Throughout the ages, zoos have brought wild animals to parks for human observation and study. Traditionally, zoos have maintained animals in cages or enclosures where we can walk up and see them from a safe distance. Two wildlife parks in Arizona transform the viewing experience to happen right outside your vehicle, with one offering opportunities to touch some of the animals.
Bearizona
Contrary to the name, there's more to see at Bearizona's (bearizona.com) Interactive Animal Tour than bears. Drive a two-mile loop where you will see bighorn sheep, mountain goats, Dall sheep, gray and arctic wolves and bison before entering the bear enclosure. Visitors must keep their windows and sunroofs closed and are not allowed to feed the animals. Fort Bearizona is at the end of the tour, where you can see smaller Arizona natives such as raccoon, porcupines, javelina and skunks; pet barnyard animals; and watch a raptor show. Pets are welcome as long as they remain inside the vehicle on the tour and stretch their legs on a leash in the parking lot outside Fort Bearizona. The park is in Williams in northern Arizona.
Out of Africa Wildlife Park
Out of Africa Wildlife Park (outofafricapark.com) in Camp Verde offers a 45-minute African Bush Safari, a drive-through experience in which animals such as as ibex, zebra, giraffe and ostrich come right up to the vehicle. You'll ride in the park's safari vehicle while your guide narrates and drives through areas where friendly animals aren't afraid to approach the familiar vehicle. Lions, tigers and other predators are visible up a hill but segregated in an enclosure where they cannot attack the prey animals or visitors. This drive-through experience is available every day of the week and suitable for people with limited mobility. The park offers tiger shows, walk-up exhibits and other displays.
Similar Encounters
Visitors can ride an open-air train through an up-close animal encounter at Wildlife World Zoo (wildlifeworld.com) in Litchfield Park. The ride is 5/8 mile and moves slowly through enclosures containing giraffe, ostrich, antelope, gazelles and other animals that approach the familiar vehicle, sometimes allowing visitors to reach out and touch them. The zoo boasts the largest collection of exotic animals in Arizona, with 2,400 animals representing 400 species. The park offers other ride-along encounters, including a skyride over the length of the park, where you will soar just above the heads of the animals, and an Australian boat ride in which you will glide past wallabies, kangaroo, emu and other wildlife from down under. The zoo offers animal feeding encounters as well as traditional animal exhibits.
When to Go
Animals are most active in the early morning and again in late afternoon. An overcast or drizzly day often serves to increase activity in animals during warm weather. Temperature also affects the animals' activity levels, with hot summers in Litchfield Park making animals want to recline in the shade or indoor enclosures on hot, sunny days. Camp Verde summers might exceed 100 degrees in July and August. In northern Arizona, Bearizona suggests viewing animals in the Fort Bearizona walk-up enclosures first, enjoy a raptor show, then round out the day with a late-afternoon drive through the wildlife enclosures.
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Photo Credits
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