With a serious itch to get on the road again, and a lot of good friends to say hello to, and to thank for their wonderful support to AES, President Linda and friend and AES volunteer, Cynthia Christison, headed out on July 4th for what would end up being an 8-day, 2600+ mile trip visiting 6 institutions with Asian and African elephants!
Cynthia & Linda with Little Rock Zoo's Asian elephants Zina & Babe
Linda with Black rhino calf, Kevin, from The Little Rock Zoo
An early start on July 4th allowed for a great visit with friends at Little Rock Zoo, both two and four-footed featuring baby black rhino, Kevin, whose antics we could have spent the full week watching. And it is always good to be able to say thanks to Little Rock Zoo for their consistent support over the years. Dinner and some good conversation with AES Advisor, Heidi Riddle, made this a very special 4th of July…and no burned fingers from fireworks!
July 5th was simply a drive day, although considering the temperatures during this trip, a day of enjoying the scenic miles in air-conditioning wasn’t all that bad. Our destination was Houston, TX, where, on July 6th, we had a great visit with the Houston Zoo elephant barn crew, again two and four-footed. Here, too, we could have put down roots for the week watching their three youngest elephants playing in the pool. Lunch with keepers and a chance to say thanks for their California Pizza Kitchen support this year made for a lovely day. The evening of the 6th ended with a very good visit with Linda’s cousin, George, and his wife, Sue, at a great Italian restaurant.
Cynthia and Linda enjoying their time with bull Asian elephant, Baylor, at the Houston Zoo
The Houston Herd
An early start on July 7th got us to San Antonio Zoo for lunch with members of the San Antonio American Association of Zoo Keepers (AAZK) Chapter who had one wildly successful CPK event for us this year! And after a nice visit with keepers from several areas of the zoo, we joined a tour of the zoo’s hippo barn. A delightful, as well as educational, experience! Then back on the road to Fredericksburg, Texas for the evening.
Cynthia and Linda with members of the San Antonio AAZK Chapter
July 8th was a long overdue visit, thanks to a hectic travel schedule before and then the total ‘going nowhere’ of the pandemic, to very special friends at The Preserve in the hill country of Fredericksburg, Texas. It is so good to watch visitors enjoy while learning to understand and appreciate the wonderful creatures that are Asian elephants. And a late afternoon visit to a new winery, er, Rhinory! (Yep! Check out their website.)
Linda with good friends, Kari & Gary Johnson from The Preserve
Linda in her element, amongst the elephants from The Preserve
July 9th was a 400 mile drive to Hugo, Oklahoma, where we stayed overnight for a morning tour on the 10th of The Endangered Ark Foundation and visited with elephants and staff. Early afternoon we headed to Ft. Worth for the evening.
Linda & Cynthia with two & four-legged friends at The Endangered Ark Foundation
July 11th was a morning visit at the Ft. Worth Zoo and the last of our longer drives to Topeka, Kansas, where we visited our friends at the Topeka Zoo the morning of the 12th and, after lunch, pointed our noses toward home.
Eight days, 2,600+ miles, and visits with so many wonderful friends caring for elephants at six different institutions! It might sound exhausting, but spending time with those who are dedicated to caring for their elephants 24/7 and then still find the time and energy to help with the care and conservation work of elephants in both Asia and Africa is the best way to regenerate energy and enthusiasm for the work AES does. And having a great sidekick along is a huge plus on such adventures. Thanks, Cynthia!