Snowleopard's Epic Road Trip

Memphis Zoo Review - 4 hours (Zoo/Aquarium #18 on the epic road trip)

The Memphis Zoo was a little disapointing, as only 4 hours is a much shorter time than many of the larger zoos that I've seen on this road trip. Seeing the new Northwest Passage set of habitats, as well as a pair of giant pandas, was worthwhile, but the zoo's potential for the future outweighs the present.

There were a handful of large billboards advertising upcoming exhibits, and the next couple of years appear to be potent for the zoo. In the spring of 2009 "Teton Trek" opens, with a massive Yellowstone Lodge (I have a photo of the finished frame), grizzly bears, timber wolves, trumpeter swans and a herd of elk. Then in the spring of 2010 "Zambezi River Hippo Camp" opens, with underwater viewing of hippos and nile crocodiles, as well as flamingo and okapi. I'd like to revisit this zoo in a few years to see just how good the new habitats are, as they are certainly promoting them in at least 4 different sections of the zoo.

The Best:

Northwest Passage - opened in 2006, and it shows because everything is still so shiny. The totem poles are gorgeously painted, the gift shop has that fresh smell, the glass windows in the underwater viewing pavilion are crystal clear of algae, and this section of the zoo seems to have only opened to the public yesterday. The highlight of the entire zoo visit was seeing the 3 massive polar bears interacting with each other in their large pool. Two of the bears literally swam around and around a bunch of rocks, biting and playfully squabbling and seeming to be having a blast. The third bear would sometimes dive into the water and pretend to attack the other two, but they were only fake attacks and no actual biting occured. The sea lions across the hall in the beautiful building were also a delight to watch, and these two enclosures were very well done. Of course after Detroit everything else is downhill in terms of polar bear exhibits, but Memphis has staked a claim to the #2 slot. There were the usual rocky cliffs and deep pool, but also a set of substrate in the form of dirt and some type of gravel around one section of the enclosures. Black bears and bald eagles complete this area of the zoo. The "Teton Trek" set of habitats is being built practically right next to the "Northwest Passage", and so clearly this eastern edge of the zoo has been revitalized.

CHINA - the walk-through temple is amazing, the short film is informative, the beautiful Chinese symbols and designs are immersive and quite wonderful to see, and the gibbons, asian small-clawed otters, pere davids deer, pheasants, francois' langur and other bird aviaries are all pleasant and impressive. However, no matter how great it was to see the pair of giant pandas, their particular exhibit was the weakest section of the CHINA experience. The National Zoo in Washington D.C. has an amazing Asian section, with 3 massive panda enclosures with rocks, hills, valleys, a stream, a pool, misters, long grass, etc....and Memphis has a basic habitat that is tiny and offers nothing that anyone's not seen before. The lead-up to the pandas is outstanding from a visitor perspective, the surrounding animal exhibits are all excellent, and the pandas have been shafted. It was so blazing hot that they were each in their separate indoor room, which allowed for some terrific photos and close-up views but doesn't offer the giant pandas much in the way of space. Mixed review of this set of habitats.

Cat Country - after seeing Cincinnati's terrible small cat house and cat canyons, Toledo's awful snow leopard cages, Pittsburgh's tiny leopard mesh pits, and Omaha's brutally barren big cat complex....Memphis had a surprise in store for me. Nothing spectacular by any means, but every one of their extensive collection of cats had an outdoor exhibit with grass, shade, poles for climbing and cool pools for relaxing from the heat. After never once seeing a tiger use its pool, for the second time in a week I viewed a swimming tiger! Great collection of cats in a decent set of naturalistic habitats.

The Average:

Basically the rest of the zoo!

Elephant and rhino - average, sterile, dusty, small paddocks. However, the two african elephants on display did have a massive pool.

Primate Canyon - orangutans, bonobos (nearby), gorillas and a number of monkeys and gibbons in a large section of the zoo. All of the exhibits are average to good, but nothing outstanding. The bonobos in particular could have used more space.

Animals of the Night - after Omaha every single nocturnal house is now going to appear tiny and obsolete, but Memphis has one of the better ones in existence. Nicely detailed exhibits, and my only major beef is the combination of some of the species. A New Guinea cuscus in the same habitat as a South American coatimundi? An Australian wombat in the same exhibit as a pair of mongoose lemurs? Does the zoo just throw in whatever animal they feel like?

Reptile House - average at best. A small paddock for aldabra tortoises and another set of exhibits for komodo dragons are also average habitats.

Tropical Bird House - average, and full of mainly tiny species of bird.

African Savannah - bongo (with two youngsters), Grant's gazelle, african crowned cranes and ostrich share a large enclosure. Nearby are separate paddocks for bontebok, scimitar-horned oryx, giraffe, etc. Nothing too special here.

The Worst:

Hippo Pool - abominable disgrace, but in less than 2 years they will have a glorious new enclosure. The current one consists of a tiny pool that doesn't look like it allows the two hippos to completely submerge, and is barely big enough for them to take a handful of paces. The entire exhibit is concrete and was probably there when the zoo opened 102 years ago. This pool gives the San Francisco Zoo a run for its money in terms of an award for worst North American hippo enclosure.

Aquarium - tiny, outdated and due for a visit from the friendly neighbourhood bulldozer. It was built in 1949, and so for its 50th anniversary next year I propose that someone sneak in there and blow it up!

Round Barn - gerenuk, red river hogs, warthogs, african crowned cranes, and a couple of species of antelope reside in this curiously inadequate section of the zoo. The setup is bizarre, with long paddocks surrounding a brick building that was literally built in 1923.

Overall:

I was expecting more from Memphis in both length of stay (only 4 hours) and quality of exhibits. The old aquarium, round barn and hippo pool are awful, but the 2003 CHINA and 2006 Northwest Passage habitats are the best that the zoo has to offer. Is that showing bias against older enclosures? Nope, that's the obvious truth to anyone that visits the zoo. The 1993 big cat section still holds up well, and the felines have a better set of exhibits here than at most other zoos. The nocturnal house is well done, and the primate collection is impressive although the exhibits could have had many more climbing opportunities. Hopefully the 2009 and 2010 mega-budget habitats improve the zoo considerably, as the zoo can't keep enticing visitors with the promise of giant pandas. Unless that pair breed or artificial insemination works, then who knows if the pandas will stay for longer than the 10 year loan?
 
I find quite a few of your reviews quite funny.Me and my mom had quite a laugh at the Kovler Lion House,The Pittsburgh Bear Jails,"Tropical Forests" (ya right!!) and basically every other one.She especially liked the lines like "there where two mandrills idly passed out in a rocky corner","The serval appeared deceased","the two american black bears looked as if they'd rather be dead then spend the rest of the lives in jail" and "For the 50th anniverasy i propose someone should sneak in and blow it up!".I bet there were many others and im betting there are more to come.Oh,and i forgot one of the favourites,"It shoul be re-named Guantamano Bay!".My mom and i went to the Pittsburgh Zoo in 2006 and throught that the bear "hell chambers" and Tropical Forests" which is more like Rocky Mountain Wild to me should be extensively reno-ed!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
 
HI Snowleopard, loving your reviews and opinions.

Just a tip in Atlanta you can buy a pass for the zoo, aquarium and cnn. It is allot cheaper than individual entry.
 
Knoxville Zoo Review - 3.5 hours (Zoo/Aquarium #19 on the epic road trip)

The Knoxville Zoo, in the State of Tennessee, is yet another stop on this road trip that wasn't originally on the itinerary. Toledo, the National Aquarium in Washington D.C., Indianapolis, Omaha and Knoxville are the 5 additions for those of you following from home. But the National Aquarium in Baltimore and the Louisville Zoo have been the 2 institutions that were dropped from the list.

The reasons for spending a few hours at the Knoxville Zoo are these: free admission because of the reciprocity agreement with Oregon Zoo members, the fact that we spent the night about 30 minutes from this free zoo, and thirdly...my wife adores red pandas!! I happened to slyly mention to her that this particular zoo is #1 in the western hemisphere (and #2 all-time after a zoo in the Netherlands) in breeding red pandas. In the past 31 years there have been an astounding 93 babies born in Knoxville!! Those are staggering figures, and since my wife collects all types of red panda merchandise (over 20 stuffed animals and figurines now) we visited the zoo and she picked up a few more knicknacks and we saw 5 red pandas.

The Best:

Black Bear Falls - this exhibit is outstanding. On first glance it appears to be an enclosure for either chimpanzees, mandrills, lemurs or some other type of primate. There are huge (fake) trees in all directions, complete with 2-3 pools of water, 4 crashing waterfalls, a log tunnel that actually allows the visitor to walk deep into the exhibit, a tiny cave that contains cool bear samples such as teeth and claws, and loads of informative signs. The 4 black bears were all sleeping the first time that we checked out the habitat, but the second time one was sleeping in the tunnel that leads into the exhibit while the other 3 were highly active. They were utilizing the climbing logs and trees to reach impressive heights, and overall it is the most unique and probably best black bear exhibit in North America. If I had posted an unlabelled photo here at ZooBeat everyone would have assumed that primates resided there. This habitat is just a few feet from the entrance, and so is a fantastic start to the zoo.

Red Panda Village - this animal is on signs everywhere, with lots of merchandise in the gift shop and with 10 or 11 pandas the zoo really promotes this rare species. There was an individual in a huge red panda costume walking around the entrance of the zoo, and there were 5 week old babies that unfortunately were not on exhibit. A keeper told us that there are always 5 red pandas on exhibit, with the other 5-6 off exhibit. She didn't work with the pandas directly and said that it's difficult to keep track of how many there are with an average of 3 born every single year for more than 30 years. The youngsters and elderly pandas are the ones kept behind the scenes, but this zoo has done well with tiny yet naturalistic exhibits. The 2007 renovation of this section of the zoo allows visitors to actually go inside a red panda habitat, and the only separation is a 4 foot fence as the pandas are maybe 8 feet away. They also are allowed full access to the back of the habitat, or to their indoor quarters, and so it's not like they are forced to be in close proximity to humans at all times.

Chimp Ridge - tiny, old-style indoor quarters are juxtaposed by a huge outdoor field. There could be more climbing opportunities, but the sheer size, long grass, and large boulders allow the 8-9 chimpanzees loads of space. We saw a 14-day old baby named George, and even with the tiniest image of him we could tell that he'll be a cutie when he grows up. That little ape was probably much more attractive than the majority of the zoo visitors!

Cheetah Savannah - a full acre allows these sleek cats to hide from zoo visitors, but we did see a pair towards the back of the expansive habitat. Impressive exhibit.

Children's zoo - one of the better kids zoos, with a very dark nocturnal house (skunk, bats and raccoons) and several yards with farm animals.

The Average:

Elephant Paddock - one of the better elephant exhibits, and it was curious to see 3 keepers in with the 2 female pachyderms. Quite a few zoos on this trip still allow their elephant keepers direct contact with their animals, which I find quite interesting considering that it is one of the most dangerous professions known to humankind. The huge bull elephant was in the second, much larger paddock, and yet kept touching both females with his trunk as they walked along their fence.

Zebra - average yet spacious paddock.

Grasslands - giraffe, waterbuck, Thomson's Gazelle and kudu in a typical paddock.

White Tiger - Kali is the name of this gorgeous carnivore, and she had a disguised and yet average exhibit.

Gorilla Valley - we only saw one ape here, and it was a massive silverback inside the antiquated quarters. The large field looked quite spacious, but it was also hotwired to death.

White Rhinos - large paddock for at least 3 rhinos. This species has produced something like 30 young in 30 years at the zoo.

Meerkat - typical exhibit for these popular animals.

African Wild Dogs, ostrich, red river hogs, river otters, red wolves and central american birds all had basic, typical habitats.

The Worst:

Bobcat - pacing cat in a wire cage. Lovely cage for sparrows, but crappy for sparrow-eating felines.

White-handed gibbons - wire cage is too narrow, too short, too ugly.

Snow leopards, tigers and lions - old-style cages that are going to be renovated in the next two years. Perhaps they should be bulldozed instead.

Blue Monkeys - another tiny cage, with one monkey acting normally but the other was like a madman as he went back and forth, back and forth...just sad. Blue monkeys are actually rare to see in North American zoos, and I find them to be one of the most attractive primates. Once again, there are people walking around the zoo who aren't half as good looking as these little monkeys.

Reptiles - great collection of over 400 reptiles (90 species) exhibited with poor viewing opportunities. The Chinese alligator habitat was wonderful, and the aldabra tortoise paddocks (with one old tortoise and one born in 2006) were adequate. But all of the snakes had two levels of scratched glass/plastic to look through, and some of the turtle enclosures outside were awkward to peer over. In 2011 a brand-new, two-level reptile and amphibian building should brighten up this section of the zoo.

Overall:

The Knoxville Zoo only has 800 animals, and only has about 400,000 people visit each year. Nevertheless, for a small zoo there are a handful of super exhibits. The chimpanzees have a huge outdoor yard that is offset by concrete indoor quarters, the cheetahs have a full acre to utilize, there are many red pandas in two outdoor and one indoor exhibit, and the four black bears have a terrific enclosure with tons of climbing opportunities. I can always see the positives in the tiniest of zoos.

It doesn't take long to see the zoo, and my wife and I twice visited the black bears, twice visited the red pandas (both exhibits are right near the main zoo entrance) and also had lunch and spent more time than normal in the gift shop. After all of that we still were only 3.5 hours in total at this modest little zoo. It's interesting that for such a fairly moderate sized collection there are many well-known species: gorillas, chimpanzees, elephants, giraffe, zebra, rhinos, lions, tigers, cheetahs, black bears, ostrich, camels, otters and others.

The next couple of stops are ones that I am highly anticipating: Zoo Atlanta (giant pandas, orangutans, gorillas) and Georgia Aquarium (largest aquarium on the planet?). Having visited Monterey Bay in 2006 and Shedd last month, it will be intriguing to see if Georgia is the best out of North America's big three aquariums.
 
Nice review, good touch about telling your Wife about the Red Pandas LOL, But I think she is a Saint, You are a lucky Man.
 
I'm now on the outskirts of downtown Atlanta, in a motel just off of the main pathway through the city. Tonight is a rest night, as we need to recover from seeing 7 zoos in 8 days, and 19 zoos and aquariums on this trip. But we have also seen quite a few other sights as well (especially in Toronto, New York and Washington DC) so it's not been 100% captive animals....

We shall buy a CityPass, which is slightly cheaper for the 4 main attractions that we plan to see. Tomorrow (Sunday) is a DO NOTHING DAY. We plan on having breakfast at the motel, lounging around reading or watching a DVD, having an afternoon nap, lounging around some more, going out for an inexpensive meal, and then bed-time later in the night. It will be good to do nothing besides drive hundreds of miles and see common animals such as red river hogs, meerkats, poison dart frogs and ring-tailed lemurs every single day.

Monday and Tuesday will be sightseeing days, and late Tuesday we will drive west to who knows where. The Georgia Aquarium has billboards in downtown Atlanta, and every sign announces the fact that it is "the largest aquarium in the world". It's hard to believe that there are construction plans underway to add a $110 million dolphin pool and dolphin amphitheater to an already immense attraction. A one-hour tour around the CNN building, a visit to the World of Coca-Cola (and samples of 70 different flavours) and naturally Zoo Atlanta are the other 3 attractions on the agenda. The zoo is small but has giant pandas, over 20 gorillas, and North America's highest number of orangutans. Should be great!!!
 
Just some odds n' sods for now:

I visited the Georgia Aquarium today and was blown away by the immense size of the 4 whale sharks. Hugely impressive exhibit, and overall the aquarium is quite good. However, the habitats for the beluga whales, sea otters, sea lions, asian small-clawed otters and penguins (all the larger and more well known animals) were much smaller than I had expected from the world's largest aquarium. Also, of the 8 million liters that are advertised everywhere, 6.3 million are utilized in the whale shark tank and so the rest of the aquarium is sort of in the shadow of that huge ocean of water. More to follow in a comprehensive review later....my short statement is that it is not as good as Shedd Aquarium in Chicago, and perhaps a shade better than Monterey Bay and thus the #2 aquarium on the continent. Those are surely the "big three" in North America.

The reason that I'll delay the review a few hours (or even a day) is because I've been getting some requests for more Bronx Zoo photos, particularly of the brand new "Madagascar!" building. The building is old, but the inmates are not! I posted about 150 shots from the Brookfield Zoo, and another 120 from the Bronx Zoo...but also have around 25 strictly from "Madagascar!" and will get them onto ZooBeat.

Book Fans:

I'm shocked as to how few attractions have either history books or guide books for sale in their numerous gift shops. "America's Best Zoos" has been at many places I've visited, including 5 consecutive zoos. Columbus, Cincinnati, Indianapolis, Memphis and Knoxville all had many copies for display...but where are the zoos own history books? So far on this trip I've purchased a $15 hardcover Shedd Aquarium book, a $35 hardcover Toledo Zoo book, and now a $35 hardcover Georgia Aquarium history book. Those are the only 3 that I've seen at a grand total of exactly 20 zoos and aquariums.

The Georgia Aquarium book is called "Bringing the Ocean to Atlanta", and is a terrific purchase for anyone intrigued by design and construction photos. Included are over 30 pages that show many designs, drawings and sketches of tanks, exhibits and habitats that were eventually abandoned. It's interesting to see "what might have been" in downtown Atlanta, and equally intriguing to see all of the construction photos as the aquarium took its current form. A must buy for anyone who enjoys aquarium design, and there are whole chapters on each of the 5 main galleries of the Georgia Aquarium.

Other Attractions:

The World of Coca-Cola (brand new and only just opened at the new location in 2007) is right next to the aquarium, and either a CityPass or combo ticket can be purchased for both buildings. If any of you go to Atlanta, don't miss out on this fantastic and innovative site. The Coca-Cola display has 3 different theatres showing 3-D and 4-D movies (short films that are all free with admission), as well as hundreds and hundreds of memorabilia around many rooms. There is a tasting room where visitors can stay as long as they like and sample as many of the 70 different flavours that they choose. The entire visit was about 2.5 hours, and my wife and I could really have even stayed longer if we hadn't had to walk over to the CNN building for an hour-long tour. That was also an interesting and diverting attraction that for once didn't contain any animals!!
 
Georgia Aquarium Review - 4 hours (Zoo/Aquarium #20 on the road trip)

The Georgia Aquarium is fresh and new, and having been open for less than 3 years allows for everything inside to glisten and gleam with sparkle and shine. There were absolutely huge graphics and signs, and to see every single tank well-lit and labelled was a joy. It's nice to see exhibits that aren't outdated or mouldy, and it's especially enjoyable to find an institution so cleverly and clearly laid out for newcomers. The center of the immensely large building is its heart and soul. There are 5 main galleries, plus the obligatory huge gift shop, food court and upstairs theatre. Everything is connected to the center. A visitor enters one exhibit gallery from the center, and then exits back to the exact same point. The same goes for everything contained within the walls of the aquarium, as there are clearly labelled entrances that lead in an arc that all come back to the center. It is easily the most clearly labelled and well organized zoo or aquarium that I've ever been to. The central hub will be the lead-off point for the $110 million dolphinarium, which is opening in 2010 according to a massive poster in the center of the building. To be honest, after perusing the map for the establishment I deemed it unnecessary due to the brilliant layout. At many other aquariums (and especially zoos) I find myself ducking and weaving or even back-tracking to see exhibits. Nothing like that here. In and out of one section, in and out of the next section, and then once that is repeated a few more times it's going home to post a review!

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I believe that Chicago's Shedd Aquarium is the #1 of its kind in North America. Apart from the sea otter and sea lion exhibits Shedd is as close to flawless as an aquarium can possibly get. Georgia has some wonderful moments, and the whale shark tank is better than anything that any other aquarium perhaps in the world can offer, but the exhibits for several marine mammals lack imagination and innovation. Monterey Bay is a delightful aquarium that is equally excellent, but lacking such animals as whale sharks, dolphins, seals, sea lions or beluga whales (while somewhat honourable) also doesn't quite give it the edge that Shedd and Georgia employ. All 3 institutions are marvellous, and I'm only ranking them in order to provide information to those that might one day visit them.

I will refrain from my usual "Best, Average, Worst" system of breaking down a particular attraction, because the majority of the Georgia Aquarium exhibits are excellent, and there are only a few exceptions. For the largest aquarium on the planet, it was interesting to see that there were a lack of tanks and habitats in some galleries. So much of the aquarium's water supply (6.3 million liters) is tied up in the enormous whale shark tank that little seems to be left for the rest (1.7 million liters).

5 Galleries:

Ocean Voyager: easily the best in terms of quality and quantity of animals at just about any aquarium in existence. A long tunnel is a fantastic place to be when 4 whale sharks cruise overhead, and it is an awe-inspiring sight to see such magnificent creatures. They are surely worth the price of admission, and whatever else anyone thinks of the aquarium I doubt that any single person can dissuade me from extolling the virtues of this huge tank.

The whale sharks are joined by giant guitarish, great hammerhead sharks (only 1-2), wobbegong sharks, tarpons, porkfish, largetooth sawfish (hugely impressive), golden trevallys by the hundreds, potato groupers, giant groupers, and at least 10 more stingrays, skates and other fish. The overhead tunnel is amazing, the side views are revealing in the diversity of life in the tank, and the theatre setup with a 27 foot high and 63 foot wide set of windows knocked my socks off. This is a glorious tank of fish!!!!

River Scout: I also adored this much smaller gallery. It is devoted to all sorts of river life found around the globe, covering many bodies of water and different continents. The Asian small-clawed otters (4-5) could have used a larger exhibit, but the rest of it is beautiful. There are at least 5 different tanks of local catfish and other Georgia swimmers ABOVE THE HEAD of visitors, and so for the first few exhibits my wife and I were constantly looking up to see the logs and trees disguise massive tanks teeming with life. Very cool and innovative, and it reminded me of Shedd Aquarium and its awesome Amazon Rising section. There were electric eels, hundreds of red piranha, electric catfish, arapaima, angel fish, longnose gar and other species of gar, zebra mbuna, shovelnose sturgeon, marbled catfish, bluegill sunfish and others. (I get most of these names from the guide book that they had for sale for $2).

Tropical Diver: the one huge highlight of this section was the 165,000 gallon (625,000 litres) tank of coral reef, which is the largest of its kind in North America. Along this gallery there were clown anemones, flame wrasses, rocky beauty angelfish, yellow tang, seahorses, palette tangs, sea nettles, moon jellies and other jellyfish, pygmy sweepers, splendid garden eels, yellowhead jawfish and others. Most of the tanks were of average quality, but the Pacific Barrier Reef tank (which partly curved over the head of visitors) was very nicely situated and drew quite a crowd.

Georgia Explorer: mainly a children's section, with a huge shrimping boat and an even larger playground for kids to climb on. Touch tanks with bonnethead sharks, cownose rays, horseshoe crabs and brown shrimp were spread throughout this section, and it was loud and packed with tiny, screaming munchkins. There was a small loggerhead turtle in one tank, some atlantic spadefish, robust redhorse suckers, sea stars and other fish in a tiny number of additional tanks. The kids would get more out of this section than hardcore aquarium enthusiasts.

Coldwater Quest: this section was one that we were looking forward to the most (after the whale sharks of course!), but it was a bit of a letdown. The African penguins, sea otters, california sea lions and beluga whales all had exhibits that were too small. The sea otters had a shocking number of toys floating around their tank, and even a Hasbro toy house that one of the otters was resting in. Visitors kept saying "sooo cute", but does the public really need to see sea otters with Hasbro toys? The three belugas were a little starved for space, and the viewing windows weren't large enough for the huge crowd that was there...and the same goes for the penguins and sea lions. There were also various tanks with japanese spider crabs, garibaldi fish, a giant pacific octopus, weedy sea dragons, and a few other species scattered around this exhibit gallery. This set of habitats has been done better at many other aquariums.

Overall:

Crowds were a problem at this insanely popular attraction. In the history book that I purchased it states that in the first 12 months there were 3.6 million visitors!!! That's a crazy amount of money to be collected, because if someone doesn't purchase any kind of combo deal then it's $31.50 per adult and another $10 for parking. When people are only staying 3-4 hours then that is a ton of cash to be shelling out for a little amount of time. Thankfully the majority of visitors were sensible and bought a CityPass ($69 and good for 6 Atlanta attractions) or a combo ticket with the neighbouring World of Coca-Cola. I have written a brief review of that excellent facility in the previous post, and so won't carry on about its spendours here.

We arrived at the aquarium at bang on 9 a.m., and by the time we left at around 1 p.m. it was jammed to the rafters. Even by 10 a.m. it began to get busy, and so even going at opening time on a Monday morning doesn't avoid the impressive crowds. The combination of Coca-Cola and whale sharks has proven to be a massive hit, and the Olympic Centennial Park is a nice walk which leads to the CNN building. Then there a huge stadium and a football dome...and everything that I've mentioned here is within 10 minutes of each other. Downtown Atlanta is a happening place!

The Georgia Aquarium is well worth a visit, especially if one is to combine it with other local attractions. The Zoo Atlanta tomorrow is included in our package deal (CityPass) and so we will have saved a lot of money due to that set of combo tickets. Shedd Aquarium still is the cream of the crop for me, and Monterey Bay in 2006 was a delight (and we might revisit it again this month) but Monterey seems to lack the big-name, big-boned animals.
 
Great review, I've always been wanting to visit the Georgia Aquarium ever since it opened. I'll probably visit when the dolphin tank opens.
 
@snowleopard: Thanks for the review, but I would be careful to declare the Ocean Voyager tank as "best of the best" without having seen the comparable Japanese whale shark tanks. Anyone here been to both Atlanta and Japan to judge?
 
@Sun Wukong: I think Snowleopard is comparing that tank to the others in North American aquariums, not the whole world.
 
@mstickmanp: Does he?;)
snowleopard said:
(...) and the whale shark tank is better than anything that any other aquarium perhaps in the world can offer, (...)

Ocean Voyager: easily the best in terms of quality and quantity of animals at just about any aquarium in existence.
Click to expand...

...And as no other North American aquarium keeps whale sharks (in a tank of such dimensions), there aren't many possibilities of comparison
(except maybe Monterey Bay's larger tank).

snowleopard said:
(...)I doubt that any single person can dissuade me from extolling the virtues of this huge tank.
Click to expand...
I think some animal right activists (as usual) could tell You a thing or two, especially in regard to the loss of already two whale sharks...;)

Agreement from my side regarding the gift shops and loss of high-quality books; their line of goods seems to become more and more uniform worldwide, and equally increasingly more aimed at (younger) children and kitsch-fans. Noteworthy exception: the gift shops at Tierpark Berlin-Friedrichsfelde.
 
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Zoo Atlanta Review - 3.5 hours (Zoo/Aquarium #21 on the epic road trip)

The Atlanta zoo is tiny and easy to cover in just a few hours, but is pleasant enough and well worth visiting for anyone wishing to see either orangutans, gorillas or giant pandas. There are 3 pandas, with the mother off exhibit right now as a 4th is expected by the optimistic zoo staff, along with a staggering 22 gorillas and 11 orangutans. Those numbers are impressive, and the bulk of the visitors were mainly hovering around those set of habitats.

Looking over the map of the zoo after the visit it dawned on me that the establishment doesn't actually have any awful, dreadful exhibits. There are zero grottoes, bear pits, or tiny wire cages for large mammals. Nothing too shabby around the grounds, but at the same time there isn't a single outstanding enclosure that would be deemed the best of its kind. It's sort of an average zoo, too small and typical to be regarded as a top ten contender in the United States, but the pandas and great apes elevate it to a must-see for hardcore zoo fans. I know that the bulk of the habitats (gorilla, giraffe, zebra, lion, rhino, etc) were all built in the late 1980's, but hold up fairly well. The zoo could use an injection of freshness to it, but I think that I'd rather focus on the positive attributes within the 800 animal collection.

African Rainforest: four distinct habitats all side by side, with an enormous number of gorillas of all sizes and ages. With 22 of these impressive apes, and multiple viewing opportunities, there is the possibility that great ape fans could spend the entire day in this area of the zoo! The keeper that I spoke with, and who also gave me information on the orangutans, claims that Atlanta is tied with the Bronx with 22 gorillas each, and they are #1 in North America for that species. I had thought that the Bronx had 24 gorillas, but who's counting with so many babies running around? I think that when these 4 habitats were constructed twenty years ago they must have been revolutionary and ground-breaking, not just for "Willie B" but for gorillas at zoos worldwide. However, today in 2008 the enclosures are mainly average, with massive amounts of hotwire encircling all of the major trees. So much wire, including the electrified fence around parts of the moat, that at times it distracted me from truly enjoying the exhibit.

Orangutans of Ketambe: there is a habitat with 3 Bornean orangs, and another habitat with 7 Sumatrans and 1 hybrid. So a grand total of 11 orangutans makes Atlanta #1 in North America in terms of quantity, and the two enclosures are similar to the gorilla paddocks and are therefore quite good but not outstanding. Having so many apes means that there are always youngsters around, and particularly in orangs that is wonderful for zoo visitors as these apes can be slow-moving at times.

Giant Pandas: the baby Mei Lan is not even 2 yet, and was a delight to watch in the indoor day room. The mother was off exhibit due to pregnancy possibilities, but the father was in a separate day room and fast asleep. The cub is still much smaller than the father, and was quite active. Active for giant pandas = rolling over once or twice and then perhaps walking a handful of steps. Having accomplished this extraordinary feat, the cub promptly went to sleep. It's a tough life being a pampered panda! As far at the outdoor exhibits are concerned, they were maybe slightly more spacious than Memphis, but nothing like the massive 3 habitats at the National Zoo in Washington which I still think are brilliant.

HIGHLIGHT OF THE DAY: 3 lion cubs were on display with their mother, and my wife must have taken at least 50 or more photos of them as they tormented their parent. The cubs would attempt to climb a small tree in their yard, and the lioness would swat them down. Then they would crash into the glass and their mom would pick them up in her mouth and transport them to the back of the exhibit. More hijinks ensued, but they were a delight to watch. The male lion was understandably off exhibit the entire time, no doubt dozing the day away.

Monkeys of Makokou: two enclosures containing at least 4-5 drills, Wolf's guenons and mona monkeys. Close by is a netted exhibit with black-and-white ruffed and ring-tailed lemurs. A walk-through aviary is on the other side with many species of birds, including some hornbills and (rather bizarrely) at least 2 rock hyrax. This section of the zoo is tiny but highly enjoyable for visitors because the animals are so active.

African Plains: giraffe, zebra, crowned cranes, bongo, warthog, meerkat, black rhino and waterbuck are all present in a number of good but average exhibits. The 3 African elephants have an average-sized yard with loads of bright red mud, and there is currently construction ongoing for an add-on that will contain the baby when it's due in April 2009. If the zoo has both a baby giant panda and an elephant at the same time then the attendance will skyrocket like it did when Mei Lan was born in 2006.

Asian Forest: decent exhibits for a red panda, a komodo dragon, a clouded leopard and two sumatran tigers, although the tiger habitat could have been larger and they were both pacing incessantly at the back of the enclosure.

World of Reptiles: fairly good collection based in what appears to be a very old building. It seems as if all the ancient buildings at the zoos I visit contain either birds or reptiles. A massive black mamba and a very impressive list of turtles and tortoises are the highlights here. Plus the air-conditioning is always wonderful when for 3 days straight in Atlanta the temperature was between 35-40 degrees celsius. That's in the 90's for those of you dealing with farenheit.

Kids Area: actually a nice area, with some animal exhibits (goats, pigs, sheep, cassowary, kangaroos, wallabies, tropical birds, tortoises, frogs) and a large playground, carousel, train, etc. Above average for the little critters.

Overall:

Zoo Atlanta has plenty of fans for the pandas, orangs and gorillas. After those three wonderful animal species the collection is rather scarce and average, and the zoo lacks a killer, knockout exhibit. I've said that about a number of zoos on this trip, but it's amazing what an awesome group of enclosures can do for an institution. The Minnesota Zoo was an average or slightly above average zoo until this year's "Russia's Grizzly Coast" opened, and now those enclosures have elevated the zoo to a higher level. I loved the Detroit Zoo, but not many others would rank it as high as I would. But with the polar bear/seal complex "Arctic Ring of Life" it has some exhibits that are amongst the best in the world, and that alone makes the Detroit Zoo a must-see for any hardcore fan. By opening a knockout set of habitats I feel that Atlanta would also jump up a few places in any informal zoo ranking list.

Something has to be said for the zoos that don't have crappy bear pits or small, cramped cages for big cats and similar animals. Zoo Atlanta proudly has a number of quite good exhibits, but the collection is so tiny that they get overlooked when competing with the big guns of the zoological world. I'd never place Atlanta's zoo in my personal top 10, but I'd still recommend a visit to anyone who was ever in the State of Georgia. Just purchase a CityPass, as that gets you the zoo, huge aquarium, CNN tour and World of Coca-Cola (plus a couple of museums or botanical garden if you wish)..and so you can enjoy the city in style!

P.S. I type this approximately 2 miles from the Fort Worth Zoo in Texas. My wife and I left Atlanta after our few hours at the zoo, and yesterday and today we drove through the rest of Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana and part of Texas. Fort Worth is the only zoo in North America (which must make it one of a handful worldwide) to have all 4 of the great apes: gorillas, orangutans, chimpanzees and bonobos. Plus there are white, black and indian rhinos, a massive reptile collection, and several other goodies. A huge chunk of the zoo has been rebuilt in the past 20 years, and so you'll all have to wait and see what I think of this 99 year-old attraction.
 
Did you say you are a school teacher?

It seems that your reviews are always easy and entertaing to read like a childrens book. Thats meant as a compliment!
 
Fort Worth Zoo Review - 4 hours (Zoo/Aquarium #22 on the epic road trip)

This Texan zoo has been in existence for 99 years, but actually temporarily closed down in 1991 due to financial problems and for the building of new exhibits. There has been a tremendous amount of construction since 1992, and there are a number of well-designed habitats dotted around the zoo. One of the most exciting buildings to open will occur next year, as in spring of 2009 the "Museum of Living Art" will open to the public. This is basically a new reptile house, but there is a section of the zoo that is currently under construction, and the outer framing appears to almost be complete. Once finished it is rumored that it will have over 900 reptiles of probably around 200 species, and could arguably be the finest reptile house in North America. The gharial and saltwater crocodile exhibits will be connected to the "Crocodile Cafe" restaurant, and so where my wife and I sat today eating lunch there will be viewing windows for huge crocodilians. I have a photo of an illustration of the finished building, as well as a poster highlighting all of the various habitats. It appears that this zoo will be known for its diversity of both reptiles and great apes.

The Best:

World of Primates- the only place in North America where there are gorillas, orangutans, bonobos and chimpanzees. This building has a large gorilla forest in the middle that is so-so, but the outdoor habitat is much more realistic. Here the gorillas were engaged in foraging behaviour, and while the exhibit isn't very wide it is fairly long and rectangular in appearance. There are outdoor enclosures for bonobos, chimpanzees, orangutans, white-cheeked gibbons and mandrills. It appears that the only primate that lacked access to the outdoors was a group of colobus monkeys, and their exhibit was the weakest of the lot. Overall the primates were active and appeared to be in good health, and there were a couple of youngsters creating trouble as usual. Crashing waterfalls abound both indoors and outdoors, and as usual the primates were the center of attention just like they are at most other zoos.

Asian Falls- great, winding enclosure for a gorgeous indian rhino that was sitting near a cascading waterfall. Tiger exhibits side-by-side are quite spectacular, but nonetheless a white tiger was pacingly badly right by the viewing window. The two sun bears were a delight to see in their smallish and yet naturalistic habitat. Sarus cranes, muntjacs and lowland anoa round out this decent section of the zoo. The Nubian Ibex have an exhibit that almost goes straight up at 90 degrees, as it is awfully steep and completely rocky. It's just a pity that I didn't actually see any animals in the enclosure.

Herpetarium- two huge gharials were a highlight here, but the winding and mazelike set of rooms inside are host to hundreds and hundreds of reptiles. One of the best collections I've ever seen, and it will be even better in 2009 when the expanded collection opens to the public.

Cheetah- after viewing this spacious, grassy exhibit in the morning and afternoon I found it impossible to find the big cats. I always think that an enclosure is a good one when the inhabitants are difficult to locate.

The Average:

Texas Wild!- this area is advertised on the zoo map as being 8 acres in size, and with a cost of $45 million in 2001 there has certainly been a massive amount of cash invested in this zone. As far as humans are concerned it gets ten out of ten, but some of the animal exhibits are painfully small. There is a major Texan theme, with a miniature town set up near the entrance. There is a general store, candy shop, jail, twister shack, barn, petting corral, etc. Everything looks fantastic, the decor and attention to detail is amazing, and for visitors it works wonders as people are transported back to the days of the wild west.

The problem arises with several of the exhibits. The ocelot, bobcat, jaguar, swift fox, coyote, coatimundi, bald eagle, mountain lion (worst of the lot) and even black bears all have enclosures that are far too small. Wire habitats contain the cats, except for the bobcat which has a puny cage behind glass, and so viewing opportunities and photographs are basically impossible. Why spend $44 million on people-related amenities, and then $1 million on the actual animals? I'm exaggerating to an extent, but for the most part the larger creatures had shabby exhibits that appeared to be almost afterthoughts from the main purpose of immersing visitors into a Texan atmosphere. I'm all for cultural theming in zoos, but not at the expense of the inhabitants that must spend their lives there.

Some people have knocked the Columbus Zoo's exhibits, but their new Asia Quest set of habitats has major theming with ruined temples and informative graphics plastered all over the walls. But at least in Columbus that zoo lacks any awful exhibits, and even the worst enclosures are of at least an average quality. Columbus has built spacious, naturalistic habitats for its sumatran tigers, red pandas and especially for their sun bears. Fort Worth has a huge Texan section with below par enclosures for the animals that are sometimes masked by the cultural theme that simply dominates.

One element of Texas Wild! that worked for me was the "Mountains and Deserts" building, which simulates an old mine shaft. There are many insects, reptiles, amphibians and small mammals such as bats in this wonderful set of glass tanks in semi-darkness. All of the smaller animals have successful exhibits in this Texas section, and it's only the larger creatures that could already use an upgrade. I'd rate the Texas Wild! experience only as average, because of the strong contrasts between the people and animal habitats.

Raptor Canyon- typical aviaries all lined up like dominos, and they have king vultures, bateleur eagles, harpy ealges (cool to see!) and andean condors here. There are various species of owls and macaws just down the pathway from the larger aviaries.

Flamingos- there are 3 separate species in 3 separate pools, all quite beautiful for amateur and professional photographers to snap away at.

African Savannah- separate paddocks with giraffes/ostrich, warthogs, gerenuks/lesser kudu, zebra/warthog, meerkats, bongo, etc. All well done but nothing that I haven't seen many times before. The black rhinos (at least 3 of them) have a pair of large paddocks, but try as I might I couldn't locate any white rhinos anywhere. Does anyone know if they even have them anymore? I only saw 3 black and 1 indian on my visit.

Aussie section- typical grassy areas for wallabies and red kangaroos, along with some kookaburras and a few indoor tanks with corals and fish. No more sharks, as they have outgrown their tank.

The Worst:

Elephant Paddock- there are 6 Asian elephants here, including one bull that I couldn't see in any of the small yards. The largest paddock is only an average size, and the pool had been drained which was perplexing as 3 of the elephants crowded around a hose and were taking turns drinking from it for many minutes on end. The two smaller yards are quite tiny, and I'm sure that the bull elephant spends his entire life with a minimum of space. The 6 elephants have perhaps an acre or 1.5 acres in total to share, including their barn and both side yards.

Hippo Pool - there is enough water that can be used to submerge in, but only a tiny plot of land. There aren't really that many half decent hippo exhibits at zoos, and besides Toledo, Calgary and San Diego (all with underwater viewing) I can't think of any other good ones that I've ever seen. Maybe I'm forgetting a couple, but overall this is another species that is regularly shafted by major zoos.

Lion grottoes- aaahhh the famous grottoes that I dearly love so much. A pair of lions languishing in tiny, ancient grottoes that are raised much more than typical pits. These lions can pace back and forth and stare down at kudu, gerenuks, warthogs and zebra...and they can wonder how the hell they ended up in such crappy exhibits while many other animals have wide-open spaces. Aren't lions the king of the jungle? Why can't they go on a food strike and demand better housing opportunities?

Overall:

The Fort Worth Zoo has a great collection of reptiles that will be housed in a glorious new building in 2009. There are also gorillas, orangutans, bonobos and chimps in average to above average exhibits that allow for movement from indoors to outdoors. The rhinos, cheetah and others all have decent sized enclosures that allow room to roam and make it difficult for zoo visitors to find the animals.

Like most zoos there is no knockout exhibit, and there are still a handful of cages that should be converted to new surroundings. The elephants, hippos and lions all need new homes, and since those are signature zoo animals I wouldn't be surprised if they eventually get better exhibits in the next decade or so. But the impressive reptiles and great apes make this zoo a worthwhile attraction for any hardcore zoo fan.
 
Oklahoma City Zoo Review - 4.5 hours (Zoo/Aquarium #23 on the road trip)

The Oklahoma City Zoo caught me by surprise, as it is a quiet gem of a zoological park, along with being an impressively planted botanical garden. The key to its success is the 2007 opening of "Oklahoma Trails", an 8-acre, 800-animal set of habitats that is AZA award-worthy and has surely elevated the zoo into a higher standing within the zoo community. Anyone who hasn't visited the zoo in the past 12 months would say that it is perhaps an average collection of animals, but the new exhibits are incredibly impressive. Coupled with free parking, which is rarely available at any zoo, a souvenir book containing the zoo's history, and admission for $4 due to "discount days", it all added up to an enjoyable afternoon.

The Best:

Oklahoma Trails - brilliant addition to the zoo, and by far and away one of the very best set of exhibits in all of North America. The book "America's Best Zoos" has both authors listing these habitats in their illustrious list of truly great exhibits, and I'd have to agree with their decision. If this zoo was one that would be skipped in the past, now it has claimed a place as one of the better institutions on the continent. It has a long way to go before competing with San Diego and the Bronx, but these themed habitats are as good as most exhibits in any zoo. An enormous boardwalk takes visitors on a journey that is well guided, beautifully detailed, and extremely scenic for photographers.

In this section there are numerous mixed-species exhibits that garner interest: 3 black bears and some red foxes share an extremely large and hilly enclosure; river otters and beavers in the same exhibit, an opposum and a skunk share a glassed enclosure, a large number of fish in an 18,000 gallon aquarium, and several of the reptile tanks have a variety of species. One large glassed tank has 4 types of turtle and 2 species of water snake all cohabitating.

The 11 ecosystems of the State of Oklahoma are all well represented, and the grizzly pasture is one of the largest of its kind in an urban zoo. The grizzly brothers probably have ten times the amount of water as their cousins over in Minnesota's "Russia's Grizzly Coast", and the mountain lion, bobcat, swift fox, alligator, bison exhibits are all much larger and more impressive than the similarly themed "Texas Wild!" at the Fort Worth Zoo.

Overall the "Oklahoma Trails" set of habits is for the most part fantastic, and they include many other species such as: coyotes, a small nocturnal house, a large walk-thorugh aviary, raccoons, elk, coyotes, red wolves, mexican gray wolves, bats, flying squirrels, white-tailed deer, etc, etc. This zoo now has one of the top 5 collections for North American animals of any zoo on the continent, and they are all showcased in spacious, naturalistic exhibits that add on at least an hour to the zoo visit.

Cat Forest - sumatran tiger, lion, jaguar, black-footed cat, ocelot, caracal, serval, snow leopard and fishing cat are the 9 species in this heavily forested region of the zoo. There isn't one stand-out, magnificent exhibit, but overall this is easily one of the best cat complexes in North America. Every single species has outdoor access, and in fact basically all 9 enclosures are outdoors with no indoor viewing. Only the fishing cat has a habitat that is too small, and the rest are for the most part well planted and better than any other cat compound that I've seen on this epic trip. The cat houses in Cincinnati and Omaha were downright gruesome for the sad-sack inhabitants, while in Oklahoma there is natural light, grass (what a concept!!) and hilly enclosures.

Great EscAPE - a better than average ape complex, with large outdoor enclosures but indoor rooms that are too small. Curiously there was only the single orangutan, an old female in her forties, but there were 9 chimpanzees in a massive yard and 10 gorillas split between two habitats. Nothing earth-shattering here, but the apes had plenty of enrichment in their various exhibits.

Wild Dog Drive - this area of the zoo was a real treat, as my wife and I saw our first 3 bush dogs. They are so rare to see in North American zoos, and along with that unique species there were also black-backed jackals (which we couldn't find), cheetahs, spotted hyenas, african wild dogs, bat-eared foxes, mexican gray wolves and maned wolves. The problem with the enclosures is that they were too good! Huge, grassy exhibits with loads of hiding places meant that we had to go back and forth, around and around, and practically upside down just to search for the dogs and cheetahs that were often concealed behind thick grass. But my theory is that if the animals are difficult to spot then it must be a quality habitat.

African Savannah - massive paddock that was home to some giraffes, nile lechwe and ostrich. Three enormous paddocks that were home to okapi, miniature donkeys and yellow-backed duikers, which is an interesting mix of species but the okapi and duiker were nowhere in sight.

Deer Ravine - enormous, thickly forested enclosure with hog deer, tufted deer, sika deer, pere davids deer and Indo-Chinese gorals. Huge enclosure that made it difficult to actually spot the animals, but we perservered!

The Average:

Herpetarium - stinky reptile building that was much larger than it looked from the outside. Some rare species, but all in nondescript, average tanks.

Hoofstock Row- large collection here, and gerenuk, bontebok, sable antelope, greater kudu, somali wild ass, etc are all in spacious paddocks.

Rhino Paddocks - 3 indian rhino and 2 black rhino in 3 different paddocks, which were all larger than normal but quite sterile.

Elephant Paddock - the two female Asian elephants are on a breeding loan at the nearby Tulsa Zoo, and the Oklahoma Zoo had large signs up announcing that an Asian complex, complete with space for more elephants and a bull, would open to the public in 2011.

Small Grottoes - red pandas, meerkats, giant anteaters, african crested porcupines and pudu all inhabit tiny, average exhibits.

The Worst:

Noble Aquatic Center - 3 california sea lions and 2 harbour seals in a small, below par pool. Inside the building are two fairly small levels of uninspiring tanks. After the beautiful aquariums at the Pittsburgh and Omaha Zoos, not to mention Shedd and Georgia Aquariums, this building was weak and rather disappointing. I wouldn't call for the bulldozer, but maybe some spring-cleaning would suffice.

Overall:

It's amusing to me how just the other day I was pontificating how one set of newly constructed exhibits could transform a particular zoo, and how the Minnesota Zoo is now much more highly regarded due to this year's "Russia's Grizzly Coast". Well the Oklahoma City Zoo fits that description to a tee! The 2007 "Oklahoma Trails" section is 8 acres and more than 800 animals within above average exhibitry. The Native American signage in the area is some of the best of any zoo in the nation, the grizzly and black bears are fantastic highlights in their huge enclosures, and the entire area is done so well that once again I'll call it award-worthy.

To complement the new habitats in Oklahoma, the cat compound is one of the best around, the great apes center is above average, and the hoofstock collection is one of the ten best in North America. There is currently a multi-acre constuction zone at the world for a children's zoo, which will open in 2009, and with an expanded elephant yard opening in 2011 this zoo is going places fast. Not yet slotted in for a top ten position on the continent, but 2007's "Oklahoma Trails" habitats has turned this zoo from a pretender into a contender. I'm confident that anyone visiting the zoo, regardless of their background, would applaud the majority of the efforts in both the cat section and North American area of the zoo.
 
Nice review SL sounds wonderful, did the rhinos have any mud wallows at all?

I guess you saw one of the Indian rhinos which is to be transfered to the LA zoo and later to the WPZ in Aust?

I had a look at their website, the new Asian exhibit area should look quite good when it opens in 2011, the five big elephant yards and new barn will be a major upgrade for them and states this will be the biggest project in the zoos history
 
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After the Oklahoma City Zoo (#23 zoo/aquarium on the trip) we have spent a couple of days heading west. We keep a detailed journal for our holidays, and write down every single attraction, restaurant (including the occasional fast food joints), temperature, motel, etc. It is day #45 for the vacation, and so there is maybe another 11 to go before we are once again home in southwestern Canada and this 8 week epic trip ends.

Yesterday we literally drove for 10 hours, and that doesn't include stopping for quick lunches or fuel breaks. Today was a much shorter drive, with time for a movie and some scrapbooking stores for my wife Debbie, and we are now in Tucson, Arizona. The weather has been blazing hot for much of the trip, and ever since we hit Tennessee it has been averaging around 37 degrees Celsius (in the high nineties Fahrenheit) on a daily basis. The desert country around the southwestern States is almost unbearably hot, and so plenty of fluids is the key to life out here.

Here is the itinerary for the next 5 days:

Monday: Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum. This zoo/museum has been complemented by just about everyone involved in the zoological world, and while it is small and limited in scope I'm sure that it will be excellent. There are only flora and fauna from the Sonoran Desert on exhibit here, and that area encompasses Arizona and down through Mexico. We'll arrive fairly early in the morning, as they open at around 7:30 a.m.

Tuesday: Phoenix Zoo. Somewhat curiously this zoo opens at 7 a.m. and then closes at 2 p.m. during the week due to the overwhelming heat. Not an incredibly notable zoo, but one that is convenient in terms of location and supposedly has a decent collection of animals.

Wednesday: Grand Canyon Skywalk. My wife and I visited the Grand Canyon in May of 2006, and the sheer enormity of it blew us both away. Now that we are back in Arizona we have decided to see it from the western rim (instead of the vastly more popular southern rim like last time) and we plan on shelling out some big bucks to walk on the glass-bottomed Skywalk. For anyone who hasn't heard about this structure (which only opened in March 2007) they should either google "images" or look up the website for photos. The Grand Canyon itself is a natural wonder that everyone should see before they die, but the Skywalk appears to be yet another wonderful way to live life to the fullest. Check out photos!!

Thursday: Driving day, as we head from the border of Arizona and through California to San Diego. In 2006 we spent a few hours driving through and taking plenty of photos of Joshua Tree National Park and the Mojave Preserve, and this time around we will at the very least pay the $15 to drive through Joshua Tree again as it is just a gorgeous journey. A driving day that could also yield some wildlife, as the national parks in this area are home to a lot of creatures.

Friday: San Diego Zoo. The big one for this zoo trip, as it will take the entire day and thankfully (unlike the Bronx Zoo) doesn't close shop at 5 p.m. We plan to buy lots of refreshments and really enjoy this almost unbeatable collection of animals. I happen to think that many of the exhibits are fantastic, and I'm really excited for my second visit here after seeing the place in 2006.

So there are the next 5 days, and that will take us to 26 different zoos and aquariums on the trip!!! Interestingly enough, the San Diego Zoo will have been the only one out of the entire 26 that we have previously visited. After Friday we basically head north, and will want to be home within probably 6 days...give or take. We already visited the San Diego Wild Animal Park and San Diego Seaworld in 2006 and so will definitely skip both of those this time around. There is an excellent chance that we will re-visit Monterey Bay Aquarium, as it is truly one of the best 3 aquariums in North America. I'm tempted to see the Los Angeles Zoo, but there is a bigger chance that we will skip it. A couple of nights in Portland, Oregon will more than likely end off the trip, unless we decide to yet again visit our "home zoo"...which is Woodland Park in Seattle.

I'm curious as to how San Diego, Monterey Bay and perhaps Woodland Park hold up after such an epic journey amongst many cool exhibits and large zoos. For example, I have been to the Oregon Zoo twice and my wife and I are actually members of that zoo simply because the membership is cheaper than the closer Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle. I used to think that Oregon was an average zoo with some great exhibits, but now after seeing so many top-quality institutions I would rank Oregon a few places lower. It has a fantastic North American section called "The Great Northwest" that can compete with most other zoos out there, but then that's it in terms of top-notch exhibits. There are numerous enclosures that are merely average, and the ones for polar bears, sun bears, tigers, tree kangaroos, elephants and chimpanzees are borderline awful. The zoo director has personally criticized the elephant, chimp and polar bear enclosures, and if the $120 millioin bond goes through in November then those animals will have much better environments built for them in the future.

The Oregon Zoo actually has a brighter future than most other zoos in North America, and with 1.5 million annual attendance and a host of new exhibits scheduled for the future I have high hopes that the zoo can one day be ranked as one of the better ones on the continent. It just goes to show that I needed to tour North America and see the cream of the crop to be able to justifiably rank the zoos that were close to my Canadian home. Woodland Park in Seattle is definitely a higher-ranked zoo than Oregon, but it now seems smaller than normal as it only has about 1,200 animals. But one could argue, and I often hold to this myself, that it is about quality and not quantity. Seattle's zoo might be tiny compared to some of the behemoths out there, but it has won numerous exhibit awards and at least 85% of the zoo's enclosures are average to excellent. There are old-fashioned grottoes for sumatran tigers, sloth bears and sun bears (damn those grottoes!!) but overall it is well worth a visit for any zoo fan.
 
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