Driving down E. Highway 246, on my way to Solvang, CA, I casually glanced over to my right, my mind drifting and thinking of the aebleskivers that I will soon be enjoying, when I noticed large oddly shaped animals roaming the landscape. They looked almost like ostriches but I dismissed the idea that large flightless African birds would somehow be roaming the wild lands of central California. Then I spotted the sign loaming on the side of the road proclaiming OstrichLand in faded and peeling paint. I made a U-turn as soon as I could, and found myself turning into a peculiar tourist trap. For a mere $4 I was able to walk around and get up close to the ostriches and take photos to my heart content. It turns out ostriches are pretty cool looking up close as they are far away. Just don’t get too close, as they peck and bite!
Chelsea says
omg look at them! I love the angle of the (5th? 6th?) photo – the ostrich head and neck stretching down to examine your lens… totally captures their prehistoric reptilian weirdness. They are wonderful freaky birds.
Irvin says
That photo nearly cost me a camera lens! I kept on putting my camera up close inbetween the fence and the curious ostriches kept on leaning down and trying to peck at the camera. I think they were just use to people sticking food through the fence…
That said, totally worth it. They are super crazy weird. I kind of wanted to go riding on one like the Swiss Family Robinson, but the farm frowned upon that sort of shenanigans.
Chelsea says
hah!
The Suzzzz says
I love that Ostrichland has a random emu thrown in there for good measure.
Irvin says
Right? It threw me for a loop too. But apparently all large odd birds just sort of get grouped together.
Rita says
Beautiful. Just beautiful. The baby one has a head just like a baby penguin’s!
Wait–which one was an emu??
Irvin says
Do they? The babies are kind of ugly actually! The emu is the one that has the slight blue on the neck. It’s the one right under the first feet photo (maybe #7 or #8).
Rita says
Oh! That’s the one I thought looked like a baby penguin! I thought the one under that was also an ostrich but at an older, more adolescent stage (like the face grew in).
So baby emus look like baby penguins!
Arthur in the Garden! says
What?
No ostrich, emu, or rhea giant fried eggs and such?
🙂
Irvin says
They didn’t sell and ostrich eggs! At least none that I could find in the gift shop. I mean they had the ostrich egg shell that were empty for “display” purposes. but nothing that I could take home and cook. Very disappointing.
Joann says
These birds are outrageously wonderful and humorous!!! Thank you for sharing!!! It made me smile!
Michelle Ritchie | Delicious Karma says
Hilarious! And totally the kind of thing I LOVE…to find a random animal farm of some sort. I have been known to force friends (or my husband) off the road for petting and pictures. Great photos. And by the way, I think the babies are cute! 🙂
Miss Kim @ behgopa says
Yikes…I am terrified of any bird species. But nevertheless, beautiful pics! Can’t expect anything less from an award-winning photographer.
I saw one of these (or something that was very similar) running around on the I5 once driving from bay area to LA. Never seen any around that hwy, and it seemed to have migrated from somewhere else.
Deb says
What a magnificent post! Just the smile I needed today 🙂
merri says
great pics! how fun!