, at the Emzara’s Kitchen.
In my travels, I have been a lot of places and seen a lot of faces, but I was so grateful for being in this place. I traveled to Jerusalem for my birthday one year. I got baptized in the Jordan River, my Holy Land experience was my Best trip. You can read about it in my Blog. I really thought there would not be anything, anywhere that would top that trip. But, the Creation Museum and The Ark Encounter came very close. It allowed me to bring the words from the Bible and all the teaching I have had since as far back as I can remember, to life.
Thanks for Opening the Door to more understanding.
Thank you, Mr. Ken Ham and all your Supporters and Staff for bringing this vision to us. Special Thanks to Mark, Sam, and Leann. As Arnold Schwarzenegger said, ”I'll be back!” with all my family.
Your Ark adventure starts and ends at their Answers Center. My son and I were the last two guests to leave. We took it all in. The bus took us back to our car and for miles and days, I talked about this trip. If I was going to take a chance on leaving during a pandemic, this was worth every mile.
Safe Travels & Blessings,
MsTrish
Your Visual Storyteller Blogger
