A ‘Twilight Safari' in Big Bear Celebrates Nocturnal Critters

CHIRPING, WHIRRING, HOOTING: When the sun begins to go down, the natural world remains highly vocal, curious, busy, and adventuresome. You could say that the feathery and furry residents of the woods are committed to staying flappy-of-wing and scurry-of-paw even as the stars begin to twinkle and the moon rises high. But we humans? We don't really ever get to encounter or admire these denizens of the darker world, not unless we're camping or having a starlit soirée in some remote and outdoor place. There is a wonderful way, though, to get to know some of the nocturnal animals that call the San Bernardino Mountains home, and on a crisp fall evening, too. It's the Twilight Safari, a popular event that returns to the Big Bear Alpine Zoo at Moonridge each October. This late-in-the-afternoon affair is a Friday and Saturday kind of thing, keep in mind, and buying your ticket in advance? You'll want to flap in this direction to do just that.

PAST EVENTS... have included fascinating visits with Great Horned Owls to coyotes to bears. You'll also have the opportunity to learn about the unique animal park, which celebrated 60 years in 2019. The Big Bear Alpine Zoo "... is a rehabilitation facility offering injured, orphaned and imprinted wild animals a safe haven; temporarily while they heal or permanently as they are unable to survive on their own." Consider that the Twilight Safari will give you a fresh way to think of an animal that you may one day hear chirping or hooting after sundown or rustling in a shrub outside of a cabin door. Spooky stuff? Not really: It's the natural world by night, something all earthlings should hold in respectful esteem.