Chapter 140
Lions and Tigers and Bears—Literally

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(Originally posted February 10, 2014)

The bears had the next enormous enclosure.

They were all really active and loved playing with those tires and hiding in the concrete tubes.

We finally saw a few of the tigers actually roaming once we’d gotten used to spotting animals with our binoculars.

In a way, it felt very much like we were on a safari—which I think is exactly what the proprietors intend. The animals are in control here, and our entertainment is very much a lower priority than the well-being of these awesome creatures.

The next habitat belonged to a pack of wolves. At first, one was cautiously trying to get a drink on his own.

Suddenly, the rest of the pack swarmed in and scared him away. It was obvious that these animals have formed groups and the pack mentality is in full swing.

Beyond the bears, there was another enclosure filled with a herd of more than 50 alpacas. They were donated to the Sanctuary by someone who couldn’t afford to keep them anymore. He thought that the Sanctuary owners could use them “to feed the lions,” but since that idea goes completely against what the park stands for, the alpacas are allowed to roam and enjoy themselves. They also have a camel friend named Morrison.

Reading some of the stories about the animals’ lives before they came to the Sanctuary was more than a little heartbreaking. We were just glad that they had all been rescued and seemed to be thoroughly enjoying their new habitats.

The last enclosure was some more lions, and these ones were much easier to see.

Finally, we found ourselves at the end of the trail and inside a building that served as a food court and an enclosure for the lions who hadn’t gotten acclimated enough to roam free yet. There was so much roaring in this building. It was really cool and a little frightening…

You would never have guessed that this was just a few days after such an enormous flood. Luckily, the towns this far east really hadn’t been impacted at all. Today was actually extremely hot, and we found ourselves baking in the direct sun along the whole boardwalk.

The walkway is currently a one-way trip, and then you have to turn around and walk the whole way back, but there are expansion plans that (I think) will eventually make it a circle.

After reaching the end, we walked back, still feeling awestruck by all the amazing creatures that were so close but looked like they were just in their natural settings.

We made it back to the entrance and had to get going in order to make it back for dinner, but it felt like we had been changed by visiting the Sanctuary. We couldn’t believe we’d lived in Colorado for so many years never even knowing it was there. The work they are doing is so impressive and the whole concept is so unique that we vowed to make it back to the Sanctuary again someday. If you are an animal lover who lives in Colorado or are ever visiting, I strongly urge you to check it out.

The rest of the weekend was pretty uneventful (especially when compared to the first half of the trip). Tracy and I enjoyed the fire pit and hot tub at the Omni.

The resort was plenty fancy, but I feel like being around the Disney hotels has ruined other hotels for us because it felt a little boring in spite of its fanciness.

Without a doubt, our favorite part of the stay was the different pitchers of infused waters that they had in the lobby. My favorite was the orange while Tracy liked the cucumber water. We also liked some of the water features around the resort, but they had obviously gotten a little gross from all the rain.

On the whole, I liked the Omni and certainly thought it was worth our flood victim rate, but I can’t imagine ever shelling out $300 per night to stay there in “real life.”