Opus 40 has been on my list for about a decade now. It’s a massive outdoor sculpture park near Saugerties, and every single time I’m in the area, I mean to finally go — and every single time, something gets in the way. This trip, the something was 100-degree heat and a whole lot of unshaded walking, which is exactly what Opus 40 requires. So we pivoted.
That pivot turned out to be one of the best surprises of the whole 3.5-day Capital Region trip our trip to the Adirondack Animal Land.
Why We Ended Up Here Instead
Adirondack Animal Land was only about 30 minutes north of Amsterdam Castle, where we’d spent the night, so it was an easy swap. My sister had actually been there once before, something like 15 years earlier, and remembered enjoying it. The catch: it doesn’t open until 11am, which meant we’d still be out in the heat for at least part of the day. But between the shade on the walk-through side and a decent chunk of the visit spent in the car for the drive-through, it seemed like a smart trade for a day this hot. It was.
The Walk-Through Side of Adirondack Animal Land
We started on what they call the back side, which is really more of a petting zoo — a long stretch of fenced enclosures where most of the animals come right up to greet you. The younger ones were a little more cautious and hung back.
Feed comes two ways: a $5 cup you can buy inside, or coin-operated machines scattered outside if you’d rather skip the line. Having a cup in hand made things easy — some animals you could feed directly through the fence, while others had a small chute set up so you’d drop the food in and it would slide right down into their enclosure. They clearly knew the drill and came running the second they heard food hit the chute.
We showed up right at opening, and so did a small handful of other visitors, so everyone naturally spread out along the path instead of clustering. That worked out great — for long stretches, it genuinely felt like we had entire sections of animals to ourselves.
A few highlights: my sister took one look at the emus and said they looked exactly like tiny dinosaurs, which, once she said it, none of us could unsee. My niece’s favorites were the baby goats and, somewhat unexpectedly, the capybara — she’d been hoping to see one, and they actually had it. I’d honestly never heard of a capybara before this trip. My own favorite was the giraffe, hands down.
One enclosure held a whole flock of small, brightly colored parakeets — blues, yellows, greens, constantly moving and singing. They’d only just been added for the season (we happened to visit on the second day they were open), so they were still a little shy of people. Because of that, the attendant didn’t even charge us for the feed stick — just handed it over. All three of us stood there for a solid 15 minutes, arms up, sticks out, trying to coax one over. None of them took the bait, but watching them dart just over our heads and sing the whole time made the failed attempt worth it anyway.
We spent close to two hours on this side alone before heading in.
The Gift Shop Detour
Like everyone, we ended up in the gift shop mostly for the air conditioning, and mostly stayed for it too — about 30 minutes, browsing more out of a reluctance to walk back into the heat than genuine shopping need. Somewhere in there, a stuffed animal came home with us. I’m fairly sure it was a fox; a red panda was the close runner-up.
The Safari
Then came the part of the day none of us will forget.
The drive-through safari is included in general admission, with additional feed available for purchase from the attendant at the gate, who also hands you a laminated sheet of rules before you head in. We were genuinely excited pulling up to the entrance — right up until the animals smelled the food and came galloping, walking, and trotting toward the car practically all at once.
The next thing we knew, an emu had its entire head inside the back seat. A zebra and a camel had planted themselves directly in front of the car, so we had nowhere to go. For a solid 60-120 seconds, we were somewhere between yelling, screaming, and laughing hysterically, all at the same time. It’s the kind of moment that instantly becomes a shared family memory — we’ll be telling this story for years.
Once we worked up the nerve to inch the car forward and get the emu’s head safely back outside, we finally got the window up and crept along at a much more cautious pace. More camels and zebras approaching us. We couldn’t stop giggiling.
A little further in, we passed an entire cluster of deer — dozens of them, spread out everywhere — so we rolled the windows back down and fed as many as we could reach.
Closer to the exit, we passed a massive bull? I couldn’t tell if it was real or not. But with genuinely enormous longhorns, and I was deeply relieved he kept his distance; after the emu incident, I had no idea what a spooked longhorn might do to a car, and I wasn’t eager to find out. A few more animals later, we made it to the exit, adrenaline still running.
The Verdict
All three of us loved this stop, without hesitation. A real African safari has been on my bucket list for a while — after having an emu’s head in my back seat, I’m second-guessing just how ready I actually am for that.
If You Go
- Address: 3554 State Highway 30, Gloversville, NY 12078 (in the Great Sacandaga Lake region of Fulton County)
- Phone: 518-883-5748
- Season: Open daily, typically July through August — check ahead, since hours are seasonal
- Hours: 11:00am–4:00pm, last admission ticket sold at 3:00pm
- Admission: $18 for adults, $15 for kids (24 months–12 years), free under 24 months — prices include both the walk-through and drive-through sections
- Payment: Cash only — no cards, no checks. There’s an ATM on site.
- Good to know: Hand stamps allow same-day re-entry. Pets aren’t permitted in either the walk-through or drive-through, and the drive-through is entered at your own risk for any vehicle damage — worth keeping in mind if an emu takes an interest in your car the way one did in ours.
More info: adirondackanimalland.com
Read more about this trip:
- How We Packed 3 Days Full of History & Fun in the Capital Region of NY
- Our Alpaca Hike at Clover Brooke Farm: A Walk That Might Talk You Into Buying Land
- Amsterdam Castle: Crossing “Sleep in a Castle” Off My Bucket List (Sort Of)
- Schuyler Mansion: A Founding Father’s House That Won Over a 12-Year-Old
- Secret Caverns: The Cave with a Waterfall
- 90 Minutes at the Titanic Immersive Experience
