Today, I went to the Loch Lomond Aquarium. Now I know that I’ve gone to Loch Lomond before; but this time I took the train to a small town about 30 minutes west of Glasgow, called Balloch. It didn’t take us long as my previous trip to Loch Lomond because the last time it was on a bus. Plus, it was on a tour; so, it made it longer than this trip. Just so you know, Balloch is on the opposite side of the loch.
After arriving, we hopped off of the train and looked at a map to decide what to do. After my friend and I did some talking, we decided to go to the Loch Lomond Aquarium. I was eager to get going for three reasons:
1- The faster I started going the faster I would get to see the aquarium.
2- I would get to walk on a nature trail and I wanted to go on it desperately.
3- I would get to go on a playground called the Dragon Playground.
Once we got started on the trail, my friend and I noticed that there were lots of dogs. There were lots of beautiful plants and using my genius brain, I guessed that because of all of the beautiful plants, people thought that it would be a good idea to bring their dogs here. Adding to that, there were large meadows which were perfect to have a picnic or play with your dog in.
When we got off of the trail, we started walking to the playground. Now, don’t get me wrong, I’m really athletic and all; but my friend did way more walking than I did. For at least half of the time, I was being carried. I noticed that around the playground, there were stone statues of dragons. I was nervous about petting them. Since, after all, they could burn my ear off… or worse! I noticed that one of them was looking at me in a confused manner; but he also looked slightly hungry. So, just to be on the safe side, I gave him a steak to keep him away from me.
After the playground, we went to the aquarium. I didn’t want to get eaten by a shark; since I had read that they had the largest shark collection in all of Scotland. But, my friend reassured me that they would be behind glass.
We went in and spoke to one of the people at the counter to buy our tickets. The person who helped us was happy to take a picture with me. We went inside and saw beautiful fish swimming around happily in their habitats. In one tank, there was a large group of fish which were native to Loch Lomond. Another tank had a small variety of sharks with rays. There were otters nearby. I’ve read that they are the smallest species of otter in the world. Sadly, they were still bigger than me which means I will never be able to fight an otter and win. I noticed that they were fast and physically fit as they were hopping around the rocks and curiously watching people on the other side of the glass.
There was a small stand-up which had three smells. Your job was to smell each of them and try to figure out what they might be. One of them turned out to be otter dung. But, I won’t tell you which one it was; in case you end up going.
A short walk away, were seahorses. You’ve probably seen seahorses. You know, the fish which have their tails curled up in a spiral shape. Here’s a fun fact: Seahorse dads carry their eggs in a pouch on the top of their stomach until they hatch.
One of my favorite tanks was a large one with many fish that could easily eat me. I noticed that all of the rays in the aquarium looked at me with a confused expression. I noticed a strange shape bobbing its head up and down in the water. At first, I thought it might be a ball of kelp; but on closer inspection, I saw that it was actually a sea turtle.
The strangest tank that I saw had lots of sharks and rays. I even spotted two eels poking their heads out of an old pot in the water. Even cooler is that it was a tunnel; so you could see the fish swimming over your head.
When I was about to leave, I noticed that the rays were flattening their undersides against the glass. I guess that means that they were saying goodbye.
Now, I plan on eventually visiting Loch Lomond again and I hope that you too get to experience the Loch Lomond Aquarium.
So, until the next post, I have to go and take a bath… but not with fish in it!
The Beary Good Adventures 
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