There are many of you that have already read about my upcoming summer road trip under the thread "Plans for the year", but I've been finalizing the itinerary and now feel compelled to share it with others in order to obtain feedback. For those that don't wish to read the preamble, you can simply scroll down to the bottom of this message and there is the list of zoos and aquariums that I'll be visiting this July and August. I am aware of all the potential omissions from the list, but there has been a deliberate attempt to choose highly-rated establishments. Overall I feel as if it contains a magnificent set of animal collections. Feedback is appreciated though!!! The road trip was originally scheduled to be about 6 weeks in length, but currently is maxed out to a full 8 weeks. My wife and I will leave on June 27th (exactly six weeks from today) and will arrive back home around August 22nd. Road trips are funny things, as they can change as the time flies by. As long as nothing catastrophic occurs, we plan to be gone for the entire 8 weeks, give or take a few days. There will obviously be a tremendous amount of driving during this holiday, but I'm sure that it will be worth it in the end. The ambitious plan is to visit 9 Canadian Provinces and 35 U.S. States. We will leave the Vancouver region of British Columbia and first drive across 4 Provinces before heading south into North Dakota. The first 4 days will be all driving, until we hit the Minnesota Zoo and check out the brand new "Russian Grizzly Coast" set of exhibits. Then it's on to Chicago for 3 nights, then Detroit, back into Canada for visits to Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal, Quebec and a quick jaunt through the Maritime Provinces. We will drive through the New England area of the U.S. and head to New York City, where we plan to spend 6-7 nights and see all the major sights. It's not only zoos that we'll visit, although it seems like that at times...lol From New York it's south through Baltimore, with 3 nights in Washington, D.C. Then a sweep through Pittsburgh, Columbus, Cincinnati and Louisville, before a long drive south to Atlanta, Georgia. Then it's a big stretch across the southern U.S., with Memphis, Fort Worth, Tucson and Phoenix on the agenda. Following that will be two nights in San Diego, and then north through Monterey, Portland and home. Whew!! The list of zoos and aquariums below has been established after many hours of research by myself. There are only 2 in Canada and the rest are American collections, and only the last 4 are ones that we've visited before. Seattle's Woodland Park Zoo and Aquarium are both absent from the list as we plan to visit them in the next month or so, or if we don't then maybe we'll tack them on at the end of the two months. As I said before, road trips are fluid vacations that can alter slightly week-to-week. We won't book a single accommodation, as we'll drive all day and stop when we're tired. We also are prepared (we've done this before) to drive an hour out of our way if it's possible to add another State to our itinerary of places that we've visited. The more the merrier! Over the past couple of months I have privately emailed 8 different members of ZooBeat who had visited a large number of North American zoos, and took the advice of many of those people. After this jaunt across the continent I will have visited close to 60 different zoos, aquariums and wildlife parks around the world, which is a healthy total but also a far cry from countless hardcore fans here at ZooBeat. I feel confident that 90% of this list will be seen by my wife and I. There is the chance that 1-2 might be skipped (the National Aquarium in Baltimore could be a potential casualty) and there also might be 1-2 that will then take the place of others. But overall I'd be shocked if we didn't go to every single one of these establishments. In visiting order: 1- Minnesota Zoo 2- Brookfield Zoo 3- Lincoln Park Zoo 4- John G. Shedd Aquarium 5- Detroit Zoo 6- Toronto Zoo 7- Montreal Biodome + Insectarium 8- Bronx Zoo 9- Central Park Wildlife Center 10- National Aquarium in Baltimore 11- National Zoo in Washington, D.C. 12- Pittsburgh Zoo & Aquarium 13- Columbus Zoo 14- Cincinnati Zoo 15- Louisville Zoo 16- Georgia Aquarium 17- Zoo Atlanta 18- Memphis Zoo 19- Fort Worth Zoo 20- Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum 21- Phoenix Zoo 22- San Diego Zoo 23- San Diego Seaworld 24- Monterey Bay Aquarium 25- Oregon Zoo Two years ago my wife (then my girlfriend) and I drove through 13 U.S. States in 15 days, and saw 6 zoos and aquariums in the process. Therefore we've already driven up and down the west coast of the U.S., and that's why this time we're concentrating our efforts in mainly eastern and southern States. We also had an amazing honeymoon in Australia, where we spent 6 weeks in May and June of 2007. We saw a ton of attractions, and there were 14 zoos, aquariums and wildlife parks included in that list. In a couple of years we'll go broke with all of our travelling...
I think the Democratic Party candidates had a similarly ambitious travel plan! Enjoy every minute of it. Oh, and DO NOT GO TO THE BRONX ZOO ON A WEDNESDAY! (it's free day and it is pandemonium)
It must have been hard to chisle down that list...it would have been very difficult to leave out the other new york city zoos and the dallas world aquarium...Enjoy your trip man. Keep us updated if you can while your on your trip! Both Cincinnati and the National Zoo has some off-beat hidden exhibits so keep track of where you've been and try and find those hidden animals if you have the time... Also take a bus to the national zoo if you use public transportation, the nearest subway station is a few blocks from the zoo, while the bus drops you off practically at the entrance. Everytime I've been to Washington, DC it has been so much easier, cheaper, and faster to stay in a hotel outside the district and take a subway into the city to visit the usual places. And if you have time there is a small public aquarium in the basement of the Dept of Commerce Building.
@okapikpr: you are right about the difficulty in whittling down my list of zoos and aquariums. The week spent in New York City will allow me to see the two famous zoos, but the Staten Island, Prospect Point and Queens Zoos are all very tiny and not notable as the better collections in the world. Visiting the Bronx and Central Park collections will be enough for sure. The small public aquarium in Washington, D.C. is not supposed to be worth visiting, but as you say if I have time then you never know! As for the Dallas World Aquarium, I am already visiting a similar building (the Montreal Biodome) and I didn't want to go out of my way to hit Dallas. It was a toss-up between going to Dallas and seeing the zoo and fairly small aquarium, or skipping that huge city and visiting the Fort Worth Zoo instead. I've heard from a couple of ZooBeat members, as well as travel websites, that the Fort Worth Zoo is quite good and a much more worthwhile experience than the Dallas Zoo.
@snowleopard: Your wife doesn't have a young, hot sister who is equally tolerant in regard to a possible boyfriend's zoo-freakish behaviour? If so: could I have her email address...? jk Wish You both a pleasant & safe trip. And, if possible: could You please figure out for me whether Brookfield Zoo has this awesome zoo poster for sale? Thanks in advance. naked molerats on Flickr - Photo Sharing!
@snowleopard: I am jealous of your amazing road trip. 20 years ago I moved across the country and took advantge by taking a leisurely 3-week trip cross-country, but certainly didn't see nearly the number of zoos you are planning on visiting. I'd second Zooplantman's suggestion that you make sure your Bronx Zoo visit is NOT on a Wednesday, and also put in a word for Dallas World Aquarium. In a choice between Ft. Worth Zoo and DWA, I'd go for the latter. While in some ways it is like the Biodome (it's almost all indoors), the collection at DWA is simply unbelievable. As a confirmed "zoo nerd," you might be able to arrange a visit to the off-exhibit breeding areas there--fantastic, lushly-planted aviaries on the rooftop with lekking **** of the Rock, multiple hummingbird species and many others. The Worth Zoo has no real standout exhibits (although their upcoming Reptile House looks very interesting). But in the end, why not do both? Dallas and Ft. Worth are only about 30 miles apart. Hope you can post updates while you are on the road, so we can all live vicariously through your zoo pilgrimage.
I have to laugh at how this site automatically censors the name of one of the most spectacular group of South American birds. Long live the **** of the Rock! Good thing no one is inappropriately keeping them in a mixed species setting with dik-dik!
@Sun Wukong: my wife does indeed have a younger sister, but she avoids zoos at all costs and thinks that we are silly for visiting so many on holidays! Haha. I love the naked mole rat poster and will definitely check out the Brookfield Zoo's gift shop to see if they have any. Do you want me to pick you up one? @reduakari: I appreciate your advice, both now and in the past. You were especially cynical in regards to the Los Angeles Zoo and its many exhibits, and I realize that you are like me and come down hard on zoos with poor enclosures. I realize that the Dallas World Aquarium has its supporters, but my wife and I are already planning on seeing John G. Shedd, Georgia, Monterey, and perhaps the National Aquarium in Baltimore and San Diego Seaworld. One could argue that those are just about the 5 best aquariums in North America...but Dallas certainly does interest me. Zoos are more appealing to me than aquariums, but having said that I am always open to suggestions and opinions. I've heard many good things about the Fort Worth Zoo, and the list of exhibits on its website are very impressive. Maybe we can squeeze visits to both Dallas and Fort Worth into our itinerary, and by that point of the trip we might have a day or two extra to play around with.
Here is some advice for Whashington,once your therte part your car and DO NOT drive it until stay is done,they have a really good subway system thatts cheap and the traffic there is absolute ludacris!
Snowy - are you going to keep a notebook because you might go into zoo overload. When I've visited too many zoos in a short period I sometimes find it hard to remember which enclosure belonged where... Have a great time! lol...a forum like this is probably the best place to meet that sort of person, although I think the sex ratio of members is probably skewed towards males. Maybe you could start a dating thread, you'd have to post a picture and list of positive attributes though Luckily for me I don't require such a facility as I've been married to a zoo-tolerant (if not zoo-freak) for years.
@Pygathrix: I'll definitely keep a notebook, and plan to hopefully post a few reviews and updates while on the road. I am fortunate that I can recall specific zoo exhibits from years past, but this time there will be so many zoos and aquariums that I'll take your advice and jot down a few notes at each one. On a side note, I plan to visit all 4 of the U.S. zoos with giant pandas. That will be great to achieve, even though in actuality pandas aren't the most exciting of captive animals. They spend most of their time eating and sleeping...
As a hoofstock guy, I also prefer zoos to aquariums (although the Dallas World Aquarium does have a pudu). I was actually a bit disappointed by the DWA - the collection is, indeed, amazing (manatees, giant otters, aracaris coming out the ying-yang), but for a new facility I found the exhibits lacking. And the "aquarium" part is for the original set of tanks in the 'basement' - in the main exhibits there are almost no fish! The Dallas Zoo has two halves; their Wilds of Africa exhibit is full-on immersion with great results (it is several years old, and the plants are nicely filled in), while the "other half" is old and a bit run down (there are still some great exhibits, notably the new bird of prey aviaries, Asian otters, and tiger). As I think I wrote in a PM, I would STRONGLY recommend going to the Caldwell Zoo in Tyler, TX. It is about an hour (?) outside of Dallas and an easy day trip. I would probably say to go there before going to Fort Worth, if only for the amazement factor at what great things smaller zoos can do. And in regards to the 'aquarium' in Washington, don't expect anything worthwhile. ANYTHING. It is in the basement of a building and is reminiscent of a pet store, with a few rows of tanks and few major "exhibits" (although it has been ten years sine I visited).
Caldwell Zoo: A natural for family fun! @Ungulate: I do remember you telling me privately all about the Caldwell Zoo in Tyler, Texas, but I'm undecided when it comes to the Texas portion of my summer road trip. There are two members of ZooBeat that have been urging me to visit the Dallas World Aquarium but you say it is "lacking" and instead are recommending the very tiny but apparently well constructed Caldwell Zoo...while there is one other member of ZooBeat that has been raving to me about the Fort Worth Zoo, which actually appears to be excellent judging from photos and their website. What to do? Perhaps by that time of the epic road trip my wife and I will have time for 3-4 different institutions in Texas, or else we'll simply drive across that massive State and instead enjoy the excellent zoos in Arizona and California.
A little off topic...snowleopard what other attractions do you plan to stop at? (ie national parks, museums, the usual tourist attractions, etc.)
@snowleopard: About the poster: Thanks-and sure, it'd be great if You could get me one. Thanks in advance! And about the sister: D'oh!
@okapikpr: you asked about other attractions, besides the 25 zoos and aquariums...but a large portion of the 54-57 days will be either viewing captive wildlife or driving. Some exceptions: Chicago: maybe check out the Sears Skydeck although I hear that there are massive crowds, stroll around Lincoln Park, and then walk along the "mile strip" of stores and giant buildings. The two zoos and one aquarium will constitute the bulk of our time here. Toronto Area: Niagara Falls is a must-see, as is the CN Tower and Casa Loma (castle). Ottawa: Parliament buildings, Rideau Canal and the surrounding area. Montreal: Olympic Park area, maybe the Notre Dame Cathedral, historic downtown area. Quebec: historic downtown area, Chateau Frontenac, La Citadelle. Maritime Provinces: just drive and enjoy the scenery. New York City for an entire week: American Museum of Natural History, Central Park, Times Square, Empire State Building, Metropolitan Museum of Art, Rockefeller Center, Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, etc. Washington, D.C.: Numerous monuments and memorials along the strip, National Museum of Natural History. Georgia: World of Coca-Cola. The last two weeks of the trip are across the southern States and up the west coast, and it will be nothing much but zoos and aquariums on most days. In Portland, Oregon, there is an awesome book store called Powell's City of Books that requires a map as it's an entire city block. We both love to read and are teachers, and so will spend a good amount of time there to relax and end off the epic trip.
Since I currently have time on my hands...over the past week or so I've added brand new threads for 10 zoos and aquariums that were not represented here at ZooBeat. There are two reasons for that: one is to provide a thread for many of the top North American zoos for all of us to enjoy, and also anyone interested can post reviews, comments or news links under the specific zoo headings. Secondly, while on my summer road trip I can perhaps gain internet access and add short reviews and comments under a particular zoo's thread without having to start from scratch. Here are the 10 that I've added, so far: Brookfield Zoo, Lincoln Park Zoo, Louisville Zoo, Monterey Bay Aquarium, Montreal Biodome, Memphis Zoo, Pittsburgh Zoo and Aquarium, Columbus Zoo and Aquarium, Cleveland Metroparks Zoo, and Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum. As I visit around 25 zoos and aquariums this summer (I depart in 4 weeks) I might be able to leave reviews of new exhibits, etc while on the road trip. Pygathrix already warned me that I should take a notebook, and that sounds like good advice!
