Snowleopard's 2017 Road Trip
- Thread starter snowleopard
- Start date
And here is our esteemed thread starter in action (posted with his permission):
DAY 10: Monday, July 10th
I arrived at San Diego Zoo for the 2nd time on this trip and the 6th time ever. I first visited in 2006, then in 2008, then twice in 2011 and now twice in 2017 and so I’ve seen a number of changes as the zoo is a never-ending series of construction projects. When I spent two days at the zoo back in 2011, I typed up a 25-paragraph review that is on the Snowleopard’s 2011 Road Trip thread for those that are interested as at that point in time the zoo still used its old names and there was no “Urban Jungle” anywhere. Today I met yet another ZooChatter (I’m probably up to 20 now) named Betsy and she is a regular at the zoo and she knows a great number of employees, volunteers and animals at the facility. I also joined up with Fred (aka Arizona Docent) for the 5th and final time of this journey and for the first 1.5 hours I traveled around with both individuals and then I departed from Betsy at around 10:30 and from Fred at noon, as he had to head back to his home in Tucson, Arizona. In total I spent almost 7 hours at the zoo today, to go along with 6 hours yesterday, and after 13 hours I felt as if I’d “done” San Diego. I actually envy my British friend @sootymangabey as he just spent a considerable amount of time at the zoo with fresh eyes while I now regard San Diego as a long-lost friend whom I see every few years.
I’m going to type up a series of paragraphs addressing certain elements and sections of the zoo, but it will be unlike my proper 2011 review. Instead, here is a recap through the eyes of an experienced zoo traveler:
Africa Rocks – I have a gut feeling, with my fingers tightly crossed, that this $70 million development will be a resounding success and a fantastic set of exhibits. Two of the areas are open to the public, as the Kopje zone is basically identical (meerkats at entrance, Serval, the whole klipspringer/hyrax/mongoose habitat), etc. The African Penguin/Leopard Shark exhibit is going to be a 10 out of 10 from the average zoo visitor’s perspective as penguins are superstars and what little kid doesn’t love sharks? I know that my 4 young children would go bananas to see 20 penguins with 6-7 sharks (much larger than the birds) swimming around in a vast underwater viewing gallery. On my first day the sharks looked great but only one penguin went in the water while the pool was crystal clear. The next morning there were at least 8 or more penguins swimming amidst the sharks but the windows were badly fogged up due to condensation. There are a few things that could be tweaked (the fake kelp, some sightlines in the above-water viewing) but it is freakin’ penguins and sharks together so no reason to nitpick, right?
Having essentially seen 2 out of the 6 habitats in Africa Rocks I can only speculate on the rest. The spectacular waterfall is open for viewing and beautiful; I jumped into the air and managed to get a clear view of the West African Dwarf Crocodile habitat and it will be great and that is another zone mainly completed. That leaves 3 more and those ones are not close to being open but they take up an enormous amount of space and it is fairly easy to look at the zoo map (with faint outlines of the paths and animals) and the construction site and imagine what species is going where. The Hamadryas Baboon habitat will be next to the Kopje, while the Nubian Ibex/Gelada exhibit will encompass a substantial amount of space. The steep slopes and rugged terrain look to be ideal for world-class exhibits, plus there will be Ring-Tailed Lemurs (next to the dwarf crocs), Amur Leopards, Fossas, an aviary, Vervet Monkeys, Ratels, etc. One mild shock is that there is enormous netting over a vast area (a couple of acres) making it appear that several of the enclosures will all be covered with the same massive mesh netting.
Primates – This is a fabulous zoo for primate fans, which judging from the crowds is 75% of all zoo visitors. Above-average exhibits for Lowland Gorillas (a family troop and a bachelor troop), Bonbos (9 of them) and an orangutan/siamang combination are all hugely popular. The mazelike Lost Forest section, with loads of monkeys in two-level habitats, is for the most part rather brilliant. Wolf’s Monkeys (no longer called Wolf’s Guenons) in with Pygmy Hippos is one of my favourite exhibits; there are probably 14 Silvered Leaf Langurs in the big glass exhibit near the orangs and that area is a great place for crowds to congregate; at least 10 Angolan Colobus Monkeys bouncing around; a baby Mandrill; and the list could go on. San Diego does primates better than any other zoo in the nation and Hamadryas Baboons, Geladas and Vervet Monkeys will all be added this year in Africa Rocks.
Birds – I came out of my shell and truly enjoyed all sort of birds at this wonderful zoo. I think that Owens Aviary is my favourite as it is slightly larger than Scripps Aviary and from the highest vantage point in Owens there is a cascading waterfall that crashes down near a large tank with freshwater fish, and then the water trickles down many levels to the bottom of this enormous structure. Owens and Scripps are both world-class aviaries and packed with all sorts of delights. Parker Aviary is much smaller but incredibly lush and stunning in places; then there are 20+ smaller aviaries after one departs the Parker Aviary and some visitors might even have bird fatigue at that point. The Arctic Diving Bird/Marsh Aviary up near the Polar Bears is still fantastic; the California Condor aviary in Elephant Odyssey is great, as is the Secretary Bird aviary in the same part of the zoo. The two fairly new aviaries in Outback are much larger than I had anticipated and filled with 20+ species; the Bird of Prey aviaries near the Polar Bears are terrific (although currently closed for maintenance); the new African Penguin/Leopard Shark exhibit is a delight; the Hummingbird Aviary is not even signposted but taking a small looped path at the zoo leads one into a blissfully quiet little abode with a surprising number of species; and there is a huge aviary right across from the Fishing Cat exhibit that has at least 16 species (including Milky Stork and Siamese Fireback) and the darn thing is not even listed on the map! The IZN (International Zoo News) lists San Diego as having 330 species and 2,000 birds and I believe it as there are aviaries everywhere. You could probably take the next 4-5 American zoos COMBINED and still San Diego has the best bird set-up in terms of its collection and impressive aviaries.
Elephant Odyssey – This much-maligned 2009 development was in my “average” category back in 2011 and my thoughts have not changed in that regard and if anything the complex has grown on me. The condor aviary, reptile and amphibian exhibits, giant statues that kids congregate around, Secretary Bird aviary, Jaguar exhibit, valiant attempt to educate the public in a bold new exhibit complex…all very good. The horse/donkey/camel/Baird’s Tapir/Guanaco yards are all very disappointing, along with a poor African Lion exhibit. Overall it is a middling attempt at something different and I’ve been through it on 4 occasions in my lifetime. The elephants are great to see but their zone is nothing but a dust bowl.
Outback – Tasmanian Devils (which I frustratingly never saw), wombats, 20 or more koalas, two huge aviaries…all superb. I miss seeing the Matschie’s Tree Kangaroos and echidnas but this area is for the most part an improvement on the previous Aussie zone.
Northern Frontier – Polar Bears are wonderfully popular species; it is nice to see Arctic Foxes and Raccoons in the smaller enclosures (better than African Wild Cat and Caracal, which have been there in the past), the climate change graphics and animal statues are all great…with the only weak area the terrible Reindeer yard. What is up with the rockwork in that thing?
Reptiles & Amphibians – With approximately 200 species there is no shortage of truly excellent exhibits for cold-blooded animals. I’m not sure how many species are actually on show at any one time but San Diego is likely the best zoo in the country for reptiles and amphibians. The 1930’s-era Reptile House has 50 terrariums filled with venomous snakes, monitor lizards, pythons and a vast collection. Then there are the trio of fairly new Reptile Walk buildings which are all more than adequate; the Gharial pool with its beautiful crocodilians and 13 turtle species in a gorgeous habitat; the Galapagos Tortoise series of exhibits; a large Komodo Dragon habitat; Chinese Alligators; vast lizard “pits” for Cuban Iguanas, Anegada Ground Iguanas and Black-Throated Monitors; plus there is close to 20 species in Elephant Odyssey with the two streamside enclosures, the 12-foot high rattlesnake terrarium and the exhibits just after the walk-through tunnel in the middle of the complex. The Slender-Snouted Crocodile and West African Crocodile exhibits in Lost Forest are both amongst my favourites, plus there is a row of 8 spacious terrariums near the Slender-Snouted Crocodiles and somewhat hidden behind a wall.
What don’t I like about what is possibly the “best” zoo on the planet?
Children’s Zoo – I’ve never liked this hodgepodge of exhibits, even though the small Insect House (17 terrariums) was a nice addition a few years ago. There are some cool animals here (Ocelot, Fennec Fox, Southern Wombat, an enormous Fossa), but none of those enclosures are very good. The old otter/penguin pool is empty, the petting yard is dusty, there is nothing of a high quality and there have been rumours that the whole thing is going to be revamped. I’m hoping that is the case.
Urban Jungle – Greater One-Horned Rhinos and Masai Giraffe, but then a revolving cast of characters that is different every few years. How many places has the zoo had Red River Hogs? Perhaps as many as 5 or 6 different enclosures? The whole Urban Jungle and adjacent Bear Canyon zone (complete with 4 corn-crib exhibits…including two cages for never-seen Aye-Ayes) could be combined and bulldozed to create another vast series of exhibits in the vein of Africa Rocks. If San Diego gets around to upgrading the Children’s Zoo, Urban Jungle and the 8 or so grottoes in Bear Canyon then the zoo would be incredible right across the park.
I’ve gone on record in saying that I think that both Omaha’s Henry Doorly Zoo and Saint Louis Zoo have been slowly gaining on San Diego over the years but I think that those two zoos still have a way to go. San Diego is dominant over so many other zoos when it comes to horticulture and the lush, tropical grounds are breath-taking at times. Even apart from the breeding Giant Pandas and two-dozen Koalas, the vast collection of reptiles, amphibians, birds, 170+ mammal species, etc., all make the zoo a must-see for any zoo enthusiast. San Diego has a wonderful “feel” to it, as visitors tramp up and down hills and steep curves knowing that animal delights wait around every corner. Even the entrance is spacious and inviting, the free parking in the enormous lot is a welcome respite, the multiple eateries are better than average, the guidebooks are top-notch, and the two big gift shops near the exit are filled with more than just the usual souvenir clutter. The best zoo in the USA? Definitely!
I arrived at San Diego Zoo for the 2nd time on this trip and the 6th time ever. I first visited in 2006, then in 2008, then twice in 2011 and now twice in 2017 and so I’ve seen a number of changes as the zoo is a never-ending series of construction projects. When I spent two days at the zoo back in 2011, I typed up a 25-paragraph review that is on the Snowleopard’s 2011 Road Trip thread for those that are interested as at that point in time the zoo still used its old names and there was no “Urban Jungle” anywhere. Today I met yet another ZooChatter (I’m probably up to 20 now) named Betsy and she is a regular at the zoo and she knows a great number of employees, volunteers and animals at the facility. I also joined up with Fred (aka Arizona Docent) for the 5th and final time of this journey and for the first 1.5 hours I traveled around with both individuals and then I departed from Betsy at around 10:30 and from Fred at noon, as he had to head back to his home in Tucson, Arizona. In total I spent almost 7 hours at the zoo today, to go along with 6 hours yesterday, and after 13 hours I felt as if I’d “done” San Diego. I actually envy my British friend @sootymangabey as he just spent a considerable amount of time at the zoo with fresh eyes while I now regard San Diego as a long-lost friend whom I see every few years.
I’m going to type up a series of paragraphs addressing certain elements and sections of the zoo, but it will be unlike my proper 2011 review. Instead, here is a recap through the eyes of an experienced zoo traveler:
Africa Rocks – I have a gut feeling, with my fingers tightly crossed, that this $70 million development will be a resounding success and a fantastic set of exhibits. Two of the areas are open to the public, as the Kopje zone is basically identical (meerkats at entrance, Serval, the whole klipspringer/hyrax/mongoose habitat), etc. The African Penguin/Leopard Shark exhibit is going to be a 10 out of 10 from the average zoo visitor’s perspective as penguins are superstars and what little kid doesn’t love sharks? I know that my 4 young children would go bananas to see 20 penguins with 6-7 sharks (much larger than the birds) swimming around in a vast underwater viewing gallery. On my first day the sharks looked great but only one penguin went in the water while the pool was crystal clear. The next morning there were at least 8 or more penguins swimming amidst the sharks but the windows were badly fogged up due to condensation. There are a few things that could be tweaked (the fake kelp, some sightlines in the above-water viewing) but it is freakin’ penguins and sharks together so no reason to nitpick, right?
Having essentially seen 2 out of the 6 habitats in Africa Rocks I can only speculate on the rest. The spectacular waterfall is open for viewing and beautiful; I jumped into the air and managed to get a clear view of the West African Dwarf Crocodile habitat and it will be great and that is another zone mainly completed. That leaves 3 more and those ones are not close to being open but they take up an enormous amount of space and it is fairly easy to look at the zoo map (with faint outlines of the paths and animals) and the construction site and imagine what species is going where. The Hamadryas Baboon habitat will be next to the Kopje, while the Nubian Ibex/Gelada exhibit will encompass a substantial amount of space. The steep slopes and rugged terrain look to be ideal for world-class exhibits, plus there will be Ring-Tailed Lemurs (next to the dwarf crocs), Amur Leopards, Fossas, an aviary, Vervet Monkeys, Ratels, etc. One mild shock is that there is enormous netting over a vast area (a couple of acres) making it appear that several of the enclosures will all be covered with the same massive mesh netting.
Primates – This is a fabulous zoo for primate fans, which judging from the crowds is 75% of all zoo visitors. Above-average exhibits for Lowland Gorillas (a family troop and a bachelor troop), Bonbos (9 of them) and an orangutan/siamang combination are all hugely popular. The mazelike Lost Forest section, with loads of monkeys in two-level habitats, is for the most part rather brilliant. Wolf’s Monkeys (no longer called Wolf’s Guenons) in with Pygmy Hippos is one of my favourite exhibits; there are probably 14 Silvered Leaf Langurs in the big glass exhibit near the orangs and that area is a great place for crowds to congregate; at least 10 Angolan Colobus Monkeys bouncing around; a baby Mandrill; and the list could go on. San Diego does primates better than any other zoo in the nation and Hamadryas Baboons, Geladas and Vervet Monkeys will all be added this year in Africa Rocks.
Birds – I came out of my shell and truly enjoyed all sort of birds at this wonderful zoo. I think that Owens Aviary is my favourite as it is slightly larger than Scripps Aviary and from the highest vantage point in Owens there is a cascading waterfall that crashes down near a large tank with freshwater fish, and then the water trickles down many levels to the bottom of this enormous structure. Owens and Scripps are both world-class aviaries and packed with all sorts of delights. Parker Aviary is much smaller but incredibly lush and stunning in places; then there are 20+ smaller aviaries after one departs the Parker Aviary and some visitors might even have bird fatigue at that point. The Arctic Diving Bird/Marsh Aviary up near the Polar Bears is still fantastic; the California Condor aviary in Elephant Odyssey is great, as is the Secretary Bird aviary in the same part of the zoo. The two fairly new aviaries in Outback are much larger than I had anticipated and filled with 20+ species; the Bird of Prey aviaries near the Polar Bears are terrific (although currently closed for maintenance); the new African Penguin/Leopard Shark exhibit is a delight; the Hummingbird Aviary is not even signposted but taking a small looped path at the zoo leads one into a blissfully quiet little abode with a surprising number of species; and there is a huge aviary right across from the Fishing Cat exhibit that has at least 16 species (including Milky Stork and Siamese Fireback) and the darn thing is not even listed on the map! The IZN (International Zoo News) lists San Diego as having 330 species and 2,000 birds and I believe it as there are aviaries everywhere. You could probably take the next 4-5 American zoos COMBINED and still San Diego has the best bird set-up in terms of its collection and impressive aviaries.
Elephant Odyssey – This much-maligned 2009 development was in my “average” category back in 2011 and my thoughts have not changed in that regard and if anything the complex has grown on me. The condor aviary, reptile and amphibian exhibits, giant statues that kids congregate around, Secretary Bird aviary, Jaguar exhibit, valiant attempt to educate the public in a bold new exhibit complex…all very good. The horse/donkey/camel/Baird’s Tapir/Guanaco yards are all very disappointing, along with a poor African Lion exhibit. Overall it is a middling attempt at something different and I’ve been through it on 4 occasions in my lifetime. The elephants are great to see but their zone is nothing but a dust bowl.
Outback – Tasmanian Devils (which I frustratingly never saw), wombats, 20 or more koalas, two huge aviaries…all superb. I miss seeing the Matschie’s Tree Kangaroos and echidnas but this area is for the most part an improvement on the previous Aussie zone.
Northern Frontier – Polar Bears are wonderfully popular species; it is nice to see Arctic Foxes and Raccoons in the smaller enclosures (better than African Wild Cat and Caracal, which have been there in the past), the climate change graphics and animal statues are all great…with the only weak area the terrible Reindeer yard. What is up with the rockwork in that thing?
Reptiles & Amphibians – With approximately 200 species there is no shortage of truly excellent exhibits for cold-blooded animals. I’m not sure how many species are actually on show at any one time but San Diego is likely the best zoo in the country for reptiles and amphibians. The 1930’s-era Reptile House has 50 terrariums filled with venomous snakes, monitor lizards, pythons and a vast collection. Then there are the trio of fairly new Reptile Walk buildings which are all more than adequate; the Gharial pool with its beautiful crocodilians and 13 turtle species in a gorgeous habitat; the Galapagos Tortoise series of exhibits; a large Komodo Dragon habitat; Chinese Alligators; vast lizard “pits” for Cuban Iguanas, Anegada Ground Iguanas and Black-Throated Monitors; plus there is close to 20 species in Elephant Odyssey with the two streamside enclosures, the 12-foot high rattlesnake terrarium and the exhibits just after the walk-through tunnel in the middle of the complex. The Slender-Snouted Crocodile and West African Crocodile exhibits in Lost Forest are both amongst my favourites, plus there is a row of 8 spacious terrariums near the Slender-Snouted Crocodiles and somewhat hidden behind a wall.
What don’t I like about what is possibly the “best” zoo on the planet?
Children’s Zoo – I’ve never liked this hodgepodge of exhibits, even though the small Insect House (17 terrariums) was a nice addition a few years ago. There are some cool animals here (Ocelot, Fennec Fox, Southern Wombat, an enormous Fossa), but none of those enclosures are very good. The old otter/penguin pool is empty, the petting yard is dusty, there is nothing of a high quality and there have been rumours that the whole thing is going to be revamped. I’m hoping that is the case.
Urban Jungle – Greater One-Horned Rhinos and Masai Giraffe, but then a revolving cast of characters that is different every few years. How many places has the zoo had Red River Hogs? Perhaps as many as 5 or 6 different enclosures? The whole Urban Jungle and adjacent Bear Canyon zone (complete with 4 corn-crib exhibits…including two cages for never-seen Aye-Ayes) could be combined and bulldozed to create another vast series of exhibits in the vein of Africa Rocks. If San Diego gets around to upgrading the Children’s Zoo, Urban Jungle and the 8 or so grottoes in Bear Canyon then the zoo would be incredible right across the park.
I’ve gone on record in saying that I think that both Omaha’s Henry Doorly Zoo and Saint Louis Zoo have been slowly gaining on San Diego over the years but I think that those two zoos still have a way to go. San Diego is dominant over so many other zoos when it comes to horticulture and the lush, tropical grounds are breath-taking at times. Even apart from the breeding Giant Pandas and two-dozen Koalas, the vast collection of reptiles, amphibians, birds, 170+ mammal species, etc., all make the zoo a must-see for any zoo enthusiast. San Diego has a wonderful “feel” to it, as visitors tramp up and down hills and steep curves knowing that animal delights wait around every corner. Even the entrance is spacious and inviting, the free parking in the enormous lot is a welcome respite, the multiple eateries are better than average, the guidebooks are top-notch, and the two big gift shops near the exit are filled with more than just the usual souvenir clutter. The best zoo in the USA? Definitely!
What my esteemed colleague failed to mention is that as the three of us started the morning at SDZ down the Tiger Trail, the tiger in the main exhibit was incredibly active. Cloud cover created beautiful light, the plants were lush, and the cat moved continuously throughout the entire exhibit looking for treats and smelling things. I was enthralled (how often are tigers this active) and was blissfully snapping away with my camera, when after a couple minutes snowleopard and betsy shocked me by saying they were moving on. I mean seriously, what is the matter with you two? 
Hello, it's an active tiger in good light. I mean really, I think both of you need professional help! 
Needless to say, we parted ways here temporarily, though I caught up with them as they were leaving the penguin area.
Hello, it's an active tiger in good light. I mean really, I think both of you need professional help! Needless to say, we parted ways here temporarily, though I caught up with them as they were leaving the penguin area.
The_UltimateBea
Well-Known Member
Alas, I overslept and missed what will likely be my only opportunity to view a snowleopard in its natural habitat
Upon arrival at 10:30 I frantically ran through the western half, checking my phone for any sightings of the rare animal.
After a couple hours prowling the forest depths and coastal sea, I received a message. A confirmed sighting made by non other than a native of my own city! I raced to meet what must be a famed animal-spotter but when I finally caught up, the elusive creature had separated from the pack.
This zoologist informed me of the snow leopard's behavior. "It will circle a host of potential prey victims, before pouncing on the reptiles", she said. I promptly travelled to the area of the Park with the highest concentration of the said preferred prey type.
When I arrived, I realized my chances of spotting this majestic cat were slim at best. A host of other predators inhabited the reptilian feeding grounds, and finding the white feline would be akin to finding a needle in a haystack. My quest a failure, I headed to base camp.
P.S. Not a complete failure. The zoologist (betsy) was a pleasure to meet.
Upon arrival at 10:30 I frantically ran through the western half, checking my phone for any sightings of the rare animal.
After a couple hours prowling the forest depths and coastal sea, I received a message. A confirmed sighting made by non other than a native of my own city! I raced to meet what must be a famed animal-spotter but when I finally caught up, the elusive creature had separated from the pack.
This zoologist informed me of the snow leopard's behavior. "It will circle a host of potential prey victims, before pouncing on the reptiles", she said. I promptly travelled to the area of the Park with the highest concentration of the said preferred prey type.
When I arrived, I realized my chances of spotting this majestic cat were slim at best. A host of other predators inhabited the reptilian feeding grounds, and finding the white feline would be akin to finding a needle in a haystack. My quest a failure, I headed to base camp.
P.S. Not a complete failure. The zoologist (betsy) was a pleasure to meet.
sooty mangabey
Well-Known Member
There's not much with which I would disagree here (although I would place the Owen aviary ahead of the Scripps due to its even more interesting set of species).
Did you see the fossa, slender-snouted crocodile, Arctic fox and raccoon? None were visible during my multiple visits to their enclosures during my three-day-visit last week.
I would agree that the children's zoo area is a bit of a mess, but it does have a pleasingly old-fashioned retro feel to it, down to its having a nursery with big windows into which, presumably, one could one day have looked to see hand-reared chimpanzees and leopards. I heard a Bloke Who Seemed To Know What He Was Talking About ( a dangerous species, never to be trusted, of course) saying that the whole area from just past the hummingbird aviary down through the children's zoo was due to be demolished, starting at the end of this year. We shall see!
I agree, too, with your comments about the zoo's primates, which are wonderful, and wonderfully displayed - I think you damn the ape enclosures with faint praise in calling them "above average": they're great! The only thing that surprised me was the poverty of the zoo's collection of callitrichids and lemurs. I know that the latter will improve with the opening of Africa Rocks, but nonetheless, compared to a European zoo, neither group is seen in any great numbers here.
Most of all, I'd agree with your comment that it simply has a good feel to it. it does! It might even be worth sleeping in your car to see it (although I still think I would want to forego other things, and pay for a bed for the night!). My only regret is that I missed meeting you, by about 36 hours. Next time!
zoogiraffe
Well-Known Member
I throughly enjoyed my visit with Arizona Docent (Fred) and Snowleopard (Scott). I tried to entice them to visit the Parker Aviary with the news that there were Toucan chicks and Cock-of-the-Rock chicks. But no, it was straight down Tiger Trail to the fishing cats and tigers. I first met Fred a couple of years ago. That time the first thing he wanted to see were the serval cubs. I understand that people have their own way they want to experience the zoo. So, since I can come anytime I want, I followed Scott's lead. I was pleased to see the zoo through his eyes. He analyses each exhibit with regard for how the average zoo goer would perceive it, how the animal would appreciate it, and if kids would enjoy it. While I never take the San Diego Zoo for granted, It was a pleasure to hear his educated critiques. When Fred caught up with us at the penguins, he enthusiastically described to us the photo that he captured of the tiger, which I can't wait to see. It made me genuinely happy to be chastised by him for not staying to take photos of the tigers because it shows how passionate he is for the cats. I then learned of Scott's collection of zoo maps, which I was aware of but not to the degree he described to me. I will fulfill my promise to send you the new, updated zoo map when it comes out. Scott and Fred then planned to walk up Center Street and around the perimeter of the zoo. I knew my knee would not be happy with that hike. Besides, I had been at the zoo for an hour and a half and had not visited the bonobos (my passion) yet! I checked my e-mail while riding the moving sideway up and saw that The_UltimateBea was at the zoo. We finally caught up with each other at the flamingos as I was leaving. I had a very brief time to spend with him as I had to pack for a trip. I am sure we will run into each other at the zoo sometime soon. While observing the animals at the zoo is always my first priority, I do enjoy meeting all the diverse people who come to the zoo. We may have nothing in common but our love of animals but sometimes that is enough.
@zoogiraffe She really is a zoo keeper? Then I'm afraid I did miss it.
zoogiraffe
Well-Known Member
I think it might have been zoogiraffe who missed the joke
If I have so be it I will not loss any sleep over it!
@Ned A friend of mine saying "she's a keeper" in reference to my wife does not mean that she is a zookeeper but it is simply a phrase meaning she is worth keeping or worth hanging onto. I have the greatest wife (Debbie) in the world! She is at home with 4 young kids, spending her days cleaning up after them and taking care of them all, while I'm away on a California zoo trip. One terrific fact is that we are both public school teachers, meaning that we have summers off. If you want to marry a zookeeper Ned, then be prepared for her to work long hours all summer, every single weekend, and only have two weeks off per year. My wife and I get 2 weeks off every Christmas, 2 weeks off every March, and then 9 weeks off every summer and we are paid much more than zookeepers. If someone wishes to work in a zoo with captive animals then they have an awesome job but they certainly aren't doing it for the money or the holidays!
@betsy Thanks very much for the kind write-up and it was indeed a pleasure to meet you. If anyone needs to know anything about the San Diego Zoo (especially the Bonobos!) then Betsy is the lady to talk to.
@sooty mangabey I saw a ball of fur that was the Arctic Fox (on two occasions), saw a Raccoon wandering around its exhibit, saw an enormous Fossa in the Children's Zoo, but did NOT see the Slender-Snouted Crocodile on any of my strolls past that excellent habitat that was crammed with colourful fish. Incidentally, did you realize that the Pygmy Hippo exhibit right next door also has Wolf's Monkeys inside? Also, those monkeys can be seen via the back of the habitat as well? Just mentioning that, as visitors in the past have not realized that fact when seeing the rear side of the enclosure. I really like the combo of Pygmy Hippo and Slender-Snouted Crocodile underwater viewing areas...quite splendid! There is even a row of 8 terrariums behind the wall in that area.
@betsy Thanks very much for the kind write-up and it was indeed a pleasure to meet you. If anyone needs to know anything about the San Diego Zoo (especially the Bonobos!) then Betsy is the lady to talk to.
@sooty mangabey I saw a ball of fur that was the Arctic Fox (on two occasions), saw a Raccoon wandering around its exhibit, saw an enormous Fossa in the Children's Zoo, but did NOT see the Slender-Snouted Crocodile on any of my strolls past that excellent habitat that was crammed with colourful fish. Incidentally, did you realize that the Pygmy Hippo exhibit right next door also has Wolf's Monkeys inside? Also, those monkeys can be seen via the back of the habitat as well? Just mentioning that, as visitors in the past have not realized that fact when seeing the rear side of the enclosure. I really like the combo of Pygmy Hippo and Slender-Snouted Crocodile underwater viewing areas...quite splendid! There is even a row of 8 terrariums behind the wall in that area.
The_UltimateBea
Well-Known Member
And here is our esteemed thread starter in action (posted with his permission):
Fun fact: The elusive snow leopard has never been photographed head-on.
I should have taken a picture of you to show The_Ultimate Bea. I felt bad that he didn't get to meet up with you.
I'm the one on the left with Fred (Arizona Docent) on the right - just last week!:
African Adventure - Two ZooChatters! | ZooChat
I'm also the one on the left here (with my wife and a Cheetah in Dec. 2008):
Myself, My Wife + A Cheetah | ZooChat
Harapan the Sumatran Rhino is in this one with me here in Dec. 2008:
Myself and Harapan the Sumatran Rhino | ZooChat
African Adventure - Two ZooChatters! | ZooChat
I'm also the one on the left here (with my wife and a Cheetah in Dec. 2008):
Myself, My Wife + A Cheetah | ZooChat
Harapan the Sumatran Rhino is in this one with me here in Dec. 2008:
Myself and Harapan the Sumatran Rhino | ZooChat
DAY 11: Tuesday, July 11th
Today was a crazy day as I arrived at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park at around 8:45 and afterwards I did not leave my final stop of 3 small aquariums until 8:00 at night. Not necessarily a ton of driving but nevertheless a lot of hassle, as you’ll find out later in my trip report. Whew!
Zoo/Aquarium #25: San Diego Zoo Safari Park
After 13 hours spread over two days at San Diego Zoo, it was time to drive 40 minutes north and experience the San Diego Zoo Safari Park for the 3rd time. I visited in 2006 and 2011 and thus I was excited to be back to see the large Tiger Trail complex that cost a whopping $20 million. This facility does not open new exhibits at anywhere near the rate of the zoo, but nevertheless there is an Australian Walkabout zone that makes its debut next year and still thousands of animals in large habitats. There is no need for an extensive “best, average, worst” review as I have done in the past but instead a few bits n’ bobs in terms of my overall experience.
There is no doubt that I felt much more at home at San Diego Zoo over 2 days and even though at the Safari Park I was the first visitor through the gate at 9:00 a.m., I went in with the Ring-Tailed Lemurs, spent a leisurely hour strolling down through African Woods and African Outpost, took the 25-minute Africa Tram tour, saw Lion Camp, Tiger Trail, Elephant Valley, Condor Ridge, the two big aviaries (Hidden Jungle and Wings of the World), spent time watching the gorillas, ate a delicious lunch overlooking Mombasa Lagoon and its two Shoebill Storks…even with seeing everything in the whole park I was done and dusted after 5 hours. While I feel strongly that San Diego Zoo is the best zoo in the nation, I have often placed the San Diego Zoo Safari Park in around the #10 position. However, I’m not sure that I wouldn’t actually put it a few notches lower, as zoos like Dallas and Houston are ones that I possibly might prefer to walk around in comparison to the Safari Park. The park is in many ways brilliant but it is a different kind of experience when looked at next to a major urban zoo. Having seen everything in 5 hours is something that would never happen at the much superior San Diego Zoo.
There are many positives: the enormous herd of around 20 Giant Eland that share a hillside paddock with Sudan Red-Fronted Gazelles; the stunning Gerenuk herd of around 10 individuals in a grassy yard; the 3 species of flamingo (Greater, Lesser, Chilean) in large, beautiful flocks; Lion Camp is arguably the best lion exhibit in the country; and Tiger Trail is fantastic and right up there with the best tiger exhibits, although not quite on the level of a Minnesota or a Bronx habitat. I was quite impressed with the Lowland Gorilla exhibit with its 9-10 apes, as the enclosure appeared to be much better than I remembered it. The Cheetah exhibit is lush and long, there are the usual rarities around Nairobi Station (Black-Footed Cat, Fennec Fox, Sugar Glider, Lesser Hedgehog Tenrec, Sitatunga) and the food eateries are terrific. There is the new Watering Hole restaurant overlooking the East African Savanna and its vast herds, the Mombasa Lagoon/shoebill stork restaurant with all wooden chairs and tables; and even another eating area that looks out on a group of 6-7 “Mountain Coatis”. I really liked the fairly new (2011) Rodrigues Fruit Bat exhibit that sees visitors enter a medium-sized room and the 15 or so bats are separated from the public by only thin piano wire. All of the smells and squeaks come through and the animals can get very close to people.
For negatives I would include: Africa Tram is not really my style of viewing animals but when you have a hundred or more acres to get around it is the sensible solution. Crammed onto hard plastic seats with three total strangers was a bit awkward, although seeing the vast herds of 15+ Cape Buffalo, 20+ wildebeest, 12+ Gemsbok, 15+ giraffes (of two species), a Southern White Rhino and an Eastern Black Rhino together, 25+ Scimitar-Horned Oryx, and the list could go on. A wonderful tour in many ways but something that I was happy to do only once. Hidden Jungle is a greenhouse aviary that has seen better days and the dozen terrariums that used to house invertebrates are all bordered up and noticeable by their absence. Also, the much-advertised walk-through Ring-Tailed Lemur exhibit has only 4 lemurs and only TWO are on exhibit at any given time. Apparently it has been that way for almost a year now and to me it is a waste and I’d much rather see the Red-Cheeked Gibbons brachiating as they did for a decade or more. Elephant Valley in 2011 had 17 elephants on display and I could almost have forgiven the prehistoric rocks of this 1970’s exhibit. Today I only saw 5 elephants and the adjacent yards were both total dry, barren, dust bowls, a far cry from what zoos like Fresno, Omaha, Sedgwick County, Oklahoma, Dallas and North Carolina have done with their pachyderms. There definitely needs to be a pathway that connects the tigers to the elephants ASAP and a sign is up stating that will happen in the future…plus the elephant viewing area is still disappointing.
There is no doubt that the San Diego Zoo Safari Park is one of America’s greatest zoos and in fact several zoo enthusiasts rank it right up there with the best worldwide. Several of the exhibits (Lion Camp, Tiger Trail, Condor Ridge, almost all the walk-around African bits) are amazing and I would still regard this zoo as a classic. The breeding success is second to none and while there I saw several young giraffes, including one that was only 4 days old. It seemed that all of the ungulate herds had newborns and there is a never-ending glut of youngsters being born at this time of the year.
Zoo/Aquarium #26: Sea Life Carlsbad
After I finished with the Safari Park I drove towards the coast to the city of Carlsbad, which is home to an ultra-popular theme park called Legoland that attracts something like 1.5 million visitors each year. My kids are big into LEGO and they would probably love this expensive park, which consists of the Legoland theme park, Legoland waterpark and adjacent to the entrance gates is a Sea Life Aquarium. There is even a LEGO Hotel that looks like gigantic LEGO pieces and there is another hotel being built that will be a LEGO Castle Hotel with 250 rooms and it opens in spring of 2018. The Sea Life Aquarium cost me $18 for parking and $22 for admission and so for $40 I think that I spent 40 minutes inside the establishment. There is the usual big shark tank with large LEGO characters inside, a San Francisco Harbour exhibit, the standard Stingray Tank that all Sea Life facilities have, and many gleaming and glossy tanks in all directions. After visiting so many tiny, rather home-made aquariums I must admit that I appreciated the superb cleanliness, attention to detail and somewhat overwrought theming of this aquarium. I have now toured 4 Sea Life Aquariums (California, Arizona, Texas, Minnesota) and I think that there are another 4 in the USA now (Missouri, Michigan, North Carolina, Florida) with a New Jersey facility to open next year. Species highlights include: Zebra Shark, Grey Reef Shark, Whitetip Reef Shark, Blacktip Reef Shark, Brownbanded Bamboo Shark, Epaulette Shark, Queensland Grouper, Panther Grouper, Panda Puffer, Blue-Spotted Jawfish, Zebra Moray Eel, Dragon Moray Eel, White-Mouth Moray Eel, Red Hairy Lobster, Blood Shrimp and European Common Cuttlefish.
Zoo/Aquarium #27: Santa Monica Pier Aquarium
There is a crazy story associated with this particular visit, as I had planned to visit both Santa Monica and Roundhouse (see next review) the following day but due to me still having time on my hands I decided to bump up two small aquariums that are both open late hours in the summer. After ticking another Sea Life off of my lifetime list, I headed north and battled the usual disgusting Los Angeles traffic in order to bypass the City of Angels and head to tourist-ridden Santa Monica. Since I was driving a family minivan with 7 seats (although 5 of them are folded down to accommodate my sleeping quarters) I had no qualms about being pulled over by police and I hit the HOV (High Occupany Vehicle) lane and accelerated northwards. I was not ready to crawl at walking speed through the ridiculous Los Angeles traffic, which everyone knows is enough to cause people to flee from the city in droves, and so at least the HOV lane (designed for motorcycles and vehicles with at least two passengers inside) allowed me to make progress as I knew that the aquarium closed at 6:00 p.m.
Battling L.A. traffic, blaring the Rolling Stones “Exile on Main Street” album, eating a few crunchy tacos from Taco Bell, and sweating like a Chihuahua in a Mexican desert, I cranked up the air-conditioning and drove through 106-degree haze. After a lengthy struggle to locate parking, my GPS (which up to now has been flawless) guided me to the aquarium and I managed to park down a back alley and shell out $15 to a Rastafarian who reeked of marijuana but nonetheless was the “manager” for this particular parking lot. The wad of cash that he had in his hand would have been enough to pay for this entire trip and he slapped me on the back and said “Yah man, da fishes is thatta way” with an accent so thick I nodded and pretended that is what he said. Since I am such a meticulous planner, tweaking my road trip itinerary over the course of two years, it annoyed me to find out that I was directly in Venice Beach and thus a long distance from Santa Monica Beach. After consulting with several passersby, I decided to walk the distance instead of battling the rat-race that is the local streets. I looked it up later and from Venice Beach to Santa Monica Pier is 1.4 miles (2.22 km) and in the afternoon heat that seemed like a marathon to me.
I sensed that after all of this trouble I wouldn’t make it into the aquarium before it closed for the day as the hours are only from 2:00-6:00 and so I began to run…then I walked…then I gasped for breath…then I began to run again. I passed what seemed like a thousand people all smoking pot, several women wearing nothing but g-strings (not even bikini tops), a volleyball match that didn’t involve much in the way of clothing, buskers, tattoo artists, loads of people selling artwork or just plain crap by the side of the walkway, hundreds of skateboarders and cyclists. Venice Beach is like Las Vegas on steroids and I ran along as sweat dripped from every orifice. It was 105 degrees and I was running past half-naked beauties in order to make it into a crappy little aquarium. What has this zoo enthusiast insanity drove me to become? A man who is so obsessed that he bypasses the little things in life, like a woman levitating near a telephone pole? There was honestly a middle-aged woman dressed up like a gypsy and holding a 10-foot stick to the ground as she levitated with her feet directly spread out ahead of her. People were underneath her body and I’m guessing that she had some kind of semi-invisible string attached to the telephone pole but it was a truly startling sight. How the heck does she do it? Maybe it is pure magic.
I ran like The Running Man in Stephen King’s creepy novella, like Tom Hanks in Forrest Gump, like the Grim Reaper was chasing me down as by the time I approached the historic and wonderful Santa Monica Pier I had my calf muscles screaming in agony, my shirt was stuck to my back, my heart was pounding like the first time I laid eyes on my future wife (ka-ching!) and I flopped onto the pier like a gasping fish that has minutes to live. I staggered down to the end of the pier as that was naturally where I imagined the aquarium would be, past innumerable fairground rides, homeless people that actually stank worse than me, and eventually at the end it dawned on me that there was no aquarium there. Yikes! I began to panic, asking people at random where the aquarium was but many were tourists and they didn’t know about any damn aquarium and why didn’t I leave them alone? I asked some workers operating the rides and I was told that there was indeed a very small public aquarium at the beginning of the pier, not at the end. I dashed to the start of the pier, up on the beach, and still there was no aquarium anywhere. Then a kind man, who must have taken pity on my ghastly expression, guide me down a set of obscurely-placed stairs and told me that the aquarium is actually underneath the pier. It is the Bermuda Triangle of aquariums! Taking the stairs two-at-a-time, probably weighing two pounds less than I did an hour ago, I surged into the Santa Monica Pier Aquarium and slapped my $5 down at exactly 5:48. Thank goodness I ran my body into the grave as I would never have made it otherwise.
So what do I think about the aquarium? The whole thing is two small rooms and so the 12 minutes that I had before the establishment closed was probably about 2 minutes longer than I needed. There are only 16 tanks, including some the size of gold-fish bowls, and the most impressive part of the facility are the gorgeous, old-fashioned murals that adorn the cement walls outside. I think it is those murals that convince tourists to part with $5 as once inside there isn’t much to see. Amongst the denizens of the deep are found the now-common assortment of Horn Sharks, Swell Sharks, Leopard Sharks and California Moray Eels, plus California Scorpionfish, California Spiny Lobster, Pacific Seahorse, Thornback Ray, Red Octopus, Southern Kelp Crab and Red Swamp Crawfish.
Zoo/Aquarium #28: Roundhouse Marine Studies Lab & Aquarium
After my gut-inducing troubles visiting the Santa Monica facility, I spent almost an hour walking back along the trail next to the sand and marveling at the gorgeous beaches and jam-packed, happy atmosphere as dusk began to rear its head. The Santa Monica/Venice Beach area is absolutely a must-see and I’m glad that I was able to slowly walk back (more of a stagger) to my minivan. By now it was almost 7:00 and I knew that Roundhouse Marine Studies Lab & Aquarium closed at 8:00 and so I drove down the coast for about 30 minutes, parked for free many blocks away, and had the glorious glow of the sun dimming on the packed beaches and long, popular pier. Rather than the rampant commercialism of Santa Monica/Venice Beach, here was quiet interlude and loads of surfers braving the waves even as the light of the day began to ebb away. At the very end of the long pier is a single structure, an aquarium located in a historic pavilion building that has seen better days.
This rundown, fairly poor aquarium is perhaps most famous for being the backdrop to a film that I saw at least 5 times back in the early 1990’s. Falling Down stars Michael Douglas and Robert Duvall, directed by hit-and-miss filmmaker Joel Schumacher, and the climax and final ten minutes of the movie were filmed on the pier and a few feet from the Roundhouse Aquarium. As a major film buff, watching 250+ movies each year, I appreciated visiting just for the location. Inside are 21 tanks, with at least 4 of them devoid of life, and the usual local critters are here along with a real messy, haphazard, disaster of a layout. There are signs posted outside stating that a permit has been placed for a renovation of the Roundhouse and it could be a beautiful little facility with a couple of million dollars in refurbishment.
It is astonishing at how many small aquariums along the California coastline (Morro Bay, Central Coast, Santa Monica, Roundhouse, Ocean Institute and Doheny at Dana Point, etc.) are all tiny little places with an average of only 15-20 tanks. Yet they are all in great locations, with a steady stream of tourist traffic in the summer months and due to the nice weather there is probably still enough visitors to keep things going in the winter months. If one includes the marine mammal centers and SeaWorld parks the USA has close to 150 aquariums and yet there is continued public demand and something like 70 new aquariums have made their debut just since 1990. The species list at Roundhouse includes: Horn Shark, Swell Shark, Leopard Shark, California Moray Eel, Sarcastic Fringhead, Sheephead and a preserved Humboldt Squid.
Today was a crazy day as I arrived at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park at around 8:45 and afterwards I did not leave my final stop of 3 small aquariums until 8:00 at night. Not necessarily a ton of driving but nevertheless a lot of hassle, as you’ll find out later in my trip report. Whew!
Zoo/Aquarium #25: San Diego Zoo Safari Park
After 13 hours spread over two days at San Diego Zoo, it was time to drive 40 minutes north and experience the San Diego Zoo Safari Park for the 3rd time. I visited in 2006 and 2011 and thus I was excited to be back to see the large Tiger Trail complex that cost a whopping $20 million. This facility does not open new exhibits at anywhere near the rate of the zoo, but nevertheless there is an Australian Walkabout zone that makes its debut next year and still thousands of animals in large habitats. There is no need for an extensive “best, average, worst” review as I have done in the past but instead a few bits n’ bobs in terms of my overall experience.
There is no doubt that I felt much more at home at San Diego Zoo over 2 days and even though at the Safari Park I was the first visitor through the gate at 9:00 a.m., I went in with the Ring-Tailed Lemurs, spent a leisurely hour strolling down through African Woods and African Outpost, took the 25-minute Africa Tram tour, saw Lion Camp, Tiger Trail, Elephant Valley, Condor Ridge, the two big aviaries (Hidden Jungle and Wings of the World), spent time watching the gorillas, ate a delicious lunch overlooking Mombasa Lagoon and its two Shoebill Storks…even with seeing everything in the whole park I was done and dusted after 5 hours. While I feel strongly that San Diego Zoo is the best zoo in the nation, I have often placed the San Diego Zoo Safari Park in around the #10 position. However, I’m not sure that I wouldn’t actually put it a few notches lower, as zoos like Dallas and Houston are ones that I possibly might prefer to walk around in comparison to the Safari Park. The park is in many ways brilliant but it is a different kind of experience when looked at next to a major urban zoo. Having seen everything in 5 hours is something that would never happen at the much superior San Diego Zoo.
There are many positives: the enormous herd of around 20 Giant Eland that share a hillside paddock with Sudan Red-Fronted Gazelles; the stunning Gerenuk herd of around 10 individuals in a grassy yard; the 3 species of flamingo (Greater, Lesser, Chilean) in large, beautiful flocks; Lion Camp is arguably the best lion exhibit in the country; and Tiger Trail is fantastic and right up there with the best tiger exhibits, although not quite on the level of a Minnesota or a Bronx habitat. I was quite impressed with the Lowland Gorilla exhibit with its 9-10 apes, as the enclosure appeared to be much better than I remembered it. The Cheetah exhibit is lush and long, there are the usual rarities around Nairobi Station (Black-Footed Cat, Fennec Fox, Sugar Glider, Lesser Hedgehog Tenrec, Sitatunga) and the food eateries are terrific. There is the new Watering Hole restaurant overlooking the East African Savanna and its vast herds, the Mombasa Lagoon/shoebill stork restaurant with all wooden chairs and tables; and even another eating area that looks out on a group of 6-7 “Mountain Coatis”. I really liked the fairly new (2011) Rodrigues Fruit Bat exhibit that sees visitors enter a medium-sized room and the 15 or so bats are separated from the public by only thin piano wire. All of the smells and squeaks come through and the animals can get very close to people.
For negatives I would include: Africa Tram is not really my style of viewing animals but when you have a hundred or more acres to get around it is the sensible solution. Crammed onto hard plastic seats with three total strangers was a bit awkward, although seeing the vast herds of 15+ Cape Buffalo, 20+ wildebeest, 12+ Gemsbok, 15+ giraffes (of two species), a Southern White Rhino and an Eastern Black Rhino together, 25+ Scimitar-Horned Oryx, and the list could go on. A wonderful tour in many ways but something that I was happy to do only once. Hidden Jungle is a greenhouse aviary that has seen better days and the dozen terrariums that used to house invertebrates are all bordered up and noticeable by their absence. Also, the much-advertised walk-through Ring-Tailed Lemur exhibit has only 4 lemurs and only TWO are on exhibit at any given time. Apparently it has been that way for almost a year now and to me it is a waste and I’d much rather see the Red-Cheeked Gibbons brachiating as they did for a decade or more. Elephant Valley in 2011 had 17 elephants on display and I could almost have forgiven the prehistoric rocks of this 1970’s exhibit. Today I only saw 5 elephants and the adjacent yards were both total dry, barren, dust bowls, a far cry from what zoos like Fresno, Omaha, Sedgwick County, Oklahoma, Dallas and North Carolina have done with their pachyderms. There definitely needs to be a pathway that connects the tigers to the elephants ASAP and a sign is up stating that will happen in the future…plus the elephant viewing area is still disappointing.
There is no doubt that the San Diego Zoo Safari Park is one of America’s greatest zoos and in fact several zoo enthusiasts rank it right up there with the best worldwide. Several of the exhibits (Lion Camp, Tiger Trail, Condor Ridge, almost all the walk-around African bits) are amazing and I would still regard this zoo as a classic. The breeding success is second to none and while there I saw several young giraffes, including one that was only 4 days old. It seemed that all of the ungulate herds had newborns and there is a never-ending glut of youngsters being born at this time of the year.
Zoo/Aquarium #26: Sea Life Carlsbad
After I finished with the Safari Park I drove towards the coast to the city of Carlsbad, which is home to an ultra-popular theme park called Legoland that attracts something like 1.5 million visitors each year. My kids are big into LEGO and they would probably love this expensive park, which consists of the Legoland theme park, Legoland waterpark and adjacent to the entrance gates is a Sea Life Aquarium. There is even a LEGO Hotel that looks like gigantic LEGO pieces and there is another hotel being built that will be a LEGO Castle Hotel with 250 rooms and it opens in spring of 2018. The Sea Life Aquarium cost me $18 for parking and $22 for admission and so for $40 I think that I spent 40 minutes inside the establishment. There is the usual big shark tank with large LEGO characters inside, a San Francisco Harbour exhibit, the standard Stingray Tank that all Sea Life facilities have, and many gleaming and glossy tanks in all directions. After visiting so many tiny, rather home-made aquariums I must admit that I appreciated the superb cleanliness, attention to detail and somewhat overwrought theming of this aquarium. I have now toured 4 Sea Life Aquariums (California, Arizona, Texas, Minnesota) and I think that there are another 4 in the USA now (Missouri, Michigan, North Carolina, Florida) with a New Jersey facility to open next year. Species highlights include: Zebra Shark, Grey Reef Shark, Whitetip Reef Shark, Blacktip Reef Shark, Brownbanded Bamboo Shark, Epaulette Shark, Queensland Grouper, Panther Grouper, Panda Puffer, Blue-Spotted Jawfish, Zebra Moray Eel, Dragon Moray Eel, White-Mouth Moray Eel, Red Hairy Lobster, Blood Shrimp and European Common Cuttlefish.
Zoo/Aquarium #27: Santa Monica Pier Aquarium
There is a crazy story associated with this particular visit, as I had planned to visit both Santa Monica and Roundhouse (see next review) the following day but due to me still having time on my hands I decided to bump up two small aquariums that are both open late hours in the summer. After ticking another Sea Life off of my lifetime list, I headed north and battled the usual disgusting Los Angeles traffic in order to bypass the City of Angels and head to tourist-ridden Santa Monica. Since I was driving a family minivan with 7 seats (although 5 of them are folded down to accommodate my sleeping quarters) I had no qualms about being pulled over by police and I hit the HOV (High Occupany Vehicle) lane and accelerated northwards. I was not ready to crawl at walking speed through the ridiculous Los Angeles traffic, which everyone knows is enough to cause people to flee from the city in droves, and so at least the HOV lane (designed for motorcycles and vehicles with at least two passengers inside) allowed me to make progress as I knew that the aquarium closed at 6:00 p.m.
Battling L.A. traffic, blaring the Rolling Stones “Exile on Main Street” album, eating a few crunchy tacos from Taco Bell, and sweating like a Chihuahua in a Mexican desert, I cranked up the air-conditioning and drove through 106-degree haze. After a lengthy struggle to locate parking, my GPS (which up to now has been flawless) guided me to the aquarium and I managed to park down a back alley and shell out $15 to a Rastafarian who reeked of marijuana but nonetheless was the “manager” for this particular parking lot. The wad of cash that he had in his hand would have been enough to pay for this entire trip and he slapped me on the back and said “Yah man, da fishes is thatta way” with an accent so thick I nodded and pretended that is what he said. Since I am such a meticulous planner, tweaking my road trip itinerary over the course of two years, it annoyed me to find out that I was directly in Venice Beach and thus a long distance from Santa Monica Beach. After consulting with several passersby, I decided to walk the distance instead of battling the rat-race that is the local streets. I looked it up later and from Venice Beach to Santa Monica Pier is 1.4 miles (2.22 km) and in the afternoon heat that seemed like a marathon to me.
I sensed that after all of this trouble I wouldn’t make it into the aquarium before it closed for the day as the hours are only from 2:00-6:00 and so I began to run…then I walked…then I gasped for breath…then I began to run again. I passed what seemed like a thousand people all smoking pot, several women wearing nothing but g-strings (not even bikini tops), a volleyball match that didn’t involve much in the way of clothing, buskers, tattoo artists, loads of people selling artwork or just plain crap by the side of the walkway, hundreds of skateboarders and cyclists. Venice Beach is like Las Vegas on steroids and I ran along as sweat dripped from every orifice. It was 105 degrees and I was running past half-naked beauties in order to make it into a crappy little aquarium. What has this zoo enthusiast insanity drove me to become? A man who is so obsessed that he bypasses the little things in life, like a woman levitating near a telephone pole? There was honestly a middle-aged woman dressed up like a gypsy and holding a 10-foot stick to the ground as she levitated with her feet directly spread out ahead of her. People were underneath her body and I’m guessing that she had some kind of semi-invisible string attached to the telephone pole but it was a truly startling sight. How the heck does she do it? Maybe it is pure magic.
I ran like The Running Man in Stephen King’s creepy novella, like Tom Hanks in Forrest Gump, like the Grim Reaper was chasing me down as by the time I approached the historic and wonderful Santa Monica Pier I had my calf muscles screaming in agony, my shirt was stuck to my back, my heart was pounding like the first time I laid eyes on my future wife (ka-ching!) and I flopped onto the pier like a gasping fish that has minutes to live. I staggered down to the end of the pier as that was naturally where I imagined the aquarium would be, past innumerable fairground rides, homeless people that actually stank worse than me, and eventually at the end it dawned on me that there was no aquarium there. Yikes! I began to panic, asking people at random where the aquarium was but many were tourists and they didn’t know about any damn aquarium and why didn’t I leave them alone? I asked some workers operating the rides and I was told that there was indeed a very small public aquarium at the beginning of the pier, not at the end. I dashed to the start of the pier, up on the beach, and still there was no aquarium anywhere. Then a kind man, who must have taken pity on my ghastly expression, guide me down a set of obscurely-placed stairs and told me that the aquarium is actually underneath the pier. It is the Bermuda Triangle of aquariums! Taking the stairs two-at-a-time, probably weighing two pounds less than I did an hour ago, I surged into the Santa Monica Pier Aquarium and slapped my $5 down at exactly 5:48. Thank goodness I ran my body into the grave as I would never have made it otherwise.
So what do I think about the aquarium? The whole thing is two small rooms and so the 12 minutes that I had before the establishment closed was probably about 2 minutes longer than I needed. There are only 16 tanks, including some the size of gold-fish bowls, and the most impressive part of the facility are the gorgeous, old-fashioned murals that adorn the cement walls outside. I think it is those murals that convince tourists to part with $5 as once inside there isn’t much to see. Amongst the denizens of the deep are found the now-common assortment of Horn Sharks, Swell Sharks, Leopard Sharks and California Moray Eels, plus California Scorpionfish, California Spiny Lobster, Pacific Seahorse, Thornback Ray, Red Octopus, Southern Kelp Crab and Red Swamp Crawfish.
Zoo/Aquarium #28: Roundhouse Marine Studies Lab & Aquarium
After my gut-inducing troubles visiting the Santa Monica facility, I spent almost an hour walking back along the trail next to the sand and marveling at the gorgeous beaches and jam-packed, happy atmosphere as dusk began to rear its head. The Santa Monica/Venice Beach area is absolutely a must-see and I’m glad that I was able to slowly walk back (more of a stagger) to my minivan. By now it was almost 7:00 and I knew that Roundhouse Marine Studies Lab & Aquarium closed at 8:00 and so I drove down the coast for about 30 minutes, parked for free many blocks away, and had the glorious glow of the sun dimming on the packed beaches and long, popular pier. Rather than the rampant commercialism of Santa Monica/Venice Beach, here was quiet interlude and loads of surfers braving the waves even as the light of the day began to ebb away. At the very end of the long pier is a single structure, an aquarium located in a historic pavilion building that has seen better days.
This rundown, fairly poor aquarium is perhaps most famous for being the backdrop to a film that I saw at least 5 times back in the early 1990’s. Falling Down stars Michael Douglas and Robert Duvall, directed by hit-and-miss filmmaker Joel Schumacher, and the climax and final ten minutes of the movie were filmed on the pier and a few feet from the Roundhouse Aquarium. As a major film buff, watching 250+ movies each year, I appreciated visiting just for the location. Inside are 21 tanks, with at least 4 of them devoid of life, and the usual local critters are here along with a real messy, haphazard, disaster of a layout. There are signs posted outside stating that a permit has been placed for a renovation of the Roundhouse and it could be a beautiful little facility with a couple of million dollars in refurbishment.
It is astonishing at how many small aquariums along the California coastline (Morro Bay, Central Coast, Santa Monica, Roundhouse, Ocean Institute and Doheny at Dana Point, etc.) are all tiny little places with an average of only 15-20 tanks. Yet they are all in great locations, with a steady stream of tourist traffic in the summer months and due to the nice weather there is probably still enough visitors to keep things going in the winter months. If one includes the marine mammal centers and SeaWorld parks the USA has close to 150 aquariums and yet there is continued public demand and something like 70 new aquariums have made their debut just since 1990. The species list at Roundhouse includes: Horn Shark, Swell Shark, Leopard Shark, California Moray Eel, Sarcastic Fringhead, Sheephead and a preserved Humboldt Squid.
Are you stating this from animal variety or exhibit quality? I have been there once and I love it. However they are most definitely first when it comes to animal variety but when it comes to exhibit quality, most are above average with some average exhibits, and a few that I would say are fantastic. I'm not going to get into the zoo with the most spectacular exhibits as that is normally a controversial topic.
Really enjoying the thread so far!
Happy to hear you enjoyed most of the new developments in Fresno and the two San Diego facilities, as I was looking forward to reading what you thought of them. Wow, you weren't kidding - Day 11 certainly did sound like it was quite a hassle; fun read though!
Excited to read about the rest of your journeys - keep it up!
Happy to hear you enjoyed most of the new developments in Fresno and the two San Diego facilities, as I was looking forward to reading what you thought of them. Wow, you weren't kidding - Day 11 certainly did sound like it was quite a hassle; fun read though!
Excited to read about the rest of your journeys - keep it up!
ANyhuis
Well-Known Member
SnowLeopard and I have discussed this at length, and we've agreed that rating zoos should be a combination of a number of factors, including exhibit quality, animal collection, extras (shows, rides, children's zoo, etc.), size, history, and even attendance. When you put all of these factors together, he is right -- San Diego is BY FAR the best zoo in the USA. I personally have visited zoos all over the world and the only zoo I've seen that even comes close to San Diego is Singapore.
Hilarious review of Venice Beach experience (though driving in the carpool lane by yourself is not cool - not cool at all). If anyone visits the area, there is a beautiful nature photography gallery in the city of Venice Beach (but away from the crazy beachfront scene): The G2 Gallery | Nature & Wildlife Photography in Venice, CA