The Safari Club International is made up of people who enjoy collecting animal hides and mounted animals from hunting trips in which they have participated. The members of this group are also generally very knowledgeable about the various animals and can tell you something about the behavior and habitat of each animal on display. The Sensory Safari is a means through which this knowledge can be shared with blind adults, blind children, and their sighted family members and friends. Blind people have the opportunity to touch and explore the hides and mounts and to learn about each animal as they are doing so. This experience affords blind people the opportunity to gain up-close knowledge of animals they would otherwise never have the chance to examine.
Sighted people can go to the zoo and see lions, tigers, bears, and much more.
Obviously blind people can't touch such animals and therefore only know about them through models or from descriptions given by others. Sensory Safari gives them the chance to touch such creatures. This past July I went through the Sensory Safari and took my sighted son with me. He is only three years old. It was fun to be able to touch the animals and to share the learning experience with him.