Welcome back to the farm after a long break. Unfortunately, my camera is still in the shop, so I will have to apologize for the phone photos I had to use this month. Let’s take a look at the 10th most visited theme park in North America.
HangTime
Knott’s newest coaster, HangTime, has opened to much fanfare. The coaster is a Gerstlauer Infinity Coaster (though Knott’s has been calling it a “Dive coaster”) with a top speed of 57 mph and 5 inversions. Our entire staff agrees that this is a really fun coaster with some heart-pounding moments.
Guests load into the train and then ascend a vertical 150ft lift hill. Yes, that’s straight up.
As the sun sets, the track comes alive with special effect lighting that seems to “chase” the train as it glides along the rails. It makes the ride almost as fun to watch as it is to ride . . . almost. You still need to ride this monster.
Check out Dusty taking a ride on this Infinity Coaster. At moments it looks like he’s going to die . . . until you see the smile and relief on his face at the end. We love you Dusty, but you are such a chicken. Which makes it all the more fun to watch you ride these coasters (you can see more videos of Dusty riding attractions that he’s afraid of on our YouTube channel HERE):
There’s also a beautiful mural painted on the back of the Calico Mine Ride.
Getting on the ride has been a little difficult as the queue has been about a 45-minute wait, but there is some good news for Season Passholders:
Exiting through the new Boardwalk Surf Shop, you can view your on-ride photo.
The shop is put together very well (especially compared to most of the older stores in the park).
As we move just beyond the coaster we come across some remaining construction walls…
Peeking through the fence, the ride structure for the spinner “Wipeout” has reappeared.
This spinner was displaced when the Boardwalk BBQ was completely rebuilt. The ride should be spinning again very soon.
And now, a glamour shot for Fab:
Ghost Town Alive
Ghost Town Alive has returned this year with an all-new storyline that you are encouraged to explore and interact with.
This year you’ll find that the Bank of Calico has been robbed 4 times. The first 3 attempts failed, the 4th succeeded. It’s also Founder’s Day (election day)… It sounds amazing and I can’t wait to play.
These card symbols are spread out around the land. What do they mean?
The day ends with the Founder’s Day Hoedown, which includes the winner of the election and the announcement of who stole the gold from the bank.
Knott’s won a prestigious THEA (Themed Entertainment Industry Award) for Ghost Town Alive. We are extremely pleased to see this entertainment powerhouse return for a 3rd year in a completely revamped and enhanced way. Long live Ghost Town Alive!
Soak City
Knott’s Soak City has opened for the season, so let’s take a quick tour:
Running through the center of the park is Sunset River (a classic lazy river attraction).
This is Beach House, a place for bigger kids, which features a water playground and 2 children’s slides.
Every couple of minutes, the giant bucket will spill over and splash the guests below.
It has been a few years since I have been to Soak City, so new to me this year was Longboard’s Grill. This quick service restaurant serves standard theme park fare. The good news is that this year Soak City is on the All Season Dining Pass, so eat up!
The set up reminds me of Boardwalk BBQ (updated decor compared to older establishments), just with more generic food…
They also have prepacked salads and sandwiches available.
The fresh condiment bar is a nice touch which allows you to customize your burgers and such.
Back to the slides: Old Mans Falls, body slides, Malibu Run, and tube slides.
The smaller children’s water playground: Gremmie Lagoon
Mostly babies and toddlers here.
The last two slides were added to the park last year: Shore Break, body slides.
The Wedge family tube slide. This slide replaced Pacific Spin.
Back towards the front of the park, we come across Portside Pizza. The offerings are pretty standard and are comparable to the stands over at Knott’s. Maybe Knott’s can find a way to tune up the building and the menu that is offered here.
While Knott’s Soak City is a great generic water park, with the debut of Volcano Bay over at Universal Orlando, I’m feeling a little envious. Cedar Fair has an opportunity here with this great local park to turn this into an amazing themed waterpark. I would also appreciate more attractions and definitely more shade!
Just imagine a fully themed wild-west water park! Ah, to dream.
Around the Farm
Jumping back across Highway 39, there a few more things going on in Knott’s Berry Farm.
Different Train on Track
As we come onto the Train Station we find a different locomotive out on the line. Engine 340: The Green River is now touring guests around the Ghost Town & Calico – Knott’s Scenic Route. The 340 has just come out of a years-long refurbishment and is ready to take guests to get robbed around the park.
Engine 40: Walter K. is now undergoing a multi-month refurbishment, park employees have stated that it needed this refurbishment desperately. There is a rumor going around that once number 40 comes out of refurbishment that Knott’s will alternate running the engines every day.
New Tastes
At the Refreshment Stations around the park, there are two new flavors – Strawberry Hibisus & Mango Lime. I tried both of them and they taste pretty good. So be sure to give them a try and let me know what you think.
New Shows
Starting this weekend Knott’s will be running their all-new summer stage shows.
At the Calico Mine Stage, Knott’s is presenting another new show called Calico’s Mountain Jamboree! It’s the showdown of the summer as the Timber Mountain Loggers compete against the Calico Miners! Featuring amazing stunts, energetic dancing, and toe tappin’ music, you won’t want to miss the toughest competition this side of Calico! And be sure to stick around for the “explosive” finale’ that will have the whole town talking!
The Calico’s Mountain Jamboree is only scheduled to run once per day on select nights so try not to miss it.
Also showing inside the Charles M. Schulz Theatre is Beach Blanket Beagle.
Beach Blanket Beagle is a musical dance party set to the classic beach comber tunes of the 60’s and 70’s. Join Snoopy for the best day at the beach ever! Surf, sand and music combine for a rockin’ luau featuring the finest dancers on the beach! This brand new show features real water on the stage, an indoor rain storm and eye-popping fire dancers! Catch the wave and join the world’s most favorite beagle where the surf meets the sand!
Both shows are scheduled to run on select days June 9th-August 19th. I’m excited about these new offerings and cannot wait to see both of them this weekend.
That’s it for this week from the farm. We’ll be back next week with a review of Knott’s newest entertainment offerings.