14+ hour, 14+ min ago   (1764+ words) Some hikers check the weather before hitting the trail. In South Carolina, it is also wise to check whether a 300-pound local has claimed the path first. Beyond tumbling waterfalls and rocky overlooks, black bears move quietly through forests that…...

3+ week, 1+ hour ago   (1685+ words) Getting there takes some planning, but the combination of working history and winter wildlife makes it a worthwhile cold-weather day trip for anyone in the region. Head southeast of Utica on a winter morning and you will eventually find the…...

2+ mon, 3+ week ago   (1754+ words) You hear the roar, and suddenly the countryside feels a lot less quiet. Out in rural northeastern Ohio, this sanctuary gives big cats and other rescued exotic animals a calmer place to live. Lions, tigers, wolves, bears, primates, and smaller…...

2+ mon, 2+ week ago   (1495+ words) Feeding a giant, oversized guinea pig might not have been on my weekend bingo card, but life is full of strange, fuzzy surprises. There is something deeply life-affirming about sitting face-to-face with an exotic animal that seems just as curious…...

2+ mon, 3+ week ago   (1754+ words) Have you ever felt that sudden, childlike excitement when you spot a wild animal and forget, even for a second, that the world is complicated? That’s exactly the feeling this quiet North Dakota preserve brings back without even trying. Here,…...

3+ mon, 5+ day ago   (1447+ words) Have you ever walked through a place where a tiger might watch you pass by, while a penguin waddles nearby, and somewhere in the distance, a lion lets out a mighty roar? Somewhere in the beautiful desert landscape of Arizona,…...

3+ mon, 2+ week ago   (1781+ words) Spring gives Ohio’s Lake Erie shore a softer kind of spotlight. The summer crowds are still warming up somewhere offstage, the water catches that April-and-May shimmer, and the birds return like they have been waiting all winter to make a…...

4+ mon, 1+ week ago   (1745+ words) Hidden inside a leafy community wildlife spot in Colorado, this lemur exhibit feels like stumbling into a tiny island adventure without needing a passport. One moment you are cruising through a regular weekend plan, and the next you are watching…...

4+ mon, 2+ week ago   (1745+ words) Picture a small, tuxedo-wearing seabird with a rainbow-colored beak, standing on a rocky island just off the coast of Maine, looking like it owns the place. That is the Atlantic puffin, and spotting one in the wild is one of…...

5+ mon, 2+ day ago   (1381+ words) I remember rounding a bend in this remote Arizona canyon and feeling like the landscape had suddenly changed the rules. One minute it was all stone, dust, and silence, and the next there was a cluster of native palm trees…...