Coming to America

Z

zooman

Well-Known Member
15+ year member
Hello all fellow Zoochatters :]

Since joining Zoochat in July 2008, l have had a couple of small zoo holidays to several zoos in Australia and Thailand.

Now in July 20012 l am travelling to America for 1 month and hopefully visiting a zoo or maybe two every day except for 1 or 2 travel days.

The first part of my trip will be a 16 day road trip, leaving from NY and driving to;
Toronto
Detroit, last visit 1992
Toledo
Brookfield, last visit winter 2008
Lincoln Park maybe if time, last visit winter 2008
Omaha
Kansas City
St Louis
Indianapolis
Columbus, last visit 1992 Gorilla Workshop
The Wilds
Cincinnati
*May head back to NY from here if l have been distracted or feel that l am rushing the trip to much and wanted to slow down.
Louisville
Nashville
Knoxville
North Carolina

I am posting this now as l would like some feedback on weather or not l am missing any of my "favourite things" these include in order of preference.

1/ Gorilla exhibits that are of at least a good standard [not going to buffalo or Pittsburgh for this reason, l did see Pittsburgh in early 2008 Wow about as bad as it gets!].
2/ Outstanding animal exhibits [ Looking forward to having my own experience at Lied Jungle].
3/ Exhibits that allow me to have a unique experience [ Detroit Polar bear, Indianapolis Dolphins]
4/ Unforgettable Animal experiences [looking forward to horse riding at The Wilds]

Appreciate all tips and insights.

Would love to meet other members on this trip, as when l caught up with members at Symbio last year it was a great experience.

I am looking into how l will journal this journey and at the moment l am researching doing a video blog. Technology is not my thing but working on it.

All the best to all :]
 
I'm excited for you as it should be a wonderful road trip!!!

Questions:

- What does the second part of your trip look like?
- Any aquariums planned? You will visit two zoos in Chicago and it would be a shame to miss the world-class Shedd Aquarium.
- You are visiting 4 Ohio zoos but not Cleveland?
- You are visiting St. Louis and Kansas City but if you drive another 3 hours east you can visit Wichita and Sedgwick County is one of America's 10 best zoos with an excellent gorilla exhibit. That should be a "must" for you!
 
It sounds like a very ambitious and interesting trip. Will you be on the West Coast for part 2 of your journey?
 
snowleopard said:
I'm excited for you as it should be a wonderful road trip!!!

Questions:

- What does the second part of your trip look like?
- Any aquariums planned? You will visit two zoos in Chicago and it would be a shame to miss the world-class Shedd Aquarium.
- You are visiting 4 Ohio zoos but not Cleveland?
- You are visiting St. Louis and Kansas City but if you drive another 3 hours east you can visit Wichita and Sedgwick County is one of America's 10 best zoos with an excellent gorilla exhibit. That should be a "must" for you!
Click to expand...

HI Snowleopard ,

Thank-you this is exactly what l am looking for Cleveland l have not heard allot about or that it is a zoo of distinction.

I will now do some research on Wichita, Sedgwick County and Cleveland zoos.

Visiting aquariums, not really my thing, l actually missed seeing Atlanta Aquarium a few years back, however at the time l had no idea what l was missing out on and now regret no going! So maybe l will go to the Shedd Aquarium??

Hi David,
After my road trip l have 6 days in NY with friends and plan on visiting Bronx Zoo of course. The last 3 times there it has been winter, l have never been in summer so very excited about it.

After NY fly to California for another road trip arrive LA and drive up to San Francisco then back down to San Diego.

Oakland zoo
Monteray aquarium
San Diego Zoo

I have visited all of the big zoos in california at least a couple of times. Its been 22 years since San Diego zoo!

Very curious on hearing California zoos l may not be aware of. I have visited Santa Barbra, SF, SWAP.

All the best.
 
zooman said:
HI Snowleopard ,

Thank-you this is exactly what l am looking for Cleveland l have not heard allot about or that it is a zoo of distinction.

I will now do some research on Wichita, Sedgwick County and Cleveland zoos.

Visiting aquariums, not really my thing, l actually missed seeing Atlanta Aquarium a few years back, however at the time l had no idea what l was missing out on and now regret no going! So maybe l will go to the Shedd Aquarium??

Hi David,
After my road trip l have 6 days in NY with friends and plan on visiting Bronx Zoo of course. The last 3 times there it has been winter, l have never been in summer so very excited about it.

After NY fly to California for another road trip arrive LA and drive up to San Francisco then back down to San Diego.

Oakland zoo
Monteray aquarium
San Diego Zoo

I have visited all of the big zoos in california at least a couple of times. Its been 22 years since San Diego zoo!

Very curious on hearing California zoos l may not be aware of. I have visited Santa Barbra, SF, SWAP.

All the best.
Click to expand...


What about Los Angeles Zoo? And Seaworld San Diego?

On the road to San Francisco theres a reserve for Elephant Seals called Ano Nuevo, which might be worth a stop.

:p

Hix
 
If you haven't been to California zoos for 22 years (or was that just to the San Diego Zoo?), then there are gorilla exhibits at the Santa Barbara Zoo and LA Zoo (new exhibit opened in 2008) that you won't have seen.

If you are here in July or August then you will probably be able to see blue and humpback whales if you go out to the California Channel Islands on a whale watching trip (very easy to book as this is a national park and open to everyone).

Nearby the Monterey Bay Aquarium is the Point Lobos State Preserve in Carmel where you can get great views of wild sea otters, sea lions, harbor seals, and several sea bird species. The grey whales will all have migrated by for the summer unfortunately.

I would highly recommend the California Academy of Sciences (completely rebuilt in 2008) which features a new aquarium, rain forest habitat, and natural history museum. It is in Golden Gate Park in San Francisco. The San Francisco Zoo has a great nocturnal aye-aye exhibit, a new African savanna complex with giraffes and several antelope and bird species, and a functional gorilla exhibit (which it sounds like you have already seen).
 
Last edited:
Hix said:
What about Los Angeles Zoo? And Seaworld San Diego?

On the road to San Francisco theres a reserve for Elephant Seals called Ano Nuevo, which might be worth a stop.

:p

Hix
Click to expand...

Hi Hix,
I actually stumbled onto the Elephant seals on my last road trip driving down to LA from SF. It was totally unexpected and amazing!

LA zoo a few years back and as much as l would like to see the new Gorilla Exhibit from what l can tell by pictures and because of time restraints l will not commit to going. Same with Seaworld its a time issue and l have visited many years ago.
 
DavidBrown said:
If you haven't been to California zoos for 22 years (or was that just to the San Diego Zoo?), then there are gorilla exhibits at the Santa Barbara Zoo and LA Zoo (new exhibit opened in 2008) that you won't have seen.

If you are here in July or August then you will probably be able to see blue and humpback whales if you go out to the California Channel Islands on a whale watching trip (very easy to book as this is a national park and open to everyone).

Nearby the Monterey Bay Aquarium is the Point Lobos State Preserve in Carmel where you can get great views of wild sea otters, sea lions, harbor seals, and several sea bird species. The grey whales will all have migrated by for the summer unfortunately.

I would highly recommend the California Academy of Sciences (completely rebuilt in 2008) which features a new aquarium, rain forest habitat, and natural history museum. It is in Golden Gate Park in San Francisco. The San Francisco Zoo has a great nocturnal aye-aye exhibit, a new African savanna complex with giraffes and several antelope and bird species, and a functional gorilla exhibit (which it sounds like you have already seen).
Click to expand...

Wow there is allot here David thank-you very much,

I have seen Santa Barbra zoo a few years back and unlikely to return on this trip.

Whale watching trip, will look into and let you know.

Wild sea otters very tempting, again will look into it.

California Academy of Sciences l will definitely add to my itinerary, thank-you.

Yep have seen SF a few years back and loved the savannah exhibit particularly how you could view it from A/ outside of the zoo and B/ the immersion effect of the tunnel into the centre of the exhibit, fantastic!
 
Hi Snowleopard,

Curious on your thought on Toronto Zoo, would you say it is a must see zoo, given my time restraints and the other zoos l am visiting.

Does it fit into any of the below preferences?1/ Gorilla exhibits that are of at least a good standard [not going to buffalo or Pittsburgh for this reason, l did see Pittsburgh in early 2008 Wow about as bad as it gets!].
2/ Outstanding animal exhibits [ Looking forward to having my own experience at Lied Jungle].
3/ Exhibits that allow me to have a unique experience [ Detroit Polar bear, Indianapolis Dolphins]
4/ Unforgettable Animal experiences [looking forward to horse riding at The Wilds]

Thank-you in advance, as l would appreciate your opinion.
 
Nashville is a great choice - it is one of my favorites in the country (both the zoo and the city). Another favorite is Memphis (both the city and the zoo), which is 200 miles west of Nashville. Although I am not sure if they have gorillas, they do have an excellent primate walk with good exhibits for orangutan, bonobo and several monkeys. They are all in outdoor open exhibits. (They also have an excellent cat area - my favorite - plus one of the four giant panda exhibits in the USA).

If you are doing the California coast, you may want to pick up this book which lists where to find wild animals in the state. (This is a series with a book on most of the US states).

[ame=http://www.amazon.com/California-Wildlife-Viewing-Guides-Series/dp/1560444940/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1336488558&sr=1-1]Amazon.com: California Wildlife Viewing Guide (Wildlife Viewing Guides Series) (9781560444947): Jeanne L. Clark: Books[/ame]

I think the only zoo that is on your way there you have not mentioned is Santa Ana Zoo. It is not big, it is not great, but their specialty is monkeys (no great apes) and it is literally right next to the 5 freeway. So if you need a break driving from Los Angeles to San Diego, you could get out to walk around for an hour or two. If you decide to make your return trip from San Francisco on the inland route (5 freeway) instead of the coast again, you could go to Sequioa and Kings Canyon National Parks for the giant sequoia redwoods which are absolutely stunning. Just down the highway from the entrance to Kings Canyon is a big cat place that does a fantastic job of supporting conservation efforts.

Big Cats and Wildlife Habitat Conservation Program by Cat Haven
 
zooman said:
Hi Snowleopard,

Curious on your thought on Toronto Zoo, would you say it is a must see zoo, given my time restraints and the other zoos l am visiting.

Does it fit into any of the below preferences?1/ Gorilla exhibits that are of at least a good standard [not going to buffalo or Pittsburgh for this reason, l did see Pittsburgh in early 2008 Wow about as bad as it gets!].
2/ Outstanding animal exhibits [ Looking forward to having my own experience at Lied Jungle].
3/ Exhibits that allow me to have a unique experience [ Detroit Polar bear, Indianapolis Dolphins]
4/ Unforgettable Animal experiences [looking forward to horse riding at The Wilds]

Thank-you in advance, as l would appreciate your opinion.
Click to expand...

@Zooman: I know that you have read many of my ZooChat reviews (perhaps even all 101 of them!) and so you should be familiar with my likes and dislikes when it comes to rating zoos. Toronto has a very nice African Savanna area (especially the white rhino, cheetah and olive baboon enclosures) and the new Arctic zone (polar bears, wolves) seems to be highly valued by regular visitors but it was not yet open in the summer of 2008 when I toured Canada's largest zoo.

There are many news articles online that have admitted that the zoo has fallen by the wayside in the past couple of decades, and a few prominent journalists have been claiming that the zoo needs an injection of $250 million to upgrade and modernize. There are many large hoofstock paddocks that are more than adequate, but the numerous all-indoor pavilions often feature disappointing exhibits. The orangutan, elephant and gorilla enclosures are all hugely unimpressive, and if I were you I would not go out of my way to see this zoo but head south towards Sedgwick County and the numerous stellar American zoos in that area that perhaps were not originally on your itinerary.

Toronto has its supporters on this forum, but there is not a single outstanding exhibit for you to get excited about, there is not a uniqe experience (like the Dolphin Dome in Indy) and why cross an international border during the peak of summer when you can see better zoos further south? Toronto Zoo is geographically huge and the animal collection is rumored to be over 5,000, but the dearth of quality is apparent in all directions. Some folks like the zoo enormously, but I've visited loads that are much better, more accessible in terms of driving distances, and easier for you in light of your time restraints.
 
Thank-you Snowleopard,

I appreciate your response.
 
snowleopard said:
d if I were you I would not go out of my way to see this zoo but head south towards Sedgwick County and the numerous stellar American zoos in that area that perhaps were not originally on your itinerary.
Click to expand...

Okay almost afraid to ask as l thought l had selected a strong selection and area.

I will definitely include Sedgwick County in my itinerary, please tell me other zoos you recommend further south?
 
@zooman: your itinerary is actually terrific, and with the addition of Sedgwick County (and perhaps the omission of Toronto) the road trip looks as if it will be amazing. I could keep urging you to head due south after Wichita as then you'd hit Oklahoma City, Dallas and Fort Worth in quick succession but then you'd really be adding on the miles. You are already scheduled to tour Nashville, Knoxville and North Carolina, so the next logical choices in the area would be Memphis and Atlanta (zoo, aquarium and maybe even the World of Coca-Cola!).

I guess at this point you will need to sit down for a few hours and type up an itinerary while also spending a great deal of time on mapquest.com to include all of the driving times in your schedule. If you head back to New York City at one point then many of the southern zoos will not be included, but if you don't mind doing a "Snowleopard-style" road trip then many other notable facilities can be toured.
 
Thx Snowleopard,

I appreciate your input, and I will keep your suggestions in mind, The Zoos down south may be best left for another trip.
 
Not sure if your interested but how about Denver? With Toyota Elephant Passage opening the zoo will be a lot more interesting.
 
Hi Pacarana,

Thank-you for the suggestion a little to far out of my way.
 
Revised itinerary,


Detroit
Columbus
The Wilds
Cincinnati
Indianapolis
St Louis
Kansas City
Omaha
Witchita
Oklahoma
Fort Worth
Dallas


Replacing

Toronto
Toledo
Louisville
Nashville
Knoxville
North Carolina


Is this a wise decision are these additions better zoos, like l am lead to belive by other posters and the gallery?
 
All lists are purely subjective, but for what it is worth I know that you have read many of my zoo reviews over the years and I've visited 57 of America's 60 best zoos (according to the Nyhuis/Wassner book). Here is my ranking of all those zoos, including the year of the most recent visit in brackets. Each of these zoos has been reviewed on ZooChat by myself, and the 3 major zoos that I have not visited are Busch Gardens, Lowry Park (both of which I will see in a few months) and Honolulu Zoo.

I've kept the list the exact same as when I first announced it, but if I was to revise anything I would probably place Saint Louis in the #5 position (one spot higher) and Los Angeles much higher due to the numerous improvements in recent years. I plan to visit Denver and Utah again this summer, and both of those zoos are opening the largest projects in their history (Toyota Elephant Passage and Rocky Shores) and so those zoos will perhaps be vastly improved.

“America’s Best Zoos” list of 57 zoos:

1- San Diego Zoo (2011)
2- Bronx Zoo (2008)
3- Omaha’s Henry Doorly Zoo (2008)
4- Columbus Zoo (2008)
5- Sedgwick County Zoo (2010)
6- Saint Louis Zoo (2010)
7- North Carolina Zoo (2010)
8- Woodland Park Zoo (2012)
9- Zoo Miami (2008)
10- San Diego Zoo Safari Park (2011)
11- Minnesota Zoo (2008)
12- Dallas Zoo (2010)
13- Oklahoma City Zoo (2008)
14- Detroit Zoo (2008)
15- Brookfield Zoo (2008)
16- Audubon Zoo (2010)
17- Denver Zoo (2006)
18- Kansas City Zoo (2010)
19- National Zoo (2008)
20- Jacksonville Zoo (2008)
21- Oregon Zoo (2011)
22- Disney’s Animal Kingdom (2008)
23- Phoenix Zoo (2011)
24- Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum (2011)
25- Nashville Zoo (2010)
26- Memphis Zoo (2008)
27- Fort Worth Zoo (2008)
28- Caldwell Zoo (2010)
29- Zoo Atlanta (2008)
30- Cleveland Zoo (2010)
31- Cincinnati Zoo (2008)
32- Houston Zoo (2010)
33- Indianapolis Zoo (2008)
34- Toledo Zoo (2008)
35- Philadelphia Zoo (2010)
36- Point Defiance Zoo (2012)
37- Maryland Zoo (2010)
38- Montgomery Zoo (2010)
39- Fort Wayne Children’s Zoo (2010)
40- Gladys Porter Zoo (2010)
41- Cheyenne Mountain Zoo (2010)
42- Louisville Zoo (2010)
43- Oakland Zoo (2011)
44- Lincoln Park Zoo (2008)
45- Knoxville Zoo (2008)
46- Binder Park Zoo (2010)
47- Roger Williams Park Zoo (2010)
48- Rio Grande Zoo (2010)
49- Los Angeles Zoo (2008)
50- Pittsburgh Zoo (2008)
51- Tulsa Zoo (2010)
52- Utah’s Hogle Zoo (2010)
53- San Antonio Zoo (2010)
54- San Francisco Zoo (2006)
55- Riverbanks Zoo (2010)
56- Milwaukee County Zoo (2010)
57- Buffalo Zoo (2010)
 
Yhx Snowleopard. :]
 
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