Continue reading »]]> Exactly seven days from this moment, Chris and I will be in the car on our way west for two weeks of visiting family and (hopefully) having a lot of fun. It takes two days to get there – assuming the weather cooperates – but we’ve always liked road trips and on the way to our destination is a stretch that I’ve never traveled.

My dad and his wife live in a small town just outside of Branson, Missouri. I grew up in Aurora, Missouri which is only an hour and a half away from Branson so I spent a lot of time in that area of Missouri when I was a kid. It’s changed drastically since the late 70′s, early 80′s, but there’s still a lot there that has been there since before I was born.

One of those things is Silver Dollar City located on top of Marvel Caverns and the only theme park (to my knowledge) whose theme is an historical one – the late 1800′s. You may have heard the town mentioned on old episodes of The Beverly Hillbillies. Here’s a little history of the real town and the theme park.

I have no idea how many times I went there as a kid but I’m pretty sure we went at least one time every summer and usually more often than that. It’s gotten larger since then, but doing some searching on the ‘net and checking out the official website, I see that it has not strayed from it’s theme and most of my favorite attractions and shops are still there.

One of those attractions is The Flooded Mine.

It’s a floating ride that takes you through – you guessed it – a flooded mine. It’s flooded because it also happens to be a prison and some of those crafty criminals did some extracurricular blasting, causing it to flood. When I was a kid, this was purely a float-through ride with no interaction. Much like Pirates of the Caribbean, all you did was enjoy the relaxing ride and watch all the goofy animatronic scenes around you. In recent years, they’ve added shotguns so you can help the Warden keep the criminals under control.

Being a purist, I don’t really like that but I’m just glad the ride is still there. One of my clearest and fondest memories of the ride is the music that’s played while you’re going through the ride. I can only hope that has not been changed. The last time I was there – over 10 years ago – it had not, meaning it had been the same for at least 20 years. That makes me hopeful that it’s still the same.

In the past decade or so, SDC has added some new, modern roller coasters such as Wildfire and Power Keg. However, the only roller coaster I’m going to make a point of riding is Fire in the Hole.

This is an indoor, dark ride in which you ride a train through a burning town. The post-civil war vigilante group, the Bald Knobbers (a real group that later turned into violent extremists), set fire to the town causing all sorts of mayhem.

Most coaster enthusiasts would probably label this ride very tame or even a kiddie ride, but even though my grandmother could ride it with no problems (despite the three dips and sprinkle of water at the end) it’s a lot of fun. Being a dark ride adds a thrill to it and for me, pure nostalgia will be enough.

SDC has two walk-through features, Grandfather’s Mansion, which is basically a fun house, and Huck Finn’s Hideaway.

At the end of one of these, and I can’t remember which, is one of my fondest memories of SDC – what I used to call the star room. All it is is a room with mirrored floors and lights on the ceiling and walls, but it always made me feel like I was floating in space.

In general, SDC is my favorite theme park because of childhood memories and the general atmosphere. Even when the park is busy, it has a laid back feel to it. Immersing yourself in the past – even if not wholly accurate – is a great way to forget the troubles of modern living. And since we’ll probably be going the day after the Election, it’ll be a great getaway.

I’m looking forward to a new section, added since my last visit – The Grand Expedition.

The Grand Exposition is supposed to be a replica of the World’s Fairs of days past. I’ve always found World’s Fairs fascinating so it’ll be pretty nifty walking through this place.

Of course, the whole place will look different to me because the park will be throwing it’s Christmas celebration. Personally, I think that’s a few weeks too early, but I don’t run the park. Even though the place will be covered in Christmas lights, I’m sure I’ll still feel all those familiar feelings, smell those distinct odors (and most of those were good, lol) and wholly enjoy myself at my favorite amusement park.

I especially look forward to stepping into the old Candle Shop and smelling my favorite smell in the world – one wholly unique to that one shop. If it’s gone, well, I guess I’ll cry.