Looking for a fresh way to experience the wildlife at the Wild Animal Park? I just took the coolest tour: a Rolling Safari on an off-road Segway X2. Having never been on such a contraption, which you move with subtle shifts of your weight on the footpads, I was grateful for the patient and thorough training by our guides. Though a bit nervous at the outset, after a few minutes of tooling around the training area, I was ready to tackle the cone course to manage my steering technique. It was clear that people who skateboard and ski take to the Segway like a rhino to a mud wallow. I, however, was a bit slow on the uptake, but soon was able to “zoom” (they can reach 8 miles per hour, which is actually a decent clip!) with the best of them.

The on-road, off-road path snaked around the African and Asian field exhibits where we got to see Nile lechwe, endangered sheep, giraffes, rhinos, and really enjoy the sweeping vistas of the Wild Animal Park. We stopped along the route at shaded “hitching posts” where we drank water, took photos, and heard interesting “tails” about the animals we were seeing. There were only 10 people in our group, so we could ask questions, and the guides were knowledgeable about biology, conservation, and wildlife. It was a rare treat to get to learn about these animals in such an enchanting setting. And it really had the “wheeee factor” as we headed along the path to the next hitching post. We could also see the people doing the Flightline zip-line experience, soaring over the exhibits and the keepers feeding the animals in the exhibits.

The quiet, breezy Rolling Safari “ride” through the Park is a special experience I hope everyone gets to share.

Karyl Carmignani is a staff writer for the San Diego Zoo.

Here’s more info on Rolling Safari tours

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