Where is the Fossil Rim Wildlife Center?
Fossil Rim is located near Glen Rose, 75 miles southwest of Dallas Texas, and 55 miles from Fort Worth, in "hill country" that offers creeks, valleys, and beautiful scenery.
What's Special about Fossil Rim?
The Fossil Rim Wildlife Center lets you feel like you're on an African safari when in fact you're an hour's drive from Forth Worth.
Fossil Rim began as a game ranch but since 1987 has been a wild animal park with a focus on endangered species; in 2000, it merged with Earth Promise, a conservation foundation. The Center has several captive breeding programs for endangered animals including cheetahs.
Visitors can take a self-guided 10-mile scenic drive: more than 1000 animals (except the rhinos and carnivores) roam free across 1500 acres of wooded hills and grassy savannas; you'll meet deer, ostriches, zebras, giraffes, 'up close and personal' and can even feed the animals. (Expect some bold begging, such as giraffe noses through the car windows.) General admission is $16.95, $10.95 for kids 3-11; allow a minimum of two hours to do the drive. More adventurous families can tour by mountain bike. Audio tapes, binoculars, and animal food are available at the Visitors Center.
You can also sign up for Guided Tours, such as Behind the Scenes, which takes a small group with a naturalist in an open-air vehicle. Adults pay $35, kids $25. Check the Fossil Rim site for more tours.
Finally, visitors can stay overnight, either in the Foothills Safari Camp in "tents" with twin beds, linens, private bath, and air conditioning, or in rooms at the Lodge.
Where can I find out more about Fossil Rim Wildlife Center?
- The Fossil Rim web site offers visitor's info of all sorts.
- About's guide for Texas for Visitors has a multi-page review about Fossil Rim.
- TripAdvisor collects online articles from travel guidebooks, magazines, and newspapers, as well as comments from visitors. Just enter "Fossil Rim" in the search box.
