Normally when I write this blog about my travels it comes as a “Harps Across America” post. But this time I wanted to do something a little different.
While I was touring through Colorado I had some down time and decided to see what we could do in the area. Found some activities via an internet search but it was a pamphlet in the hotel that leads me to the next part of my story.
This pamphlet caught my eye because it had several pictures of wolves on the front. Since I was a little girl I’ve always had a soft spot for wolves in my heart and was curious as to what this pamphlet was promoting. It turns out it was advertising the Colorado Wolf and Wildlife Center. This center focuses on educating the public on the importance of wolves and the preservation of the animals. They offer tours where you can see the foxes, wolves and coyotes. They also have addition activities you can pay to do with the animals including Meet and Greets.
My dad and I chose to do a Meet & Greet with the foxes as it was a cheaper option then the wolves. When I called to make the reservation they said we had the do the standard tour if we were going to do a Meet & Greet which was fine with us. I should mention that the standard tour is a separate fee then the Meet & Greet but all proceeds go towards the Wildlife Center.
The woman I spoke to was very pleasant and let me know to arrive 15min early for my tour and gave me the run down for the dress code to meet the foxes. Turns out my dad and I didn’t have the right kind of pants so we went shopping at REI and got the kind that would work with the center’s dress code.
I was very glad I brought the pamphlet with the written directions on the back as we lost GPS connection due to no cell service in the area.
The standard tour is well worth taking even if you don’t include the extra additions like Meet & Greets. Not only do you get to see different kinds of wolves but the guide gave me a deeper understanding of their importance as well as learning about the many misconceptions people have about wolves.
One of the rules they have at the center is they don’t make the animals do anything they don’t want to which means that if they aren’t interested in seeing the visitors they don’t have to. I got to see this in action when we got to the coyote enclosure. None were visible so the guide called them but the coyotes decided they weren’t interested in seeing us so they were left to do as they pleased and after a brief lecture about the animals we moved on to the next enclosure. After about an hour the tour ended but before we left our guide had us howl. The wolves join in and we stood there in silence listening to their beautifully, haunting voices.
The Meet and Greet came next. As it turned out no one else had signed up for that part so it was just me, my dad & the fox handler/photographer. You get about 30min with the animals and it is worth every penny. The foxes we met were named Rhett & Scarlett. They were so playful and soft. They loved to climb on our shoulders to get a better view of the world.
Both us were given berries and kibble to get the foxes interested in being near us and berries were the definitely the fav food of the day. Typically, the foxes don’t let you pet them on their backs but Scarlett was feeling generous that day and let me in pet her in exchange for a large berry. After about 30min we were taken back to center where we got 15 photos from our time with the foxes. One day I hope to go back and meet the wolves!
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