Well that's not very sporting of them ... this is a zoo site, and we all know that zoos hold competitions to give names to their new arrivals. I think I'm going to have to have a chat to Mr & Mrs SnowLeopard and tell them we want to suggest names for the new "cub"
Knowing SnowLeopard (and wife -- I met them!), they wouldn't be offended by this, but I do know some folks would! LOL!
Congratulations to Mr and Mrs snowleopard (I have a feeling that cat-man will not be the youngest zoochatter for much longer ).
My daughter Kylie was born on Sunday morning here in Canada, and she is absolutely adorable! Those of you that are friends with me on Facebook can check out photos on my page (Scott Richardson), and I truly appreciate the many comments, emails and wishes from my ZooChat friends. I hadn't logged onto this site in 9 days, and today I read through 8 private messages plus the contributions to this thread! It's nice to be missed, and Kylie and her mama are both doing well. It's our first child, and as long as the weather is nice we'll take her to the local Vancouver Zoo this week.
@Cat-Man: I'll be taking her everywhere mate! She visited the Greater Vancouver Zoo today, and was only 98 hours old at the time. Of course she slept through most of the visit, but it's the thought that counts...
In the summer of 2008 my wife and I visited 30 zoos and aquariums in an 8 week journey across Canada and the United States. It is well documented on this thread, and there were many avid fans who followed our epic journey. Now there are tentative plans for us (along with our very young daughter - she'll be 10 months old when we plan to leave on July 12th) to take a 5-week trip through the United States to visit loads more zoos! The trip is outlined below, and probably 90% of it will be accurate. Two years ago there were at least a couple of zoos that we decided not to visit due to timing issues or the weather, and instead we added a number of different establishments, and I can see this potentially happening again. In the summer of 2010 we plan to visit only zoos that we have NOT already seen, and if we do go on this epic trip then we'll have seen over 50 of the top 60 zoos extensively reviewed in the incredibly well-detailed classic "America's Best Zoos", and I'll pass the 100 mark overall for zoos/aquariums/wildlife parks. I scheduled for 29 days, which leaves 6 additional days for seeing other attractions such as national parks and monuments, as well as time off in case we stretch out the zoo visits with a few days off in between. This is a tentative schedule, but we did an extremely similar trip for 8 weeks in 2008 and so 5 weeks and with a youngster should hopefully be successful. Without further ado... Proposed Summer 2010 Road Trip: Day 1: Drive all day Day 2: Zoo Montana + drive all day Day 3: Drive all day Day 4: Cheyenne Mountain Zoo + drive 7.5 hours Day 5: Sedgwick County Zoo + drive 3 hours Day 6: Tulsa Zoo + drive 4 hours Day 7: Kansas City Zoo + drive 4 hours Day 8: Saint Louis Zoo + Gateway Arch + drive 4.5 hours Day 9: Nashville Zoo + drive 3 hours Day 10: Louisville Zoo + drive 3.5 hours Day 11: Fort Wayne Children’s Zoo + drive 1.5 hours Day 12: Binder Park Zoo + drive 4 hours Day 13: Cleveland Zoo + drive 3 hours Day 14: Drive all day (5 hours) Day 15: North Carolina Zoo + drive 3 hours Day 16: Riverbanks Zoo + drive 6 hours Day 17: Montgomery Zoo + drive 5 hours Day 18: Audubon Zoo + drive 7 hours Day 19: Caldwell Zoo + drive 2 hours + Dallas World Aquarium Day 20: Dallas Zoo + drive 4 hours Day 21: Houston Zoo + drive 3 hours Day 22: San Antonio Zoo + drive 4.5 hours Day 23: Gladys Porter Zoo + 6 hours Day 24: Drive all day (9 hours) Day 25: Rio Grande Zoo + Albuquerque Aquarium + drive 3 hours Day 26: Drive all day (7 hours) Day 27: Utah’s Hogle Zoo + drive 5 hours Day 28: Zoo Boise + drive 3 hours Day 29: Drive all day (7 hours) Days = 35 (5 weeks) Zoos = 23 Aquariums = 2 U.S. States = 26
Quite a schedule you and your family have given yourselves there, i for one look forward to your reviews, i know how much you enjoy other zoochatters reviews, so i know you will leave nothing out. Is there anything in particular you are keen to see? p.s, wishing you and your family well for the trip.
What a wonderful itinerary! I hope your trip is wonderful! Did you consider combining Audobon Zoo with its separate aquarium and insect zoo facilities? I have not been to all three but am aware that they are there. Also, in Houston there is the Downtown Aquarium Houston, again I have not been but their facility in Denver is impressive. Your itinerary includes many zoos I have not been to either so I will be excited to read your reviews!
@Zooplantman: you are right about that! I showed my wife what you wrote and she will likely tease me about your comments from now until we leave on this trip in 5 months time. @geomorph: there are many smaller facilities that interest me, especially the Audubon establishments, but everything will hinge on the timing of our visits. I really want to see the so-called "big guns" of the zoo world, and end the trip having seen over 50 of America's 60 best zoos. If I have a choice between a couple of smaller zoos or one more famous one then I'll choose the larger facility on every occasion. @kiang: I'm psyched for the trip due to the fact that NONE of the zoos are ones that we've ever visited before. To some extent there are not as many top-notch, world-class zoos on this trip as the 30 zoo/aquarium trip in the summer of 2008, but every single zoo on my list has something worthwhile to see. The 4 that I'm most excited about are Saint Louis, North Carolina, Sedgwick County and Dallas, as those are perhaps the 4 best North American zoos that I've never toured. Dallas has the new "Giants of the Savanna" complex opening this summer, and many other zoos have smaller exhibits opening in time for the summer season.
Ah, see no Maryland Zoo on the agenda. That's too bad as although it doesn't have a ton of exhibits, it is very well done for the most. The aquarium is also one of the better one's in the nation.
I am looking forward to your review of Riverbanks zoo, not too much info here about it, as well as the shoebill at Houston.
How bout you add Fort Wayne Children's Zoo? It's a really nice smaller zoo with a nice new African exhibit. I'd like some Zoochatters to go there and see what a pleasant surprise it is. Oh, and if you go to Louisville, pm me. I'm close and would like to go and dicuss zoos with you.
