It's a zoo in here - African safari

On Sept 29 we took Matthew to the NC Zoo in Asheboro, NC. It was my first trip there as well. I researched all the animals that call the NC Zoo home. I made a list of all the animals I thought Matthew would like to see and tried to map a route to see as much as possible with a toddler. The NC Zoo is HUGE, as anyone who is been there can attest to. It is over 500 acres and the 5+ miles of trails meander through the hilly forested region of Asheboro. Without a plan and a map I am sure that people miss out on some of the exhibits simply because they can't find them. I didn't want that to be us.

No amount of asking others about their trips to the zoo or reading the specs online prepared me for how massive the zoo is. I geared myself up for all the walking, or so I thought. But I was always bringing up the rear of our group and panting half the time. The 30% chance of rain was a sure thing. It started sprinkling almost immediately. So we put Matthew's rain jacket on and loaded him into the stroller. Brian and I made a quick stop at the first gift shop to buy ponchos. Then we set out to walk 500 miles in the wilderness beginning in Africa.

Our first glimpse of animals was zebras and ostriches grazing about the "Forest Edge" of Africa. The giraffes were supposed to be there as well, but when it is wet or raining the giraffes aren't allowed outside to play. The slippery, hilly conditions cause the giraffes to fall and may lead to broken necks and legs. I was pretty sad about not being able to see the giraffes. That is the animal I was most looking forward to seeing once I found out that the polar bears were on a two year vacation while their habitat undergoes an 8 million dollar renovation.

Then we headed to the "Bushlands" and saw the red river hogs. Which was really just one hog, don't know where the others were - probably staying out of the rain. Working in the swine industry, I wasn't overly impressed with the wild hog. Matthew liked him.










Then came the LIONS who are also a part of the Bushlands. Only a male and female were on display (I don't know if they have more or not). The lions exhibited typical aloof feline behavior. They were laying on the far side of the exhibit, so we walked over to try to get a better glimpse of them. Matthew tried to get their attention with "Hey Mr. Lion" but that didn't work. I took several shots of them laying down.

Then we started walking again to the next exhibit, but since we had to pass by the final viewing area of the lions we decided to look at them some more. They are magnificent creatures. While we were leaning over to catch one last glimpse of them on the far side of their home, the male looked my way. Thankfully I was holding the camera over my head with my arm stretched out over the railing and rapid firing the camera so that I caught a picture of his face. WOW. Then he got up and started walking our way. The lioness grudgingly got up and followed along. Matthew thought they were coming to see him and be his friend. They were really just seeking the shelter of a larger tree. But he can think that the lions like him.

Next up was the "Kitera Forest", home of the chimpanzees (or as Matthew called them "chimazees"). The chimp habitat has a really cool tree for them to climb. The coolest thing about the chimp exhibit is that the wall separating them from zoo patrons is all glass. Whenever anyone is in the little shelters by the glass wall, the chimps head over. They seem as curious about us as we are about them. One chimp came out of the tree and over to the observation wall to eat a snack. Matthew was afraid to walk right up to the wall at first, but when I convinced him that the chimp couldn't get to him, he was in total awe of being so close to a "monk-monk". The chimp watched Matthew and everyone else that was in the observation shelter.

We saw a mama chimp carrying her baby. It was really cool to see how the baby just held on. Another mother of a toddler and I both commented on how it would be nice if our own children would learn to hold on so that we could carry them "hands free" like mama chimp does.

And then all the chimps start quickly moving to the far side of the enclosure (except for mama chimp who waddled along slowly like a pregnant woman). A few minutes later they all appeared with what looked like lettuce leaves. It must have been breakfast time for the chimps. The mama went over to who I like to think was daddy chimp. She sat down beside him on a log. The baby reached for daddy and mama (in my mind) said "would you take this kid so I can eat in peace?". Daddy turned his back and went on eating his breakfast. The baby picked up a stick and began to play with it. I am sure mama was thinking "I hope that keeps him busy for five minutes so I can sit and eat." (I am sure that only another mother would put these "human" thoughts in the mind of a chimp, but for a few minutes I felt a kindred spirit with this mama.)

We all really enjoyed the chimps. Their faces were so expressive, or so it seemed to me. I just wanted to hug them, especially that little baby one.








After the chimps, we visited "Lemur Island". Since the lemurs were curled up in their little nest, it was a short visit.




We began our uphill trek to the "Watani Grasslands" to see the elephants, rhinos, antelope, gazelles, gemsbok, waterbucks, ostriches, and kudu (according to the map). We didn't see any waterbucks or antelopes that I am aware of. And from a distance it is hard to tell gemsbok and Thomas's gazelles apart. The gazelles are what we saw first. The herd may have contained the other similar creatures, but as they were laying down and far off it is hard to say.

Matthew rode on a rhino and chivalrously dried it off with his hiney for the little girl waiting to ride next.

The rhinos were intially pretty far off. But then these crazy people in a white pickup truck started driving near the distant rhino herd and honking at them. If that wasn't insane enough other people were walking along beside the truck shouting and banging on the truck to try to convince the rhinos to move toward the front of the habitat so that we mere spectators could get a better look at them. I don't know what those people get paid, but I am sure it isn't enough to justify the potential risk in a charging angry rhino.

Eventually as we walked around the grasslands I was able to get some decent shots of the rhinos that had moved marginally closer to the front of the exhibit. Thank goodness for zoom on my camera.

The gemsbok (I think) moved closer so we could see them better. I guess they look a little like a goat.

The the kudu started moving in closer. They actually came all the way to the front of the enclosure. They have such beautiful coats. These creatures are so much prettier than white-tail deer.

Then we walked along the path and discovered the spot where hay had been put out for the elephants. I have seen elephants before - at the circus and state fair. But that is nothing compared to seeing them in what is a close replication to their natural environment. They were casually eating hay using their trunks to pick it up and put it in their mouths. At about this point I think Matthew was already overwhelmed by all the neat animals that he has only seen in picture books, heck I have only seen some of them in picture books myself. Around this time I found myself in complete awe of the world that God created. I mean how did He come up with the designs for all these animals? It is utterly amazing to see God's masterpiece up close. I don't know how people can walk outside everyday and even question the existence of a God who created the world and every natural thing in it. It is far too much of a miracle to have any other explanation. I am a scientist and I know that only the existence of a creator can explain the wonderful world we live in.

Matthew had to ride the baby elephant and speak to the miniature elephant statue.

There was a random ostrich hanging out with the elephants. Maybe he thought he was an elephant. Or maybe the other ostriches ostracized him.

While touring the grasslands, Leslie called to tell me she had arrived with her entourage. After a couple of phone calls to discover that we weren't actually walking towards each other, we decided to meet up at the gorillas. It is a good thing we got to the gorillas when we did. They were about to take naps (at this point I would have liked to curl up with them and take one too). Matthew and I walked up to the glass wall of the gorilla habitat and looked at the large alpha male. He did briefly make eye contact. He was pretty awesome. All that separated us from him was a thick piece of glass. He didn't really do anything but sit there and then lie down.

So we moved down the length of the glass to try to catch a glimpse of one of the gorilla babies born this summer. We learned something interesting while standing there gazing at this mama gorilla. The alpha female had the youngest baby. He was born the beginning of August. Just a few days prior to our trip to the zoo, this mama kidnapped the other baby gorilla. She has so far refused to give back the stolen baby. She is nursing and taking care of both of them. The other mama just sits in the center and cries for her lost baby. The keepers don't know what to do. They don't know if this is a natural thing or not. They do know that it has never happened in captivity before. They hope that she will return the baby without any human intervention. It is so sad. It is quite amazing that God gave the maternal instinct to animals as well. I mean this other gorilla is mourning her baby. She sees him and wants him, but she dare not approach the alpha female to get him back. I guess that is one major difference in human mamas and animal ones. There is no way that I wouldn't challenge some other woman taking my baby. The mama with both babies had her back to us for awhile. She did finally roll over and Matthew and I were able to catch a quick glimpse of one of the babies. The other was tucked away where we couldn't see it well. By the time Leslie arrived, mama had turned her back on us again.



Stay tuned for the next leg of our adventure - a prehistoric forest.