Go on Safari
Safari West, Sonoma
707- 579-2551
$ / $$ (Safari & BBQ additional cost)
Do a search for "Africa, California" on Google™ Maps and you won't get any results. But it's there, and it’s the closest you will get to Africa without a passport--tucked amid the wineries of Sonoma.
You’re spending the night in an authentic African tent cabin, separated from the animals, but immersed in the sights and sounds of Africa. You have at your disposal the necessities of civilized life: a private bathroom, comfy bed, and bottled water, with the addition of a heater and electric blanket for chilly nights. But the distractions are removed, as there is no cellular service, telephones, television or room service.
You grab the flashlight and flip on your porch light, because you’ll be returning from your BBQ dinner after the sun has eclipsed behind the rolling hills. With a glass of wine in hand, you linger by the open fire as the warm day gives way to the cooler evening air.
The early riser will be rewarded with ghostly images across Catfish Lake and, as dawn breaks, the tranquility giving way to the bustle of day. Picking up a cup of coffee from the dining room, you begin to prepare for a day on safari. Soon it’s ‘all aboard!’ and you’re off, bumping your way on a tour of the rough backcountry. The jeep pauses and a curious giraffe dips his head inside the vehicle; an ostrich approaches and attempts to pluck your camera case off the seat. Continuing on and rounding the bend, a herd of Watusi cattle blocks the road, providing an opportunity to take in the vistas of rolling hills. Vultures fly overhead as you continue past Cape Buffalo, zebras, Wildebeest, and African Antelope. The hour plus trek ends all too quickly, but the experience is far from over. After a brief rest stop, the tour continues on foot through the aviary, past the cheetahs, tortoise, pigmy goats, and leaping lemurs.
Sonoma County Tourism Bureau
