Grizzly River Run

[bumbershoot]

I thought I heard from someone on this board that there was a clothes dryer in the bathrooms near GGR. Is that true?

Well my question would be....WHAT bathrooms near GRR? Only ones I know of are over on the way to the Paradise Pier area of the park and I don't recall seeing a clothes dryer in there.

 

[disneymum58]

Where do you buy the disney ponchos? Do they have a kids size? Do you think they "turn down" the amount of water during colder times of the year? I want to finally ride this but I don't want to walk around totally soaked either...

 

[sarasmom97]

Grizzly River is one of DD's favorite rides, so we just go on expecting to get wet and are pleasantly surprised if we don't

I do recommend that you put your feet up on the center bar.Your feet WILL get wet if you leave them on the floor. I HATE walking around in wet tennis shoes!

They do have free 2 hour lockers where you can put stuff that you don't want to get wet. Just be careful with the little code slip it gives you. Mine got so wet last time that I couldn't read the code; we had to find a cast member to open the locker for us, lol!

 

[Brady's Mom]

If you don't want to spend $8 for a Disney poncho - which are nice and thick and don't want the cling to you, cheap dollar store ponchos, go to WalMart. In their accessories/umbrellas section (usually by the purses) they have ponchos that come in their own little carrying bag. They have kid size and adult size and usually an assortment of colors.

They hold up pretty well, are cheaper than Disney (about $3 or $4) and we re-use them pretty frequently. We also bring a roll of clear packing tape in our suitcase in case our ponchos get ripped. Which can happen when you sit down or if someone steps on it getting on or off the ride. The tapes helps hold the poncho together if you are still going to use it.

Ask at the store right by GRR for a clear bag and they will give you one for free to hold your wet ponchos or other wet stuff.

And the closest bathroom is through the GCH entrance and right by White Water Snacks. They do have the blowing hand dryers - so if you want to at least dry off a little I would recommend them.

 

[WDBRDWLK]

one more recommendation...bring along a pair of flip flops and use them on this ride so that your walking shoes will stay dry.

GRR is one of the best rides at CA. We also stayed at GC and rode GRR first thing in the am...went back to the room to change..we looked like we were in a dunking tank for hours. Not a stitch of clothing was dry that first time... it was GREAT!

And for you ladies, do not wear white shorts or t-shirts unless you want to the whole park to see your free show! And show you will!

 

[disneynerd420]

I usually wear a poncho and while I may get a little wet, it is not intolerable. I say get some poncho's and have a good time!

 

[disneymum58]

Thanks everyone for the advice. I think we will get the Walmart ponchos and a plastic bag from the store to keep them in after they get wet. I'm looking forward to this ride because it has been closed on our past visits.

 

[Ed J]

There is no rhyme or reason to who get wet on the ride. Last month we stayed at GCH and while the chickens I was with didn't want to go on GRR I went on 7 times in a row through the single rider line while they were at the pool.

Things I learned:

If all of the drains on the floor of the raft are covered with feet the geyser will not soak the raft nearly as much as if they are not blocked.

The geyser does not blow on each boat.

The seats are dry when you get in the boat cause people take that water with them to make swamp butt (that is the technical term for a wet behind).

Guys should wear mirror sunglasses so they can enjoy the ladies who were white and not get caught .

Single rider line can take < 5 minutes from getting off a boat till your back on.

Going on more than 5 times you'll be as wet as if you jumped in a pool.

Keeping your feet up on the foot rail will prevent them from being soaked if not wearing quick drying shoes (I found crocs to be the best choice).

People boo at people who wear ponchos.

It is almost the exact same ride as the one in AK in WDW, it's loads of fun for all ages

 

[bumbershoot]

I have NEVER had someone boo at me/us for wearing a poncho. Usually people who might have not noticed all the drenched people exiting the ride see me put it on and look a bit questioning, like "hmm, she's a bit overcautious", then they get to the loading part and they see all the drenched people and they look like they are thinking "ooh maybe she knew about that", then people on the raft with me kind of revel in not wearing a poncho...and then many of them get SOAKED, and they WANT my poncho.


Now I'm not saying that ponchos keep you from getting wet at all! Oh no! If you sit down on it wrong, or if you are busy keeping your purse-with-camera (that you took b/c you could not, for the life of you, find those hidden in plain site lockers) under the poncho and ignore your leg next to the "door" opening, or if the water sprites just decide to get you...you'll still be dealing with some water. It's just...you're not necessarily going to have the wet tshirt issue or the "I wet my pants" look.

 

[blackjackdelta]

Not everyone gets drenched, but whether you get wet or not is part of the adventure. It is a blast to ride and the best at night.

Jack

 

[toby78]

we have ridden grr many times and never have gotten soaked, we barely got wet, it was bearable, especially in the warm california sun, we dry pretty quickly, especially the end of this month, it should still be warm.

 

[daneenm]

We are staying at the GC - isn't Grizzly River Run really near this hotel? I was thinking that we could just ride it a few times and then go back to our room to change???

Exactly what we do! FP it and leave it for last. Then make a bee-line back to your room to change. Works great!

 

[bumbershoot]

we have ridden grr many times and never have gotten soaked, we barely got wet, it was bearable, especially in the warm california sun, we dry pretty quickly, especially the end of this month, it should still be warm.

Lucky! Especially the drying quickly part! Definitely not our experience.

 

[mmmears]

My DD and DH can ride this one again and again. Sometimes they barely get wet (pretty rare, though), and sometimes they are completely drenched. You can't really predict it, unfortunately. They usually go on it 4-5 times in a row or until they are completely soaked then we go to the GC (where we stay) and change clothes.

Honestly, I don't think you should count on them NOT getting soaked, since there is a definite chance of getting really, really wet, even if you ride it only once.

 

[zukeeper]

It was over 100 degrees when we got SOAKED on GRR, and yet my jean shorts stayed wet all day. Not fun! I claim that the ride has more potential for getting wet in the summer. I'm sure the geyers never sprayed like that in the winter!! My husband says I'm completely crazy, but I maintain there is also more water in Splash in the summer so you can get wet easier. I guess I'll have to return in 6 months to due a scientific study.

 

[kari12177]

We were there in Jan and got pretty wet, no geyser hit us, but I again got hit by the waterfall. But this time I wore jeans.

 

[queenie82]

It was over 100 degrees when we got SOAKED on GRR, and yet my jean shorts stayed wet all day. Not fun! I claim that the ride has more potential for getting wet in the summer. I'm sure the geyers never sprayed like that in the winter!! My husband says I'm completely crazy, but I maintain there is also more water in Splash in the summer so you can get wet easier. I guess I'll have to return in 6 months to due a scientific study.

I'm pretty sure you are right. I've always been told at Universal, Six Flags, Disney and directly from the manager at our local theme parks that there are summer and winter settings for rides you get wet on.

I'm so glad we are staying at VGC this time so I can ride heaps, get completely saturated, and then duck in for a quick change before returning to the park

 

[Pixie_Dust]

We were there on Sept. 2. The FP was shut down and the CMs did not tell us there were lockers. We did not know there is no place in the middle of the raft to store your gear relatively water safe like on Kali. Fortunately we had put all electronics in ziplocs while we were in line. I had also changed out of my sneakers into flip flops (DH was carrying a backpack that had plastic bags in it for that purpose), as I would not want to be walking in drenched shoes and socks. We have used ponchos on Kali, but as this was very hot weather I think if I were trying to stay in the park I might experiment with a cinch sack garbage bag with the bottom cut open as a "skirt," since getting the top portion wet is not as bad as getting your seat completely soaked (unless you are concerned about your hairdo - but we wear hats to avoid a deluge on top of our heads - although I suppose there could be bra chafing concerns as well if walking around with one's top all wet). Of course we got drenched, as we almost always do on Kali, but we were going back to the hotel after so I didn't care. Otherwise I would not have liked walking around with wet underwear.

 

[redboxcar]

Not everyone gets drenched, but whether you get wet or not is part of the adventure. It is a blast to ride and the best at night.

Jack

I second going on this ride at night. It is colder when you get wet, but it's sooo fun in the dark!

 

[Chris420]

This is one of my favorite rides and will definately ride it over and over, but there is nothing you can do be 100% safe from getting soaked. I tried a poncho on my last trip, and while it worked the first few times, one of my trips down the water found its way in and I was drenched, I looked as if I hadn't been wearing a poncho. I recommend the locker for valuables, wear fast drying clothing, and the poncho can help but no guarentee and if ya do get wet, just look at it as part of the fun