It's that time of year again!!!!!!!! For those of you that are new to the site, or even for folks needing a refresher, I'll recap a bit of my personal history to kick-start the 10th anniversary of these 'Snowleopard Road Trip' extravaganzas. I really enjoy writing about zoos and my life-long zoo obsession has found an outlet on ZooChat since I joined in 2007...back when it was known as ZooBeat. I've been a self-proclaimed zoo nerd for my whole life and for the past 10 years I've gone on a succession of road trips that have focused mainly on the United States. During the 2008, 2010, 2011 and 2012 road trips I was with my wife and we had two children during that time and we went everywhere as a family. Very young kids are basically free at all zoological facilities and we toured America and visited just about every single major zoo and aquarium in the nation. A number of years ago I ended up visiting 92 out of the 97 zoos in the 2008 publication America's Best Zoos: A Travel Guide for Fans and Families. (For the record, the 5 zoos in that book that I have never toured are Honolulu Zoo, Alaska Zoo, The ZOO Northwest Florida, Cape May County Park & Zoo and Oglebay Good Zoo). Funnily enough, since then a couple of those zoos have undergone name changes! My wife and I have actually visited all 50 U.S. states but I've only ever been to the Honolulu airport on a few occasions and so I've not really seen anything in Hawaii. On those early road trips we'd visit one large zoo per day, or in some cases two zoos/aquariums and all of the establishments were notable and usually of a fair size. Then my wife and I had two more children and our rambunctious, growing family of 4 kids is now far too unwieldy and expensive to spend weeks traversing the countryside and walking around dusty zoos in the summer heat. My wife and I are both schoolteachers and we've always had approximately 9 weeks off every single July and August when all schools are closed. During the past few years we've had a family holiday at a lakeside house in British Columbia, Canada, a few hours from where we live, and then I've taken a separate, zoo-related vacation alone. During the 2014, 2015, 2017 and now 2018 road trips I've been travelling alone and visiting what seems like every single small zoo that I can find in the Western half of the USA. As you can see on the thread links below, I've racked up an impressive number of zoos on these trips as many of the tiny facilities that I tour are much smaller than anyone overseas realizes. For example, the state of California has approximately 20 public aquariums that charge an admission fee and some of those aquariums have only 15 tanks inside. I've visited many small aquariums or roadside 'sanctuaries' and spent an hour at most before hitting the road and moving on to the next one. On this summer's jaunt I'll keep my itinerary to myself but I've already let on that I'll be visiting many smaller facilities scattered throughout Michigan and Wisconsin. The trip will be 17 days in length and see me tour more than 40 zoos. I leave today and by the time I arrive back in southwestern Canada I will have visited somewhere between 415-420 different zoos and aquariums in my lifetime. One really nice aspect of visiting zoos, from when I was a toddler to now being a man in his early 40's, is that everything is culminating with the 2019 publication of The Top 100 Zoos & Aquariums in the USA as I've co-authored that book with Tim Brown (who has visited 800 different zoos!) and the second half of this year will see us finish off our book. Thanks for following along and I hope that everyone enjoys this thread! Here are my 7 previous road trip threads: Snowleopard's 2017 Road Trip (44 zoos in 17 days): Snowleopard's 2017 Road Trip Snowleopard's 2015 Road Trip (81 zoos in 24 days): Snowleopard's 2015 Road Trip Snowleopard's 2014 Road Trip (65 zoos in 20 days): Snowleopard's 2014 Road Trip Snowleopard's 2012 Road Trip (50 zoos in 50 days): Snowleopard's 2012 Road Trip Snowleopard's 2011 Road Trip (24 zoos in 32 days): Snowleopard's 2011 Road Trip Snowleopard's 2010 Road Trip (39 zoos in 46 days): Snowleopard's 2010 Road Trip Snowleopard's 2008 Road Trip (30 zoos): Snowleopard's Epic Road Trip
Sweet - another road trip! Looking forward to hearing your opinions and which small places you see in my home state of Wisconsin. Also can’t wait for the new book - 2019 can’t come soon enough.
Will definitely be getting that book when it releases. Safe travels throughout the Midwest, very excited for the back to back reviews.
Can't wait! I have been to a lot of small obscure roadside zoos in Wisconsin, and I am curious to hear your opinion about them.
Sounds great! The zoo I’m most excited to see you review is Detroit, I’m fairly certain you’ve been, but have you seen the Polk Penguin Center? It might not be everyones cup of tea but I loved it, and I’d like to see how you feel about it.
DAY 1: Thursday, July 12th I drove a hell of a lot today. This is my 8th “Snowleopard Road Trip” that I’ve written about on ZooChat and those that have been with me all of these years realize that usually the first couple of days of any of my journeys involves a tremendous amount of time behind the wheel. I ended up accumulating exactly 1,002 km (622 miles) and I basically drove all day long with only minor stops. I headed east, into the British Columbia interior and 'wine country'. For those that don't know, the Okanagan region of B.C. Is very similar to the Napa Valley area of California, with wineries in all directions and an arid scrubland environment with undulating hills and an extremely dry climate. In B.C., there is the rugged coastline of the Pacific Ocean, the sprawling metropolis of Vancouver and its suburbs and then approximately 3 hours east of Vancouver is 'the interior' with its dry, hot summers and cold winters. Zoo #1: Parrot Island Sanctuary is a tiny, privately-owned facility in Peachland, British Columbia, several hours inland from Vancouver. Admission is only $6 and the establishment takes in abused, abandoned and neglected birds and Peachland only has a population of a few thousand but is beautifully situated on an enormous lake. Nestled amongst the hilltops, on a residential property, is a set of metal cages outdoors (all empty on my visit) and then a long 'shed' filled with approximately 50 birds. Visitors watch a 3-minute video at the entrance and then try hard not to cover their ears as the shrieking cockatoos and parrots make an ear-splitting noise. They are all in cramped bird cages and the species list includes: Hyacinth Macaw, Scarlet Macaw, Blue-and yellow Macaw, Red-shouldered Macaw, Double Yellow-headed Amazon Parrot, Blue-fronted Amazon Parrot, Vasa Parrot, Hawk-headed Parrot, Australian King Parrot, African Grey Parrot, Senegal Parrot, Moluccan Cockatoo, Goffin's Cockatoo and Indian Ring-necked Parakeet. Zoo #2: Kangaroo Creek Farm is located in Lake Country, British Columbia, and the facility is only open for 5 hours per day for approximately 7 months of the year. It is a privately-run ‘zoo’ that is situated about an hour from Parrot Island Sanctuary and therefore still in the B.C. interior. Kangaroo Creek Farm was slightly better than I anticipated but still nothing noteworthy for a seasoned zoo enthusiast. The establishment is located down a steep, paved path and there are 3 large walk-through zones. The first of these had, as its highlight, perhaps 8 Emu chicks walking in and around the feet of visitors with no adult Emus in sight. The babies were likely just a few months old and still completely striped. Besides a few domestics like goats and chickens, there were Maras and Capybaras free-roaming and a staff member was allowing visitors to handle Sugar Gliders. A second walk-through zone held a large number of macropods, such as Red Kangaroo, Common Wallaroo, Tammar Wallaby and Bennett's Wallaby. There was a single adult Emu in the free-roaming area and then perhaps 10 more adult Emus in fenced-off side yards. Kangaroo Creek Farm was jam-packed on the day of my visit and there was an enormous line of perhaps 100 people all waiting to sit on a bench and be allowed to hold and cuddle a baby wallaby. The third and final walk-through area had Mara, Capybara, various domestics and some macaws and cockatoos. It was a bit of a shock to see loads of visitors petting full-grown Capybaras...those rodents are huge when they are up close and personal! After leaving the kangaroo 'zoo', I headed north and into the Rocky Mountains. The wineries disappeared, groves of conifers emerged, and the thick, dense, stunningly beautiful forests of the Rockies are the backdrop to some stupendous mountains that are seemingly everywhere. Zoo #3: Northern Lights Wildlife Wolf Centre is situated in the tiny town of Golden, just off the only highway that stretches all the way from several cities in the B.C. Interior to Calgary, Alberta. The facility is a number of kilometers off the beaten path and it is in an isolated residential community. There is a 25-minute, informal 'interpretative talk' and mine was led by a young lady who had only been working at the centre for a couple of months. The entire 'zoo' consists of 8 animals: a wolf-dog hybrid and 7 true wolves. There are two spacious enclosures (that can be divided into 4 if necessary) and each of the two enclosures is over an acre in size. Interestingly enough, the wolves all clearly prefer coming close to visitors and interacting with their caregivers through the chain-link fencing in the smaller sections of the habitats, as that is where the grass is beaten down into nothing. If one is willing to pay big dollars, then some of the wolves are led out on leashes and therefore the centre raises money via those photo sessions off in the woods. The facility is run by a husband and wife team and they've been giving public tours since 2002 and therefore educating the public about wolves for 16 years now. Music: Today's music was supplied by Lenny Kravitz's Greatest Hits, a so-so collection that nevertheless has a handful of classics. There was Izzy Stradlin's solo debut (he used to be a guitarist in Guns n' Roses) and in truth that early 1990s record is an underrated, obscure gem with guest appearances by Nicky Hopkins and Ronnie Wood to solidify the Stones-sounding songs. Lastly, speaking of the Rolling Stones, the 3rd and final CD of the day was supplied by none other than Keith Richards with his solid solo album from just a few years ago. Great stuff! I listened to those three artists over and over again while occasionally talking to myself like Tom Hanks in Cast Away. Wilson!!!!! After leaving Golden, B.C., and hitting my 1,000 km benchmark for the day, I ate a Dairy Queen burger/fries/Sprite dinner and parked my minivan in a Wal-mart parking lot. My full-size mattress in the back of the van awaited my tired frame. Zzzzzzzz....
I must ask, are you human? You drove over 1,000 km in one day, which is extremely impressive in itself, but you also managed to visit 3 zoos! I know they were small, but still.
DAY 2: Friday, July 13th The first day saw me tour a trio of very tiny 'zoos' in British Columbia, meaning that I think I've now visited every zoological facility in that Province. I then hit the road and spent many hours cruising first through the magnificent Rockies, a drive that is amongst the world's greatest, and then the Province of Alberta flattened out as I bypassed Calgary and continued to head east. Once an individual makes it through the mountain range then a whole swath of Canada, the world's 2nd largest nation, is flatter than a pancake. There aren't even many hills but instead endless fields of crops as the agricultural heartland of Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba beckons. Zoo #4: Border City Petting Zoo is found in Lloydminster, Saskatchewan, which is a small prairie city of approximately 30,000 citizens. What is really incredible about the town is that it is literally on two borders as half of Lloydminster is located in Alberta while the other half is located in the neighboring Province of Saskatchewan. Bizarre, right? Babies born in the same town have different Provinces on their birth certificates and can you imagine that occurring in the USA? Two kids are born on opposite sides of the same city and one kid is from Colorado and the other Utah? Or maybe Texas and Louisiana? Trump wouldn't know what to do! Anyway, Border City Petting Zoo has one tiny sign on the highway and when I turned down a farming road I actually drove right past the zoo! There isn't another sign anywhere but just a ramshackle house and what looks like a used-car lot. After I went a few miles down the road I turned back, perplexed, only to see a camel off in the distance upon my return to the general area. Turning into the parking lot I saw many rusty swings, some dilapidated structures and an air of inertia. What awaited me was a true roadside zoo in all of its unvarnished, stained glory! This place is falling apart at the seams and run by a husband and wife who are in their 60s. When they move on then I have no idea what will happen but between the Provinces of British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba this must be the last bastion of 'roadside ugliness' in terms of a zoological collection. There are a couple of African Lions, an American Black Bear, a Canada Lynx, a Bobcat, a Dromedary, a single Plains Bison, a couple of Black-and-White Ruffed Lemurs, an Alpaca, some wolves and a single Japanese Macaque. That's about it, other than a few Emus and a lot of domestic animals. There is also a ghastly little Reptile House where a full-sized American Alligator has a small pool as its water source. Ugh. The carnivores are in chain-link cages with low roofs, few climbing opportunities and the lions had a lot of poop lying around as no one has cleaned that cage out in quite some time. The bison fence was literally smashed down in one spot and when I pointed that out to the owner she said “I'll get around to fixing it but the bison isn't smart enough to realize that he can escape”. Not exactly comforting words coming from someone running a zoo! This disaster of a zoo, easily a candidate for the worst that I've ever been to, is run by a cheerful lady and she and I got chatting as it was just her and a young assistant running the place. The entire zoo is only a few acres and she told me that just about everything needs to be fixed or improved...including that broken-down fence in the bison yard. She knew a bit about zoos, had been to San Diego, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Calgary and many others, and was honestly someone who seemed to care a great deal about her animals. However, she is drowning with projects and the place needs to be razed to the ground and exterminated out of existence. To end on a positive note, the owner gave me a bucket of bread to feed to the Dromedary (not something that I would recommend as camels are sloppy and gross when eating) and a wonderful highlight was a pair of 3-month old wolf cubs with huge paws and inquisitive tongues. I was able to pet and wrestle around with them before I left and that was a nice touch. In fact, the young wolves were led around the zoo on leashes and a handful of kids were able to pet and cuddle them and I'm sure that was a truly positive, memorable experience for all concerned. Species List in Reptile House: American Alligator, Sulcata Tortoise, Red-footed Tortoise, Three-toed Box Turtle, Four-toed Eastern Box Turtle, Burmese Python, Jungle Carpet Python, Ball Python, Red-tailed Boa Constrictor, Eurythean Plated Lizard, Uromystyx, Green Iguana, Leopard Gecko and Bearded Dragon. At this point I drove 2.5 hours south-east to the city of Saskatoon. Zoo #5: Saskatoon Forestry Farm Park & Zoo is situated in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, and it was originally a ‘Nursery Station’ that shipped millions of trees to various locations across Canada. The establishment closed down in 1966, only to reopen as a city park and then a zoo was opened on the site in 1972. The facility is CAZA accredited and was larger than anticipated as I took my time, double-backed to locate animals, and I spent almost 2 hours there even though the establishment only has around 50 species. The zoo is divided up similar to Dakota Zoo in that there is a series of hoofstock paddocks along one half of the zoo, while the carnivores and assorted other animals are grouped in another section. There is a lot of chain-link fencing, but all of the exhibits are at least adequate and this is a neat little community zoo. Highlights were seeing 10-12 Pronghorn in two spacious paddocks, a baby Goeldi's Monkey, a dozen or so active Prairie Dogs and a neat Nocturnal hallway in the Children’s Zoo that could be even better if 3 empty exhibits were filled. Species list includes: Ungulates: Plains Bison, American Elk, Pronghorn, Bighorn Sheep, Rocky Mountain Goat, Mouflon, Woodland Caribou, White-tailed Deer, Fallow Deer, Sika Deer, Alpaca, Miniature Horse and Pygmy Goat. Carnivores: Grizzly Bear, Cougar, Canada Lynx, Grey Wolf, Red Fox and Swift Fox. Raptors: Bald Eagle, Red-tailed Hawk, American Kestrel, Great Grey Owl, Great Horned Owl, Barn Owl and Burrowing Owl. Assorted other species: North American Porcupine, American Badger, Black-tailed Prairie Dog, Meerkat, North African Hedgehog, Brown Capuchin, Goeldi's Monkey, Seba's Short-tailed Bat, Corn Snake, Plains Garter Snake, Royal Python, Blue-tongued Skink, Schneider's Skink, Tokay Gecko, Bearded Dragon, Fire-bellied Toad, Tiger Salamander, Tailless Whip Scorpion, Giant Cave Cockroach, Praying Mantis, Stick Insect and White Sturgeon. Total driving today was a whopping 1,409 km (875 miles) to put me at 2,411 km (1,497 miles) in the first two days. A couple more days of madness and then I won't be driving much at all! Today's music was supplied by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band (the stellar 'Live in NYC' double-album); U2's All That You Can't Leave Behind; Canadian rocker Tom Cochrane's live album with the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra; and R.E.M.'s New Adventures in Hi-Fi which all of these years later is one of their most consistent, pleasing records. I saw a single wild Pronghorn, 4 White-tailed Deer at various times during the day, a huge herd of Plains Bison (behind a fence and surely being raised for their meat) and I got gas in Youngstown, Alberta, a small town with a population of 150. I think that I met 5 inhabitants in the one-and-only store as there were some farmers hanging out and chewing the cud. And yes, I slept in the minivan again and although I had a poor first night's sleep...this time around was perfect. Home, sweet, minivan home.
On Day 3 I visited Assiniboine Park Zoo in Winnipeg, Manitoba, and I was so impressed with the Journey to Churchill exhibit complex that I would rank it as one of the greatest exhibits I've ever had the pleasure to tour. It is better than Woodland Park Zoo's Northern Trail, Detroit Zoo's Arctic Ring of Life, Minnesota Zoo's Russia's Grizzly Coast and hundreds of others. For such a relatively small zoo, easily toured in 3 hours, to have such a world-class set of habitats is nothing short of remarkable. The enclosures, graphics, interpretative material, etc., rivals any zoo exhibit in North America. Plus I got to see 9 of the zoo's 11 Polar Bears and even had two bears mock-fighting on top of the underwater viewing tunnel. Simply outstanding. Check out the 60+ photos that I uploaded to the gallery just of Journey to Churchill. I'll also upload photos of the rest of the zoo as well.
Enjoying the thread as always. As for Border City Zoo, it always perplexes me how people who seem to love animals would allow them to live in such squalid conditions. I just don't understand why people would run roadside zoos like this (including a couple I have seen myself).
DAY 3: Saturday, July 14th Zoo #6: Assiniboine Park Zoo is a CAZA-accredited zoo in Winnipeg, Manitoba, and it has undergone a revolution in the past decade. The outstanding Journey to Churchill complex is easily one of the greatest zoo exhibits I've ever had the pleasure to tour. It's right up there with Minnesota's Russia's Grizzly Coast and better than Detroit Zoo's Arctic Ring of Life. It is stupendous and I had an amazing time touring this fairly new section of the zoo. I've asked IZES Chairman Tim Brown if he wants a multi-page review of this zoo in a feature issue of Zoo Grapevine & International Zoo News and so I might not write a ton about it here. We'll see what he says. Journey to Churchill cost this small zoo a fortune (anywhere from $80-94 million depending on reports) but it is fantastic and the attention to detail in this award-winning complex is amazing. The cement paths are designed to look like ice floes, the Snowy Owl exhibit must be the largest in North America, the Woodland Caribou and Muskox yards are a little small but curve into small hills, there are 3 Polar Bear exhibits and then another 3 Polar Bear exhibits elsewhere that are sort of behind-the-scenes grottoes but they are still larger than what has been built at many other zoos. The two largest Polar Bear enclosures are vast meadows with multiple bears at any given point in time. The Tundra Grill is terrific, with a huge number of windows that look directly into a habitat that at times holds 6-7 fully-grown bears. I had my lunch there and occasionally a bear would lumber past in the background...what a sight! Having two bears mock-fight and swim directly over my head was brilliant, something that a zoo like Highland Wildlife Park in Scotland (as great as it may be) can never replicate. Check out the 60+ photos in the gallery because as well as all of the Polar Bears there are Arctic Foxes, Muskox, Woodland Caribou, Harbour Seals and Snowy Owls. The attention to detail is superb, the kiddie indoor playground is awesome, a Bowhead Whale sandbox is fascinating, the Leatherdale International Polar Bear Conservation Centre is jam-packed with information and this whole exhibit complex is outstanding. It all adds up to 10 acres of marvelous habitats and I went through twice during the day. So what of the rest of the zoo? The Grasslands & Boreal Forest section is great, with impressive exhibits for species like Plains Bison, Wapiti, Reindeer, Mule Deer, Grey Wolf, Cougar, Canada Lynx, Red Fox, Arctic Fox, Burrowing Owl and Bald Eagle. Between Journey to Churchill and Grasslands & Boreal Forest, this zoo is very strong in cold-weather tolerant North American species. There is an Asian Loop with some choice species: Amur Tiger, Snow Leopard, Bactrian Camel, Sichuan Takin, Przewalski's Horse, Stone Sheep, Markhor, Yak, White-handed Gibbon and Steller's Sea Eagle. Winnipeg regularly has snow on the ground for perhaps half the year and so it is important that the animals on show are active and able to be viewed year-round. Elsewhere are some paddocks with Red Kangaroos, Alpine Ibex, Pronghorn, Fallow Deer and Demoiselle Cranes. Seasonal exhibits include an Australian Walkabout and a Butterfly Garden, plus there is a unique McFeetor's Heavy Horse Centre that was added in recent years. The zoo doesn't do as well with its two main buildings, namely the 1990 Kinsmen Discovery Centre (stinky, tired, outdated) and Toucan Ridge (refurbished a decade ago but definitely hit-and-miss). At least Toucan Ridge has exactly 10 outdoor cages that are connected to the Tropical House so that some of the inhabitants have access to fresh air. After the zoo I drove 40 minutes across the city to the Club Regent Casino Aquarium which is actually a CAZA accredited facility inside a sprawling casino. Much to my dismay, I came across a significant wall of mock-rock but the entrance to the tiny area was closed and the aquarium has been shut-down for a renovation. Aarrrgghh! Oh well, you win some and you lose some and so I left the city of Winnipeg and headed south-east to the land of hope and dreams...the USA. After a few hours of driving I crossed the tiny border, dealt with a bemused customs officer who shook her head at my itinerary, and landed in Minnesota. The day's music was via The Black Crowes album 'Lions' (somewhat appropriate title!), the underrated classic Goats Head Soup from The Rolling Stones, and a Greatest Hits record from the late, great David Bowie. After back-to-back FREE nights on my comfy mattress in the back of the minivan, I spent the night in the northern town of Ely (apparently pronounced E-LEE) in the state of Minnesota. I was dying for a shower and a room and so after driving all the way to Ely, which was my final destination for the night, I went to no less than 5 motels and they were all sold out. Yikes! In the end I managed to get the final room in a large Super 8 motel and it cost me $130 plus $13 in taxes to make it $143 U.S. and a staggering $185 Canadian. I paid $185 to have a shower (admittedly a glorious, very long one!) and I've been telling folks for years that things have changed from 2008 when my wife and I would get motels for $35 per night. I've still got our diary from back then as our proof. Now some of you can see why I sleep on a mattress in my minivan as motels in smaller towns are expensive! Ely, Minnesota, only has a few thousand people but in the summer it is packed. I had a nice chat with the hotel's owner (Mr. Patel) and he said that last winter he went 6 straight weeks with zero customers! He lays off his workers and cleans the rooms himself as they still require upkeep. Then summer arrives and he hires lots of people and is sold out every single night for 75 consecutive days...mainly all hunters and fishermen. Trust me when I tell you that Ely is full of fishing rods and shotguns. Wild animals consisted of 5 White-tailed Deer, a single Sandhill Crane and at least a dozen Wild Turkeys...many running for their life as I cruised down some side-highways. The first 4 days featured an insane amount of driving and just shy of 4,000 km (2,500 miles) but now that I'm getting close to my main destination then the driving will ease off a little. Phew!
DAY 4: Sunday, July 15th Tonight, tonight the strip's just right I wanna blow 'em off in my first heat Summer's here and the time is right For racing in the street - B. Springsteen After driving 4,000 km (2,500 miles) in the first 4 days, I'm just about ready to either give up my teaching career to become a long-haul trucker...or relax and see some more zoos! For all you Euro zoo nerds that are reading this, my driving is the equivalent of leaving London and driving all the way to Naples in southern Italy, then turning around once you discover that the city lacks a famous zoo, and heading all the way back to London again. That trip is approximately 4,000 km (2,500 miles). Today was spent in Minnesota and Wisconsin before I begin a stretch of days in Michigan. Zoo #7: In the tiny town of Ely, Minnesota, there are two attractions only a few miles apart from each other and they complement each other well. First up is the North American Bear Center and while a flaw is that it only contains 4 mammals (all American Black Bears) in a single habitat, it is an institution that is fairly new (2007) and exemplary in every other way. A significant, $1.5 million expansion in 2015 saw the 8,000 sq. ft. Northwoods Ecology Hall make its debut and the amount of bear material in the imposing, impressive building is staggering. There are newspaper clippings, books, articles, paintings, taxidermy specimens and everything one would want to know about American Black, Grizzly and Polar bears. The focus is on the first two species and there are a number of taxidermy specimens of other animals that are eerily realistic. While visitors are puttering around the museum-like setting or watching film clips of bears in the small theatre, there are occasional announcements such as 'Tasha is now out in the main yard' and visitors amble over to the big viewing windows to see one of the center's 4 bears. Everyone is inside the building during the entire visit except for an overhead viewing deck and there is also an opportunity to attend a feeding/training session where visitors are only a few feet from the bears. I stayed an hour and during most of that time I was experiencing a brain overload of bear information. The American Black Bear living space is a gorgeous exhibit that is 2.5 acres in size, and inside the building there can also be found these species: Redbelly Snake (a real delight to see an active juvenile), Plains Garter Snake, Western Painted Turtle, Grey Tree Frog, American Toad, Monarch Caterpillar, Black Crappie, Walleye, Bluegill, Largemouth Bass and Northern Pike. Zoo #8: The International Wolf Center is literally just down the road and it has 7 Grey Wolves as its captive animal inhabitants. Two of the wolves are off-show in a retirement enclosure and so the main habitat (1.25 acres) has 5 Grey Wolves for the public to see. There are some parallels with the North American Bear Center as both facilities have hugely impressive buildings with some beautiful woodwork inside, both have a single, natural habitat that focuses on a single species, and both have a museum-like area in a spacious room. However, in almost every category the bears win out over the wolves, even though I stayed for a 25-minute presentation at the wolf center and an hour in total. It is worth visiting the tiny tourist town of Ely to spend a morning going between the two establishments. Copied and pasted from the center's website: “The International Wolf Center opened the doors to its $3 million, 17,000-square-foot facility featuring the “Wolves and Humans” exhibit in June 1993. State funding of $1.2 million and $400,000 in donations from individuals and foundations paid for the expansion of the Voyageur Visitor Center in Ely. A $125,000 grant for construction and promotion of the Center was received from the Iron Range Resources and Rehabilitation Board (IRRRB) in Eveleth, Minn. In 1998, a 3,260-square-foot addition provided a 120-seat wolf-viewing theater and more classroom, storage and laboratory space. The expansion was funded by a 1996 bonding bill in the Minnesota State Legislature.” After my one-two punch in Ely, I drove several hours south-east to Hayward, Wisconsin. Zoo#9: Wilderness Walk Zoo (Hayward, Wisconsin) is a disaster of a zoo, with enclosures that probably are at the bare minimum to obtain a zoo license. Almost every single exhibit is a chain-link cage that can be walked all the way around and thus the inhabitants don't have any privacy from the public. Species such as American Black Bears (in a godawful cement monstrosity), an Amur Tiger, New Guinea Singing Dogs and many others have very small, bare exhibits. There is a lone wolf, a coati, some baby Raccoons in the 'nursery' area, lots of domestic animals, and many others such as a North American Porcupine, Coyote, Striped Skunk and numerous cages with only a solitary animal inside. The place is old-fashioned and also features an old-style town with an Emporium, a Jail, Cafe, etc. You can easily see everything in an hour and you won't ever want to go back. Wild animals included only a single White-tailed Deer and lots of Turkey Vultures. Music was courtesy of The Counting Crows (popular 1990s American band) and I spent much of the day listening to a double-live album from Seattle's legendary Pearl Jam. Between me sleeping in my minivan and my love of Seattle musicians (Pearl Jam, Nirvana, Soundgarden, etc.) the grunge movement is making a comeback as I plunge headlong from zoo to zoo. I already uploaded photos from all 3 of today's attractions and so go check them out in the ZooChat gallery.
DAY 5: Monday, July 16th That old white line is a friend of mine And it's good time we've been making Right now I'm rollin' down the open road And the daylight will soon be breaking - Neil Young After driving through both Minnesota (2 zoos) and Wisconsin (1 zoo) yesterday, today I arrived in the state of Michigan and I'll be here all week folks! Monday-Friday, 5 days, and at least 16 zoos. Zoo #10: When I enter privately-owned, home-made zoos like Oswald’s Bear Ranch (Newberry, northern Michigan) there is no admission booth, no ticket, no wristband or hand stamp, no receipt and nothing but cold hard cash and a nod in the direction of the parking lot. After handing over $10, I parked and immediately saw a long lineup of folks willing to pay another $10 to pose with some American Black Bear cubs. That is not a good impression, as the cubs live in a 'cement-and-chainlink' cage and are carefully enticed with spoonfuls of honey to be held by eager tourists. The owner is making money hand-over-fist with that scheme and it is an ugly sight. The good news is that elsewhere things were better, with 4 large habitats on the property and a grand total of exactly 37 American Black Bears are in residence. There is a yearling enclosure, another for big males, one for females and then a fourth that was not labeled. Bears are everywhere, with some unfortunately pacing by the front of their exhibit and waiting to be fed. Many visitors were buying food and the only option was a bag of apples for the hungry mouths. The exhibits are each at least a couple of acres in size, and in the two largest ones (probably several acres) it was wonderful to see some natural behaviours and even some bears up in trees! This facility is a bit of an enigma as the first impression was a terrible one but the bears all appear to be healthy and they have a lot of space to live out their lives. It would be interesting to know how the ranch maintains all of those bears in terms of diet and veterinary treatments as rounding up a sick bear in a multi-acre exhibit with many other bears all around must be a tricky proposition. Zoo #11: GarLyn Zoo (Naubinway, MI) is also found in northern Michigan, is only about an hour from my first stop and it is probably the only zoo on the planet with these 4 species: Spotted Hyena, Common Genet, New Guinea Singing Dog and Bonnet Macaque. Can anyone name another zoo anywhere with all 4 of those rarities? The genet is a 'rescue animal', the macaque was someone's pet and the hyenas are from the DeYoung Family Zoo in Michigan. I toured that facility back in 2014 and the Garlyn Zoo's owner told me that at DeYoung they have at least 8 hyenas and can't find homes for all of them because very few AZA-accredited zoos will take them. It is very easy to meet and chat with an owner of a small zoo as they are usually the only staff members in the place...haha! This family-run zoo opened in 1994 and it never ceases to amaze me how such a tiny, pokey little place has taxa like the 4 that I mentioned above. GarLyn Zoo is hit-and-miss, with a brand-new Tropical Building that just opened but other than the Common Genet, Bonnet Macaque, a coati (which I didn't see), some Ring-tailed Lemurs and American Alligators, consists of zoo 'regulars' like Bearded Dragons, Burmese Pythons, Green Iguanas, Common Marmosets, etc. Moving through the zoo, many of the smaller animals are in tiny, substandard exhibits. However, I must give the zoo credit for doing well with carnivores as another brand-new addition is an enclosure for a pair of African Lions. What is amazing is that the lions are found in a thick, wooded forest with maybe 90% of the exhibit being in shade and dense, dark foliage. It looks perfect for wolves but for lions it is a bit odd. Other than the lions and hyenas, other carnivores are Grey Wolves, an Amur Tiger, a couple of Grizzly Bears (although the sign and zoo map both say Syrian Brown Bears) and all of these animals do well with their spacious, wooded environments. However, many others like the Cougar, Bobcat, albino Woodchuck, etc., are in exhibits that are too small. At this point I drove south for an hour and stopped in at The Deer Ranch (St. Ignace, MI), took a couple of photos of the entrance, and then declined the opportunity to pay five bucks to enter the facility. I asked at the counter and the establishment has a herd of White-tailed Deer and a few fawns in a small barn area...and that is it. If there was a cage with a couple of mangy-looking Raccoons, or even a Ring-tailed Lemur or two, then I'd announce that it was a 'zoo' but having only some deer didn't 'turn my crank'. The Deer Farm in Arizona has many more species and I toured that facility in 2015 but I couldn't in good faith count the Michigan equivalent as a zoo. See, even I draw the line somewhere!!! Zoo #12: Next up was a two-hour drive south, paying $4 to cross the Mackinac Bridge, to the G.T. Butterfly House & Bug Zoo (Williamsburg, MI). The place is very tiny and at $9 admission the price is slightly steep, but the staff are dedicated to providing visitors with a positive experience and the facility is only open for 6 months each year. There is a small walk-through butterfly area but it certainly had a lot of butterflies and with 30 species and 400-500 butterflies it was nicer than others I've been in. The staff were very chatty and although I only spent a short amount of time with the butterflies, I did talk extensively to a couple of staff members and I enjoyed the Bug Zoo section of the establishment as there were some really cool species on display. It was almost worth $9 just to see the huge Hercules Beetle! Species list for the Bug Zoo (37 species): Tiger Salamander, Axolotl, Argentine Horned Frog, Fire-bellied Toad, Iberian Ribbed Newt, Pink Toe Tarantula, Green Bottle Blue Tarantula, Chilean Copper Tarantula, Salmon Pink Bird Eater, Curly Hair Tarantula, Mountain Rust Rump Tarantula, White Knee Tarantula, Gold Knee Tarantula, Mexican Red Knee Tarantula, Tanzanian Whip Spider, Asian Forest Scorpion, Giant Desert Hairy Scorpion, Flat Rock Scorpion, Vinegaroon, Honey Bee, Dead Leaf Mantis, Ghost Mantis (green and brown types), Asian Katydid, Giant Leaf Insect, Spiny Stick Insect, Jungle Nymph, Giant Cave Cockroach, Peppered Cockroach, Wide Horned Hissing Cockroach, Sun Beetle, Blue Death Feigning Beetle, Three Horn Rhino Beetle, Hercules Beetle, Red Spotted Assassin Bug, Texas Gold Millipede, Monarch Caterpillar and Tussocked Moth Caterpillar. Music was again only 2 CD's. The popular 1990s band Live's album Throwing Copper (still a rockin' record) and Neil Young's Crazy Horse product called Ragged Glory. Loads of 10-minute songs that seem as if they'll never end...great stuff! For wildlife, I saw a pair of Sandhill Cranes but nothing else noteworthy. I've already uploaded lots of photos from today's zoos and you can view them at your leisure in the ZooChat gallery.
American black bears are nowhere close to endangered and zoos can accept a ready supply of orphans from various game and fish departments. So I wonder what the purpose is of breeding them? Of course the answer is to have the cubs for people to see at private places like Oswald's. I am pretty sure no AZA facilities are breeding them.
Given the 300,000+ black bears currently in the US, with rapidly increasing populations in many states (including my own), I have to agree. I believe the AZA bear tag has a breeding moratorium put into place for black bear and brown bear. They also recommend andean bear and sloth bear instead of those species, in exhibits without a geographical basis. Its common for most native species, bald eagle (can't remember any breeding), american crow, red fox and much more.
As always, enjoying your travelogue. A couple questions: 1) You said you (essentially) paid $130 for a shower, that is getting a motel instead of sleeping in the back of your vehicle. Are there not any truck stops in that Ely area that have pay showers? I've used these showers many times, as they are usually about $5 and even come with a towel. 2) Both of the Ely zoological facilities have invested millions of $$ recently. Are these places getting enough tourists to ever recover their big investments?
Ely is such a tiny town that there is basically one long road that stretches through it and therefore it is a bit of a cash-grab for the motels in the summer. They can raise their prices, as happens in all small towns, but of course in the winter there is zero business. Both of the establishments in Ely were busy during my visit and they appeal to the hunters and fishermen in the area. That whole section of Minnesota is dominated by billboards advertising the latest fishing rod, shotgun and boat. In both the bear and wolf centers there is at least one section devoted entirely to hunting and 'game management'.
DAY 6: Tuesday, July 17th Today saw me continue south in the state of Michigan with 4 zoos on the horizon, but first I had some time in the morning to take care of some basics. The minivan went through a car wash and received a solid cleaning, I located a coin laundromat and took care of laundry, and I picked up another case of water so that I can quench my thirst and not die of dehydration while enduring the usual July heatwave. I also arrived at my first zoo an hour early as they didn't open until 11:00, and I read a zoo book (what were you expecting!) and was able to rest this morning after several days of driving and having very long evenings. Zoo #13: Driving south on the I-75 highway, I pulled into the small town of Roscommon (pop.25,000) and off in a farming community is a family-run, privately-owned zoo called Roscommon Zoo (Roscommon, MI). It is only open for half the year, has many domestic animals (horses, donkeys, chickens, goats, etc.) but also a number of rarely-seen exotics. As I've said many times before, the diversity of captive animals in non-accredited zoos is startling and it is almost as if the tiny places are the ones with the cast-offs and misfits of the zoological world. The big AZA establishments have become more homogeneous and thus if a zoo enthusiast wishes to locate a Bonnet Macaque or Common Genet (which were both at GarLyn Zoo yesterday) then an AZA zoo is not the place to begin a search. Of course, the small, privately-run zoos can be fairly junky and one pet peeve of mine is the abundance of port-a-potties at these places. I never actually use them as they are disgusting and I'd rather take a quick pee in the woods then attempt to not gag inside one of those transportable toilets. If any of you faithful readers end up owning your own zoo, then please spend the money and install a proper toilet block. (It's either that or port-a-potties and then you have people like me peeing in your wooded areas) Roscommon Zoo is run by a lady and her daughter and what I presume is a boyfriend/husband/friend/partner of some kind. I had nice chats with the man and woman and they were very envious of my big summer trips. I feel very fortunate that as a schoolteacher I have 9 weeks off work every July and August and I felt a little awkward around the zoo's owners as they work every single day and the zoo is essentially their whole life. Also, yet again I was struck by the thought that these owners of small zoos are so utterly and completely insulated in terms of knowing what else is going on in the zoo world that it boggles my mind. The lady, who really was very kind to me, rattled off a bunch of zoos in Michigan and she certainly knew her stuff when it came to local facilities. But then she of course asked me what my favourite zoos were and she'd never even heard of Omaha's Henry Doorly Zoo. I told her that every few years that zoo spends another $20 million or so on new exhibits and that it had America's largest of many things: tropical jungle, desert dome, nocturnal house, reptile collection, aquarium, 4-acre aviary, etc., plus one of the nation's largest bug houses, African sections, elephant barn, 5-acre children’s zoo and everything else. She stared at me open-mouthed. “All of that in the same zoo?” Although she was stunned, I would be willing to bet money that she will never visit that great zoo in Nebraska. Roscommon Zoo is full of basic paddocks and then the usual rarely-seen taxa that seem to sprout up in little zoos all across the nation. There are some adequate exhibits but most are substandard, as for example the Serval has a wooden floor perhaps 10 feet wide and 10 feet deep...and in the winter I can't even imagine how small its holding area is. Excluding all of the domestic animals, here is a comprehensive list of exotics on display: Fallow Deer, Red Deer, Llama, Red Kangaroo, Reeves' Muntjac, Binturong, Ring-tailed Lemur, Brown Capuchin, Vervet Monkey, Black-handed Spider Monkey, Mara, African Crested Porcupine, Black-tailed Prairie Dog, Coati, Tiger (generic 'zoo' tiger), Serval, Arctic Fox, Fennec Fox, Striped Skunk, Blue-and-Gold Macaw, Moluccan Cockatoo, African Grey Parrot, Yellow Golden Pheasant, Eurasian Eagle Owl, Kookaburra, Emu, Peafowl, Black Swan, Green Iguana and Sulcata Tortoise. Zoo #14: An hour and a half south is the Saginaw Children’s Zoo (Saginaw, MI), which is clearly aimed towards young children and somewhat surprisingly is AZA-accredited. The facility is only 10 acres in size, doesn't have many exotic animals, only 150 animals in total and is only open half the year and that is the reason for my surprise in terms of the accreditation. However, the grounds are well-maintained and in fact there are some gorgeous flowerbeds, a stunning lake in the center of the zoo and the establishment is lovely to look at. There is a barnyard area and many domestic animals, and other than a few exceptions most of the exotics are small, popular, kid-friendly species. There are Mexican Grey Wolves in a nicely-landscaped habitat, and a well-down North American River Otter exhibit. Other exotic species seen as one strolls around the zoo include: White-tailed Deer, Bald Eagle, Turkey Vulture, an Aussie walkabout with various macropods, African Penguins, American Alligators, Black-tailed Prairie Dogs and Cotton-top Tamarins. There are lots of kid-friendly items such as colourful posters, a walk-through lorikeet section, hands-on farmyard stuff, etc., but for zoo nerds there are two key species that are a real treat. White-throated Capuchins are rarely-seen in any American zoos and here they have an enrichment-jammed exhibit that encourages natural behaviour. Also, the zoo has Black-footed Cats and in fact while I saw the mother I did not get an opportunity to spot the 6-week-old kittens that were born last month. Apparently they are on-exhibit but hardly visible as they spend much of their time hidden away. Zoo #15: Another 30-minute drive south and I arrived at Wilderness Trails Zoo (Birch Run, MI) and this place is an enigma. There are some huge ungulate paddocks that are quite gorgeous in places, with massive trees and the enclosures are very long, rectangular, and the animals do fine in them with loads of youngsters in all directions. There are very spacious aviaries, a handful of adequate primate chain-link cages, then some simply dreadful exhibits for large carnivores. The White Tiger exhibit has a tall chain-link fence surrounding it but zero hotwire across the bottom, zero hotwire across the top and no overhang. What is stopping the tiger from getting out other than its own body weight? The Grizzly Bear and American Black Bear enclosures are like mini-prisons straight out of the previous century. Ugh. Then there is the Reptile Sanctuary, which is amazing. It truly shocked me as all of the 26 exhibits are OUTSIDE. Other than when I toured some Australian zoos back in 2007, I've never seen so many reptiles in enclosures that are exposed to the elements. To top things off, the Reptile Sanctuary is designed like an old Western town and so an exhibit will be the Jail, another will be the Sheriff's Office, another will be the saloon, etc. Wonderfully original and eccentric at the same time! Also, this obscure zoo in Michigan had some choice species but they are only out from mid-June to early September and then there is an off-show Reptile House that is used the rest of the year. Species List: American Alligator, Morelet's Crocodile, Sulcata Tortoise, Russian Tortoise, Leopard Tortoise, Red-footed Tortoise, Yellow-footed Tortoise, Grand Cayman Hybrid Blue Iguana, Cuban Rock Iguana, Rhinoceros Iguana, Black-throated Monitor, White-throated Monitor, Water Monitor, Savanna Monitor, Blue Tongue Skink, Sudan Plated Lizard, Gila Monster, Argentine Black-and-White Tegu, Ball Python, Burmese Python (regular, granite and albino) and Boa Constrictor (imperial). All of those animals are outside and one of the Burmese Pythons is in a corn crib cage...extraordinary! Zoo #16: What is there to say about Sea Life Michigan (Auburn Hills, MI)? I've visited 5 of the Sea Life franchises (Michigan, Minnesota, Arizona, California and Texas) but I have not toured the other 3 in the USA (Kansas City, Orlando and Charlotte-Concord). A Sea Life Aquarium is opening up in San Antonio next February and there is supposedly one going up in New Jersey as well to give the USA 10 of these 'McAquariums'. The Michigan one is sleek, modern, new (just opened in 2015) and fairly enjoyable but I was done and dusted in 40 minutes and paid a lot of money as an entrance fee. The family behind me, with two young children, were hard on my heels and these Sea Life franchises simply cannot keep visitors inside for a substantial amount of time. The walk-through tunnel is always a treat but the best Sea Life of the 5 that I've toured is in fact the largest one in the USA and it is located in the Mall of America in Minnesota. Perhaps that one is the best because it wasn't originally a Sea Life!
