FUR-TASTIC MAJESTY: So you say you've watched numerous documentaries on the snow leopard, you've read several in-depth articles, you've contributed to conservation efforts like the Snow Leopard Trust, and, in your daydreams, you visit the peaks of Central Asia, where you imagine admiring the majestic cat from a respectful distance? You're a leopard lover, through and through. If this is you, and, for sure, you can call yourself a snow-leopard-ian even if you haven't seen every documentary out there, you likely long to spend an hour or two in a spot where these beautiful animals are the stars of the day. That happens each year in early December at the...
SANTA BARBARA ZOO, which pauses to fête its famous felines with a special day of snow for both cat and human. True, the snow leopards'll have their drifts to play in, and people will have theirs, because we wouldn't want to get in the leopards' way as they frolic about in all of the flakes. And there will be a lot of flakes, 80 tons of snow in all, in which to find your frosty fun. The date for 2017? It's Sunday, Dec. 3, there's no extra fee to join the fest (your zoo admission is all you need), and the hours are from 10 a.m. to 3 o'clock.
AS FOR OTHER BEAUTIFUL BEASTIES... you may want to say hi to while you're there? Those sweet otter pups born in October 2017, the two girls and a boy, are still in their behind-the-scenes den, but some reindeer will be swinging through the American Riviera for a few holiday weeks, so make time to admire these hoof-tastic wonders while there.
