Visit Jersey Zoo – and stay the night
It’s easy to sell glamping with animals to the kids but a more sceptical dad is also won over – particularly by the ‘deep connection’ with other species
As the sun sets, a perplexing array of sounds waft over the gently sloping meadow of our campsite. As well as the chaffinch’s call, there’s a curious tap-tap-tapping; beyond, a bird with a sore throat is imitating a donkey; then there’s a hoot, a laugh and a furious chattering argument.
After two nights, we identify the noises. The tap-tapping is wild red squirrels, which open wooden feeders on the old oaks around us. The “donkey” is a white-naped crane, the hoot is a howler monkey, and the arguments are between the lemurs that curl their tails around the trees just beyond our tent.