Destination Vacation: Briarwood Ranch Safari Park

Cocke County, Tenn. (WJHL) – You don’t have to travel worldwide to enjoy a safari adventure. You only have to travel an hour away from the Tri-Cities. During this week’s destination vacation, Kasey Marler takes us to Briarwood Ranch Safari Park in Cocke County, Tennessee.

Tucked in the mountains of Northeast Tennessee in Cocke County is a special gem. It’s 140 acres of up-close and personal family fun, so let’s head inside and take a look.

“I just love the moose,” said Greeneville resident Susan Coffey.

Coffey went to Briarwood Ranch Safari Park for the first time with her group from the Roby Center in Greeneville.

“I’ve never fed the animals like this before. I’ve never been to a safari, but it was so neat,” said Coffey.

The Roby Center director Nicole Rader said, “Seeing the smiles on the group’s face [and] watching the animals eat out of their hands and just the enjoyment that they had. Bringing the smiles to their faces always warmed my heart.”

It’s those smiles and laughter that keep animal caretaker Jonathan Provencher leading groups through the mile-and-a-half, hour-long trek through Briarwood.

“People like it all, I think. There is an overall experience. They enjoy it,” said Provencher.

The real stars are the 150-plus animals that have free rein through 100 acres of the park—a number that keeps growing with new babies like Lilly, a baby alpaca.

And the most prominent member of the group, the buffalo.

“I think the buffalo steal the show because people don’t expect them to be as big. You see them on TV. They don’t look as ginormous as they are until their nose is right there looking at you,” Provencher said.

In addition to the wagon, people can drive through Briarwood in their vehicles, just like Jennifer Boyd and her group from Bristol, Tennessee.

“You’ve got to be okay with your car getting dirty. Go [to] the car wash afterward, but it’s just a lot of fun with just your family. I brought my nephews, who are visiting from Arizona, and it’s an experience that I don’t think you get anywhere else, really,” said Boyd.

By wagon or car, it’s that front row access, feeding the different animals that keep the people smiling, and for people like Susan Coffey, it will keep that coming back again and again.

“It was just an experience. It was great, and yes, I’ll have to do this again,” said Coffey.

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