Zebras, cheetahs, and rhinos …. oh my! The
Fossil Rim Wildlife Center may be the closest you will ever come to nature’s wild animals. It’s just an hour car ride from Fort Worth and worth the drive.
We recently filled up the mini van with my kids and my mom, sister and niece and took a drive to Glen Rose, Texas — the home of Fossil Rim, Dinosaur Valley State Park and a host of camp grounds, hiking trails and a lot more outdoor activities.
Fossil Rim boasts 1,700 acres of land with 1,100 animals. These wild animals range from giraffes, to deer to wildebeests. And for the most part they are all friendly, especially when you start feeding them. They are not afraid to come in your window and look for food. But that’s where the fun begins.
After picking up our 2 bag maximum of natural food, we started our 3 hour journey on a paved path through the wildlife center. Greeting you at the door is a giant ostrich and a few friendly deer, who are all over the wildlife center.
My daughter enjoyed feeding the sweet baby deer, when she was able to throw the food out the window (I’m still picking up food in my car.)
Then there were times when the deer got a little too close. It didn’t help that she was holding the food up to her face, where he wanted to find it.
We had been to
Fossil Rim before and when were we there, the giraffes were the highlight of the trip. They come up to your car and feed out of your hand. But on this day, the giraffes were keeping a distance for any car. The kids were a little disappointed but the vision of these amazing creatures is still spectacular and a great memory.
Who would have thought the zebras would have taken center stage on this trip. And trust me the zebras are not shy about the food. And they seem to rule the roost — scaring away the deer that had surrounded the car before the zebras arrived. To see these creatures up close is nature at it’s best.
They are beautiful animals, that even enjoy taking a swipe at my son’s car seat. He didn’t find it amusing.
But we all enjoy their boldness and their appetite. I would say the 10 or so zebras that surrounded our car probably ate half of one of our bags. Because the giraffes were not hungry, it didn’t matter how much the zebras ate.
There is a half-way point to this 3 hour tour. The wildlife center is a great place to bring a picnic lunch, (which we did), and pick up a few souvenirs, (which we did)— and visit the petting zoo.
There the kids played with some unusually large goats. They provided brushes to clean up the goats and it was a hit with all the kids.
Fossil Rim is definitely worth the trip — especially when you drive through the historic Granbury on the ride home. While the kids are napping in the back seat, my husband and I enjoyed the beautiful downtown of Granbury. It was time for us to take in our favorite sites!
For more information about Fossil Rim,
visit their website and start your journey!
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