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The 4F Trip Report
Day 12 - 08-Jul-2009 - Blizzard Beach, Caribbean Beach Resort and EPCOT
We got up quite early this morning and Marie, the kids and I went to Blizzard Beach.
I knew that I wanted to try Summit Plummet; nobody else was interested. So we agreed that the kids would play with Marie in the kids' area, and I would do Summit Plummet. That would get the kids relaxed about being in the water park (which still slightly intimidated them) and then we would meet up again and go to other parts of the park.
This, as it turned out, was a mistake.
Anyway, off I went to the cable car that took you up to the Summit Plummet queue. I joined the "fast moving" single rider queue, but it wasn't fast. Come to think of it, it wasn't even moving! After around fifteen minutes, the cast members came round saying that bad weather was on its way and so the cable car was closed. But we were still okay to walk up to the summit.
Walk? If only I'd known we could walk, I wouldn't have been waiting in this queue for all this time! Aargghh.
I walked to the top and got into the Summit Plummet queue. It was a long queue. A very long queue. And that queue was just to the base of the stairs - there was another queue there that took you to the actual start of the ride. While I was on those stairs, the rain came on and it was remarkably chilly rain. I joked with the Scottish family standing in front of me that it was so cold and wet it felt just like being at home!
However I eventually got to the top. Summit Plummet is a waterslide. But not just any waterslide... it's a big waterslide, and fast too. People come hurtling down it at over fifty miles per hour, which is faster than the human body is really supposed to go unaided!
I was wearing running shorts at the park and if asked I would have said that there was no "stretch" in them at all. Yet when I was hurtling down that water slide I am sure that the back of them managed to stretch all the way to my ears
I can certainly understand why the cast member at the top made sure I had my ankles crossed before starting... a young man could come to a lot of harm if he forgot that!
Anyway, here's a video of someone else on the water slide - it's a pretty impressive rate of descent
[youtube]JWpIVU_ydKY[/youtube]
How steep is it? It's this steep:
I got off the slide and went to find everyone else, aware that I'd been away for a while. I hadn't realised that it was over two hours, and that Jenni wasn't allowed to swim in the kiddies' pool (she's a couple of inches too tall, and unlike Typhoon Lagoon the staff weren't willing to cut her any slack). After a previous experience of getting separated in a water park, Marie wasn't wanting to go to a different part of the park from where we'd agreed to meet... the summary was that "we" decided that if I want to do any fancy rides by myself in future then I'll do them after everybody else has done what they want!
We played for a while in the pre-teens area, with the kids particularly enjoying some "Total Wipeout" themed challenges. No pictures from here, though.
Time was creeping on, so we went home and got changed. The Parents-In-Law were wanting to take the kids to Downtown Disney and spoil them there; the idea held no appeal to me. So we agreed that they would go, and I would take the opportunity to have a serious photo session of the fireworks at EPCOT.
Firstly, I had to make sure that everyone was left comfortably at home
And then, since it was still way too early for the fireworks, I went for a wander round the hotel and its grounds
Watch out for that pizza delivery van!
Where do they find the energy?
One of the "village" pools
At the entrance to the hotel, a mother leads her brood across the road
This is the main reception area of the hotel, Custom House. This is where you check in
These next two show the boat yard, where you can rent a boat
The 4F Trip Report
Day 12 - 08-Jul-2009 - Blizzard Beach, Caribbean Beach Resort and EPCOT
We got up quite early this morning and Marie, the kids and I went to Blizzard Beach.
I knew that I wanted to try Summit Plummet; nobody else was interested. So we agreed that the kids would play with Marie in the kids' area, and I would do Summit Plummet. That would get the kids relaxed about being in the water park (which still slightly intimidated them) and then we would meet up again and go to other parts of the park.
This, as it turned out, was a mistake.
Anyway, off I went to the cable car that took you up to the Summit Plummet queue. I joined the "fast moving" single rider queue, but it wasn't fast. Come to think of it, it wasn't even moving! After around fifteen minutes, the cast members came round saying that bad weather was on its way and so the cable car was closed. But we were still okay to walk up to the summit.
Walk? If only I'd known we could walk, I wouldn't have been waiting in this queue for all this time! Aargghh.
I walked to the top and got into the Summit Plummet queue. It was a long queue. A very long queue. And that queue was just to the base of the stairs - there was another queue there that took you to the actual start of the ride. While I was on those stairs, the rain came on and it was remarkably chilly rain. I joked with the Scottish family standing in front of me that it was so cold and wet it felt just like being at home!
However I eventually got to the top. Summit Plummet is a waterslide. But not just any waterslide... it's a big waterslide, and fast too. People come hurtling down it at over fifty miles per hour, which is faster than the human body is really supposed to go unaided!
I was wearing running shorts at the park and if asked I would have said that there was no "stretch" in them at all. Yet when I was hurtling down that water slide I am sure that the back of them managed to stretch all the way to my ears
I can certainly understand why the cast member at the top made sure I had my ankles crossed before starting... a young man could come to a lot of harm if he forgot that!Anyway, here's a video of someone else on the water slide - it's a pretty impressive rate of descent
[youtube]JWpIVU_ydKY[/youtube]
How steep is it? It's this steep:
I got off the slide and went to find everyone else, aware that I'd been away for a while. I hadn't realised that it was over two hours, and that Jenni wasn't allowed to swim in the kiddies' pool (she's a couple of inches too tall, and unlike Typhoon Lagoon the staff weren't willing to cut her any slack). After a previous experience of getting separated in a water park, Marie wasn't wanting to go to a different part of the park from where we'd agreed to meet... the summary was that "we" decided that if I want to do any fancy rides by myself in future then I'll do them after everybody else has done what they want!
We played for a while in the pre-teens area, with the kids particularly enjoying some "Total Wipeout" themed challenges. No pictures from here, though.
Time was creeping on, so we went home and got changed. The Parents-In-Law were wanting to take the kids to Downtown Disney and spoil them there; the idea held no appeal to me. So we agreed that they would go, and I would take the opportunity to have a serious photo session of the fireworks at EPCOT.
Firstly, I had to make sure that everyone was left comfortably at home
And then, since it was still way too early for the fireworks, I went for a wander round the hotel and its grounds
Watch out for that pizza delivery van!
Where do they find the energy?
One of the "village" pools
At the entrance to the hotel, a mother leads her brood across the road
This is the main reception area of the hotel, Custom House. This is where you check in
These next two show the boat yard, where you can rent a boat
