We started our Fort Wayne family time with a visit to Coney Island, a hot dog shop in the downtown. They serve well over 1000 hot dogs daily, all cooked on a grill in the storefront window and served plain or with any of the trimmings you can imagine, including "Coney style" which is raw chopped onion, mustard and Coney sauce. Cousin Jeff's sons, Todd (11) and Sam (14), ate 3 and 4 hot dogs respectfully.
Next stop was to Parkland Field, home of the Fort Wayne TinCaps of the Mid-West League. The TinCaps are the San Diego Padres class A team and have been in existence for 3 seasons. The downtown area is beyond the centerfield wall.
The ballpark includes bleacher seats on top of some stores beyond the rightfield wall, similar to Wrigley Field in Chicago. The video scoreboard is on the warehouse wall. Notice the party area just above the rightfield wall. It was "Thirsty Thursday" so domestic draft beers were $1 and specialty beers like the Sierra Nevada Pale Ale (our beverage of choice) were $2
The mascot is "Johnny", named after Johnny Appleseed, who lived in Ft. Wayne and is buried there. Notice the tin pot that serves as Johnny's cap, and the team logo is the tin cap on top of an apple.
The TinCaps defeated the Lansing (Michigan) Lugnuts by a 10-4 score, highlighted by a 7-run sixth inning. Attendance was in the low 4000 range which, for a school night, is good.
The campground we stayed in is part of Johnny Appleseed Park and is owned and run by the city of Ft. Wayne; complete with electric and water hookups and very clean restrooms all for less than $20 a night, the least expensive campsite we would find along our journey.
We also toured the Ft. Wayne Children's zoo with Wendy, Amelia and John.
Here, John and Wendy are getting a close-up view of a seal swimming in a large tank. Maybe they should rename this attraction Sea World FW?
There were a lot of peacocks that were very noisy squawks you could hear all over the park. We can't replicate the sound but look at the pretty colors.
After the zoo, Wendy and the children headed to the airport and we headed to northern Indiana for the evening.
Here, John and Wendy are getting a close-up view of a seal swimming in a large tank. Maybe they should rename this attraction Sea World FW?
Am enjoying the updates like last year, and I am glad I asked about Johnny Appleseed so that I knew the history when you wrote it up. Hope your travels are going well thus far!
ReplyDeleteIt was great seeing you again! Thanks for the support at the Indy Mini! The post race beer tasted even better when toasting with family! I miss you guys already and look forward to keeping up with your summer adventures!
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