Virginia Living Museum
Public Safaris
Take A Safari
Explore the wonders of nature near and far on a safari with the Virginia Living Museum! Join our staff naturalists and travel with us to discover the enchantment and beauty of our natural world. Please note minimum age requirements and that all return times are tentative. Travel is in the Museum's buses.
Reservations are confirmed on a first come, first paid basis. Payment must be made at the time of the reservation. You may cancel or change a reservation up to seven days before the safari unless otherwise stated and receive a refund less a $10 handling fee. After that time no refunds can be made. If the Museum cancels, a full refund will be issued.
For more information, or to make a reservation, call the Reservations Coordinator, at 757-595-9135, Monday-Friday, 9 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
March 6, 2010
NEW! Birds of the Smithsonian
Activity Level 2
Click here to register online
Take a behind the scenes tour in one of the world's largest research bird collections. It will include dried study skins, skeletons, mounted birds, and alcohol preserved samples dating back to the late 1800s. Some examples include extinct specimens of Passenger Pigeons and birds collected by John James Audubon and Teddy Roosevelt. Dr. Carla Dove will explain how this collection is used for current bird studies and the specialized work of the Feather Identification Lab to solve bird strike cases.
Age: 18+ (10-17 with an adult)
Time: 7 a.m. - 7 p.m.
Cost: $40 VLM members; $60 non-members
March 20, 2010
Canoe Bennett's Creek
Activity Level 4
Click here to register online
Out of North Carolina's Lassiter Swamp comes this wondrous, slow moving stream. Towering bald cypress, water oak and black gum trees line the banks, guiding us on a delightful journey. Our canoes will take us through the domain of barred owls, herons, warblers, deer, and past the homes of many other southern wetland creatures. You are sure to have a relaxing and enjoyable day. We provide transportation, three-person canoes, life jackets, paddles and two Museum biologist interpreters.
Age: 18+ (9-17 with an adult)
Time: 7 a.m. - 7 p.m.
Cost: $40 VLM members; $60 non-members
April 10, 2010
NEW! National Zoo Kiwis
Activity Level 2
Click here to register online
Come behind the scenes with the Virginia Living Museum on a special guided tour to look at the one of the National Zoo’s most unusual animals, the Kiwi. There will be Kiwi feathers, eggs, x-rays, skeletons and more to look at and ask questions about. There will also be time to visit with the pandas, elephants, reptiles, invertebrates, mammal and bird houses, the recently opened Asia Trail and some of the 400 species that live at the National Zoo.
Age: 18+ (8-17 with an adult)
Time: 7 a.m. - 9:30 p.m.
Cost: $40 VLM members; $60 non-members
April 24, 2010
Blackwater Canoe/Zuni Pine Barrens
Activity Level 4
Click here to register online
Explore one of the best deep river swamps in our area as you canoe your way down the gorgeous Blackwater River. High bluffs border sections of the river and huge bald cypress and water tupelo dominate the canopy of the swamp, making it one of the best riparian forests to be seen. This area is home to turtles, herons, red-shouldered hawks, beavers and an occasional river otter. Our journey will also take us to the famous Zuni Pine Barrens, a totally unique habitat that is one of the last of its kind in Virginia. This habitat is filled with such unusual plants that the Nature Conservancy purchased this rare land to protect its fragile environment.
Age: 18+ (10-17 with an adult)
Time: 7 a.m. - 6:30 p.m.
Cost: $40 VLM members; $60 non-members
May 1, 2010 - POSTPONED UNTIL FALL 2010
Bald Cypress Canoe
Activity Level 3
One of our favorite trips is to Merchants Millpond State Park in North Carolina. This area is an ecological wonderland containing remnants of an ancient bald cypress swamp filled with Spanish moss, mistletoe, birds, frogs and gives you the feeling of being in an "enchanted forest." This is one of North Carolina's rarest ecological communities. Our day will be spent traveling in our three person canoes to explore the millpond and the entrance to Lassiter Swamp. Canoes and life jackets are furnished.
Age: 18+ (8-17 with an adult)
Time: 7 a.m. - 7 p.m.
Cost: $40 VLM members; $60 non-members
May 15, 2010
Wildflowers of the Blue Ridge Mountains
Activity Level 2
Click here to register online
Explore the majestic mountains of Virginia and step into the world of delicate wildflowers. We'll venture to a meadow, dry, upland forests, wet, bottomland forests, and a waterfall to search for May apple, trillium, wild geranium, Yellow Lady's slippers, false lily of the valley and much, much more.
Age: 18+ (10-17 with an adult)
Time: 7 a.m. - 8 p.m.
Cost: $40 VLM members; $60 non-members
Dino Dig Safari
In July 2008, the Virginia Living Museum led a safari to dig for dinosaur bones in Colorado.
Click here to read a daily blog of the trip by group leader Dan Summers, education curator at the VLM.
Click here to read excerpts of a journal kept by Brad Halcums and Pam Courtney.
Activity Levels
Activity Level 1
Unless otherwise stated, all activities require a minimum physical ability of participants to be able to move around on their own, be of good health, and easily get on and off our 15 passenger Activity Buses.
Activity Level 2
In addition to Level 1 criteria, participants must be able to climb a few flights of stairs and walk up to two miles over uneven surfaces.
Activity Level 3
In addition to Level 1-2 criteria, participants must be able to participate in three to five hours of physical activity per day, and walk three to five miles over uneven ground.
Activity Level 4
In addition to Level 1-3 criteria, participants must be in excellent health, extremely mobile, and used to an active lifestyle. Program activities may require up to six hours of moderate to fast-paced activity per day, equivalent to hiking six miles over varied terrain.
Activity Level 5
In addition to Level 1-4 criteria, participants must have a high level of physical fitness, minimum levels of expertise in the program activities, and expect full days of fast-paced challenges.