A Writing Field Trip: The Detroit Zoo

May 2025

I have always been a big fan of Writing Field Trips. Getting away from my desk, away from my "regular" library, and foisting my imagination head-first into a new environemnt for a day is a lot of fun. The sensorial changes... the stuff you smell, hear, see, feel... it's a little like electroshock therapy to the creative process - but in a good way. It's difficult for your writing to fall into a rut of similarity when everything around you feels nothing like what you're used to. And that's kind of the point.

I always take a notebook and several pens, because I never know what the availability for electricity will be at on these trips. But this time, I also brought along my tablet and portable keyboard and mouse. I recently bought a new keyboard, and I thought I'd take it out for a spin. The battery life was longer than I expected, which was a relief (I also brought two extra batteries, just in case). I'm happy to say, I got quite a bit of writing done.

Indie Author Chelsea Gouin joined me on this trip, spent at The Detroit Zoo. The morning weather seemed a little unreliable, so to play it safe, and with the hope that Mother Nature would reward our patience with better circumstances, we began in the Penguinarium. We started in the top observation area. It was fun to see the birds standing around as if they were at a cocktail party, sans bow ties. We moved on through the Shackleton South Pole voyage experience, and underground to the viewing tubes. This is where we spent our first thirty-minute writing sprint... surrounded by water, star fish, air bubbles, and the occasional boyant bellies of Penguins swimming overhead. Yes, the cocktail party was what I wrote about in this first sprint. The image in my head was so strong, I couldn't resist.

The time went by far quicker than either of us anticipated, and we were surprised when the timer went off. We collected our writing kits and ventured back up to the viewing area again, to discover the "rocks" we throught were floating in the water were actually plastic balls for the Penguins to play with. We avoided the gift shop and stepped out into the bright sunshine. Mother Nature WANTED us to stay and write; and so that's exactly what we did.

We stopped by the Otter encapment (they were sleeping), the Beaver dam (they were hanging out inside their lodge), and onward to find a comfy bench overlooking the Camel encampment. We sat here for another thirty minutes and let our imaginations play. The Camels were begining their molt, and it seemed to me that their fur hung off them in long strips. They were eating hay, moving their mouths in a most pecuiliar way, and hanging out in small groups of twos or threes. I told Chelsea that I thought they resembled 1920s Ladies of the Night, dripping in sequined dresses, and gossiping while waiting for their next "customer." We set the timer.

Thirty minutes later, and after a brief visit with a Yorkie Terrier in a stroller named Sophia Loren, I had the second scene of what was evolving into a Mob-inspired party at a mansion in the middle of Up-State New York.

Just for the record, how that little dog got into the Zoo, I'll never know; but I'm sure her parents told a very convincing story. I tried to get a photo that really highlighted Sophia's beauty and poise, but she evaded my camera. I think she may have been offended by the intrusion of paparazzi.

We walked through the bridge of the wetlands area, with my hopes high that we would see some ducks. I was not disappointed. While we were there, we saw a bale of turtles sunning themselves on various stumps and rocks, and a mother duck with four fluffly little ones swimming around the pond. On our way out, a line of geese and several fluffy gosslings waddled past, relaxing in the afternoon sun. Clearly, it's baby time at the Zoo.

What, you ask, could possibly top the expeirience of ducklings and gosslings? Well, how about Dragons? This was a planned highlight for both Chelsea and me, devoted Dragon lovers. As we walked through the forest, we encountered lots of different types of Dragons, learned a little about their lore, and the animal at the zoo to which they might be connected. Along the path, we encountered a few "check-in" signs that asked questions, and we got to select one of three answers. At the end of the encounter, it was determined that Chelsea was a Creature Whisperer, and I was a Seeker.

This was a fun adventure, and I highly recommend that you make the trip before they fly off in September. Only two of the Dragons made me a bit squeamish because of their resemblence to snakes; and one of them, I couldn't even look at, averting my gaze and hiding the shivers I felt as we QUICKLY walked past.

The gift shop at the end of the Dragon encounter was fun... but I conducted myself with great self-control and avoided the check out line. I make no promises for the rest of the summer; I have a Zoo membership, and I'll certainly visit again. I didn't get good photos of all of the Dragons... so even more's the reason to go back! Now that I've discovered them all, I think this will be a fun forest to revisit and spend some time writing.

We avoided the repltile house for obvious reasons. But we did see a few donkeys (relocated while their old habitat is under renovation), a muster of peacocks, a flamboyance of flamingos, and we also met one very friendly peacock up close.

Our stomachs were now speaking louder than our Muses, so we stopped at the cafe for lunch and fabulous conversation about how our writing was progressing so far, other projects we were working on, other topics of craft... and fun "regular" life things. Truly, having a meal with a friend, laughing, and talking about writing is a spectacular way to spend the afternoon.

We continued on toward the Artic Ring of Life. We were delighted to see the Polar Bear out playing in the grass, but unfortunately, there weren't any benches, and no tufts of grass on which we could settle to spend writing time, so we moved on.

Next on our tour was the Chimpanzee and Gorilla habitat. This is my absolute favorite place to spend time at any zoo. These amazing animals captured my fascination when I was seven years old, and wrote a letter to then President Nixon, asking why I couldn't have a Chimpanzee as a pet. A nice person from a department of which I cannot recall the name, wrote me a letter on his bahalf and sent along a brochure about "suitable pets for children". My dissapointment was immense. Eventually, I got over it, but I never lost my love for these Incredible creatures.

Chelsea and I went inside and delighted in watching two baby Chimpanzees and a baby Gorrillia hang from ropes and play on old fire hoses. The adults (as with humans) were non-plused by the antics of the little ones; but I was mesmerized. I could have easily stayed there watching them for hours (and often have, in the past), but I knew we needed to write again. After all, that was the goal of the day. So, we found a bench outside and wrote for another writing sprint. I left my mob story behind and worked for a bit on a new flash fiction piece.

It's interesting, writing in places where people don't expect such an activity. I found it amusing to notice the strange looks sereptisiously thrown our way as parents walked past, hearding their children. It was clear we posed quite a puzzle to them. Computers and tablets at the Zoo? It's a strange thing to outsiders, I'm sure.

The day was waning, and our feet were growing tired. We walked over to the Girraffe encounter and found a bench, resting our feet, sharing stories, and laughing.

As we walked toward the train for our trip back to the front of the Zoo - we agreed we did NOT want to walk all the way back - we saw the Wildebeast. True Theatre geeks that we are, we recited lines from The Lion King; and I'm sure the looks we got, curious about our mental stability, were fully warrented. But we didn't care. After all, when you have Theatre blood in you, scripted dialogue outbursts are bound to happen.

So, the end of the day had come, and we rode the rail back to the entrance gate. The echoing screams of young children as we traveled through the dark tunnel never gets old. Chelsea and I giggled because, after all, isn't screaming in a tunnel a requirement to having a good time?

The gift shop at the end of our visit was another fun excusion, and again, I was quite proud of the fact that I walked out with the same bank balance I had when I walked in. No small feat, I assure you. Those stuffed elephants are SOOOO soft!

We parted ways at the end of the day with laughter and hugs. We missed many of the animal habitats on this trip, but that just means we'll come back at another point, and do it all over again, picking up where we left off.

The next Writing Field Trip is planned for June 28, at the Marshall M. Fredericks Sculpture Museum and Garden in Saginaw, Michigan. I've never been there before, and I'm exciited to discover someplace new and write among the art. It's free to get in, and I'm taking a picnic lunch. My hope is that Mother Nature will be happy about my visit and let me spend some time outside.

After that, a Writing Field Trip is planned for July 12; with a visit to the Toledo Zoo in Ohio, this time. Yes, Zoos are a favorite writing place for me. I've never been to the Toledo Zoo, but I hear it is worth the almost nintey-minute drive from home. It's recipricol with The Detroit Zoo, so as a member, I'm sort of obligated to visit, right? With a full zoo and an aquarium... I have no doubt that trip will end up being a multi-visit adventure, as well. Note to self; take comfy shoes.

August 30, will have us Writing at Greenfield Village (or the Henry Ford Museum, if Mother Nature is cantankerous). I've written in these spaces several times in the past and even though I'm surrounded by lots of old artifacts and environments, a day of writing in those spaces never gets old for me. Besides, I promised Chelsea I'd get that western thing I've been working on finished this year... and Greenfield Village is filled with old-timey inspiration. They also have a train.

If you'd like to join me on any of these Writing Field Trips (or suggest a place we could go to write), visit the event page of my website, RSVP so I know who to expect, and plan for a fun day of unexpected, and unconventional writing wonderment.