Bored of staring at the deer in your back yard through the window? If you’re looking to get up close and personal with wildlife, there are a herd of options to choose from within driving distance of central Ohio.
Whether you’re looking to see something exotic or native, Ohio animal parks have you covered with a variety of programs that are as educational as they are entertaining. And your choices only expand as the weather gets warmer. Here are a few of the parks open even during the early days of spring.
The Wilds
March at The Wilds in Cumberland, near Zanesville, means the tail end of the park’s Winter at the Wilds tours, which are offered daily at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. through the end of the month and take visitors to the animals’ cold weather housing areas as well as on an abridged tour of the conservation center’s nearly 10,000 acres via an enclosed, heated vehicle.
“When animals can’t be outside in this weather, you’re able to see them in their winter quarters,” says Jennifer Wilson, director of communication for the Columbus Zoo & Aquarium, which is affiliated with The Wilds.
Tickets are $100 for members – including Columbus Zoo members – and $125 for non-members. Advance reservations are required.
The park has 30 different species of animals. Most of them are endangered mammals, but there are also salamanders, birds (including ostriches, swans and cranes) and endangered beetles and mussels. This year, the list of animals on display indoors includes two baby rhinoceros, born Nov. 21 and Jan. 23, “so they’re pretty new little babies,” Wilson says.
Expanded tour offerings are available daily from May through September. Additional programming includes horseback riding safaris, fishing safaris via boat and a zipline – “so you can zipline over the heads of some animals, if you’re lucky,” Wilson says.
Those interested in an immersive experience can stay overnight at Nomad Ridge in a yurt May through October or at the Lodge, a private luxury cabin for as many as 12 people, year round.
Other attractions in Noble County include the Baker Family Museum, an enormous collection of antique glass and pottery (open Wednesdays through Saturdays year-round), and the bucket of the Big Muskie, the world’s largest dragline, housed in Miners’ Memorial Park (open April through October).
Ohio Bird Sanctuary
The Ohio Bird Sanctuary, just east of Mansfield, offers the chance to get to know our avian friends a little bit better – and enjoy a bit of the Ohio countryside in the process.
“We have 22 different birds of prey on display and a songbird aviary where you can walk in and see the birds,” says Executive Director Gail Laux.
The facility is dedicated to rehabilitating injured and ill birds. Those that can return to the wild are released. Those that cannot are placed elsewhere or become ambassadors for the sanctuary. Highlights of the sanctuary’s winged residents are a bald eagle, a peregrine falcon and host of owls – including both a barn owl and a great horned owl.
The 90-acre sanctuary is full of hiking trails and all its buildings and displays are wheelchair accessible, making it easy for for both children and older adults to explore.
“We get a lot of grandparents with grandchildren. A lot of people get to know the birds that are here, so their child may come out to visit a very specific bird,” Laux says.
Children also enjoy spending time with the sanctuary’s domestic chickens and rabbits. Purchase a cup of mealworms in the Visitor Center and you can hand-feed birds in the aviary, too.
Admission to the park itself is free. Guided tours can be booked for as little as $25 per group and coach bus tours are $5 per person with a minimum charge of $150; tours must be scheduled in advance.
“Some people just show up and go hiking and some individuals just make this their stop for lunch,” Laux says. “The average visit is half an hour to 40 minutes.”
See animals of the wooden variety at Richland Carrousel Park in nearby Mansfield. The indoor, hand-carved wooden carousel has 52 creatures and two chariots, and is open year-round. Also in Mansfield is the Ohio State Reformatory, where the popular film The Shawshank Redemption was filmed. Tours are offered from May to September.
African Safari Wildlife Park
From your hand to their mouths: that’s the way feeding works at African Safari Wildlife Park in Port Clinton.
The drive-through safari park is one of a handful in the U.S. that allows you to drive through in your own vehicle, says spokeswoman Kelsey Keller.
“We have a pretty diverse collection of animals,” Keller says.
The list includes bison, camels, alpacas and deer, among others. Exotic animals, including zebras, giraffes, kudu and bongo (two species of antelope), are on display only when the weather is warm enough.
“It’s a little chilly for our exotics,” Keller says.
Each visitor receives one free cup of animal food – and should be prepared for what follows when the windows are rolled down.
“Our animals are very accustomed to our visitors. They are very excited when they arrive. They meet our guests right up at the car windows,” Keller says. “Our guests are within inches of these animals, versus in a zoo where they are 50 or maybe 100 feet away. You get a lot more interaction.”
Beginning May 11, the park offers a walk-through safari to view ocelots, tortoises, white alligators, warthogs and more. Pig races and educational animal shows also run throughout the summer.
Tickets for spring and fall are $15.95 (ages 7 and older) and $9.95 (ages 4-6). Children 3 and younger are free.
Marblehead Lighthouse State Park is a short drive away for a picnic with a view of Lake Erie and the historic Marblehead Lighthouse. Tours of the lighthouse are offered Memorial Day through Labor Day. Or, if you’re looking for a more upscale dining experience, consider the Mon Ami Winery, located in a building constructed in 1873 by the Catawba Island Wine Company.
Lisa Aurand is a contributing editor. Feedback welcome at gbishop@cityscenemediagroup.com.
