How do you feel about letting wild animals roam free?
“Wilderness without wildlife is just scenery.” (Lois Crisler)
Sunday did not seem like the ideal time to visit the Grand Canyon as we didn’t feel up to fighting the heavy weekend crowds gazing over the South Rim that day. So it seemed like we were looking for something similar to do withrelaxing outdoor environs. Fortunately, Bearizona Wildlife Park turned out to be one of the most interesting excursions so far of our road trip. For on this cool morning we found ourselves instead winding through a well designed safari adventure where the creatures—not the visitors—set the terms of the encounter. Of course I was thinking tourist trap “ripoff” at the time with perhaps a few lazy animals laying around in the distance hoping to hide from the oppressive Arizona sun. Yet the well managed space with plenty of Ponderosa Pine tree cover and designated turnoffs for close viewing of bears, wolves, deer, elk and bison proved to be an inviting use of our time.
Know as well that at the conclusion of our three mile drive, included in our admission was nearby Fort Bearizona, where we leisurely embarked on a self guided walk along a winding path throughout the zoo portion of the park. A picnic lunch concluded this three hour relaxing experience which left our afternoon free for indulging in other sights near Williams, Arizona that day. The popular Grand Canyon would still be there for us to visit on Monday. But this unexpected day indulging in interesting viewings of wildlife felt right for us then.
Snippets of a Traveling Mind 
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