Visiting The Sedgwick County Zoo In Wichita, Kansas

Social distancing at the zoo, as it turns out, is an excellent idea.

Things in Kansas are much more open than they were in Colorado. That’s had its benefits – like going to the bookstore and getting my nails done. It’s also had its downsides – like being some of the only people wearing masks in most public places and trying to do our best to stay safe and healthy since we don’t have health insurance.

So when I found out that Sedgwick County Zoo here in Wichita was open, I was equally psyched and nervous. But they’re limiting entry, being outside meant more space and I still chose to wear my mask. In the end, it turned out to be a lovely three hours in the quiet of a mostly empty zoo (even emptier than I expected since I went first thing) and got some great time with my camera and all the animals before the heat of the day meant every picture was a nap shot.

It’s a sizable zoo which was nice since the ticket price is $17.00. I’m not opposed to paying that amount or more, but we’re on a budget and this zoo is an unknown quantity since it’s not one of the larger, more publicized zoos.

The money seems to be well spent on large enclosures for many of the animals – I was particularly impressed with the elephant area. Staff were very friendly, keeping track of numbers and wearing masks which was encouraging after seeing so many places open and the majority of people (employees and customers) not wearing masks or respecting social distancing measures around the area.

I basically made my way around the zoo stopping to see animals as I could. The first series of images are ones I got with my phone with some information about many of the animals, but this is hardly an exhaustive list. There are a tremendous amount of animals and it was well worth my money and the three hours I spent there. Towards the end of my post I’ve included pictures I took with my camera of some of my favorite animals of the day.

I went away from all the people to the side and made a penguin friend. Always the best way to start any day.

I wandered into the reptile and amphibian area next. Even though it wasn’t the heat of the day, there was already a line to access the air-conditioned space so I got in line when it was only 3 families deep instead of waiting and ending up in a really long line in the heat.

One of my favorite things the zoo did was post funny signs about how many animals apart to stay to observe social distancing. As I left the building to find the tortoises I was greeted with my first one.

After this I headed straight for the tropics. This is a really nice area since many birds fly free within the enclosure and you can get some really fun pictures.

I never knew there were ducks with blue bills. They were one of my favorites of the entire day.

I had no clue there were river rays.

I wore my mask most of the day – anytime I was in an enclosed space or interacting with anyone and when there were people nearby looking at the same exhibits. I took it off three times when I was completely alone in an area just to get a little fresh air, but even with my mild asthma I had no problem wearing my mask for the entirety of my visit in the heat.

Most of the zoo was like this the entire time I was there. It picked up closer to noon since people purchased timed tickets, but nothing like a usual summer day at any zoo I’ve been to before.

Mask freedom while I was alone between enclosures.

More and more is coming out about COVID-19 and it may even be a blood vessel virus rather than the lungs as originally thought. That being said, great apes are susceptible to our respiratory illnesses (a fact that I learned in Rwanda when we went in 2008), so it’s important to keep a good distance from them. We were able to see lowland and mountain gorillas at the zoo but only behind glass.

The elephants have a beautifully large enclosure and live in family groups like they would in the wild. There were some really fun enrichment activities for them which were entertaining to watch as they cleared out the snacks.

I took about 300 pictures on my camera, although almost 100 of them were of the meerkats. They were so adorable and were posing in the sun, looking for birds and just relaxing. Honestly, I could’ve sat there all day.

These two snuggle bunnies… well kitties… were also sweet to see and they were right near the glass.

Towards the end of my visit it was getting hot. The hippos were napping under the water and only resurfacing every few minutes to get some air.

A fun open enclosure was Australia where wallabies hop free. The wallabies were actually hunkered down in the shade, but they were incredibly close which made photographing them really fun.

This is my new best friend the roseate spoonbill. He (or she) cam really close – no this isn’t zoomed in – and just hung out with me while I wandered the bird enclosure.

It was almost time to head out when I wandered by the American farm and other farm animals.

The watusi were incredible – I’d love to see them in Africa – but for now you’ll have to check out my image below. It was so hard to get them, and their horns, in the same shot.

I exited through the gift shop but didn’t see anything I couldn’t live without – all the photos and the relaxation were enough. The zoo did a great job of keeping everyone, including their vulnerable animals, safe from COVID-19 and it was a really nice place to spend a bit of time – it was easy like Sunday morning.

Other pictures from the zoo that I took with my Nikon D5600 and my 70-200mm lens. I hope you enjoy seeing them as much I enjoyed taking them.