Heart of Africa Opening Date

While there's been no official word from the Columbus Zoo, DublinLife magazine announced the Heart of Africa opening date as Thursday, May 1st, 2014. I myself was anticipating a Memorial Day weekend opening and after visiting today it looks like there is still a lot of work to do. We've heard the African lions will be moving into their new digs within two weeks. It's been rumored the old lion exhibit will be converted into a snow leopard exhibit. The Columbus Zoo currently keeps two snow leopards that are part of the Jack Hannah Promotion/Education Department. Look for them to acquire at least two more.

Fencing along the pedestrian path in North America between the Mexican Wolves and Bison/Pronghorn exhibits is being replaced. A couple of trees have been removed which has me wondering if they are going to expand the pathway by a few feet in anticipation of more foot traffic heading back towards Heart of Africa.

Last Columbus Zoo update I showed the location of the new tram station. Today, I found where the other station is going to be, just inside the old zoo entrance on the right. Pictured below is an overhead drawing of the location of the stations and the service road the trams will take. Honestly, if the wait is more than 5 minutes you might as well walk.

A surprising new project underway is a large renovation on both front yards of the zoo's Pachyderm Building which are going to be used for black rhinos.

Black rhino area

And here's a short Vine video I took of the polar bears:

Ideal Buildout: Columbus Zoo Safari Africa Jeep Adventure

While I reserve final judgement until the attraction is actually open, from what I’ve seen on paper the plan for Safari Africa is drastically different (read: smaller) than the initial rumors posted years ago. Initial plans called for a new boat and train rides.Now it will be interesting to see if it even opens with the zip line and camels rides. While we're eagerly awaiting what the expansion will actually look like, I thought it would be fun play planner/designer of the Columbus Zoo. My ideal plan for Safari Africa leans more toward the theme park/ride experience and makes the experience more like an actual safari.

Columbus Zoo is one of the best organized zoos. When the current Safari Africa area opens it will place the entrance to the new region smack dab in the middle of North America. While logistical or logical, it makes no sense in terms of organization for regions. In my ideal buildout, the Safari Africa experience begins where the African lions are now on display, tucked right by the exit of Asia Quest. In fact, in this plan the zoo will completely redo the African lion exhibit and integrate it with the new queue line entrance for the jeep adventure.

My ideal buildout has the same species of animals as the current plan, the difference is how I plan to get guests there. I’ve decided to combine the best features of Kilimanjaro Safaris at Disney’s Animal Kingdom with the Wilds here in Ohio. Like Kilimanjaro, the Jeep Adventure is the only way to access the main enclosures, however, there is a station in the middle of the region where you can get out, take your time and explore at your own pace just like the tours at the Wilds.

 

Please note, I'm not sure how much land the zoo actually owns and what they could build on so my pictures are just guesses. Maybe one reason they chose not to do something like this is too similar to the Wilds. I’m sure the Safari Africa area under construction will be a great addition to the zoo but it’s always fun to daydream and play imagineer and think about what might have been. What do you think?