Runoff Rapids POV (Blizzard Beach). http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MPBAUu_fvT8

I've let time get away from me here, but I still have hundreds of pics to post. In the meantime, here's someone else's video of Runoff Rapids at Blizzard Beach: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MPBAUu_fvT8&feature=youtube_gdata

Ignoring Summit Plummet

If you're scared of heights (or, say, dying) you might already be on board with the idea of "ignoring" the terrifying (but fun, if you ask me) Summit Plummet. This is the "drop out" ride at Blizzard Beach, and like everything else around here, it's heavily themed. In this case, the theme is the ski jump. You know, the kind of slope where the racer goes down for a while to build speed, then the ramp curves up and he's airborne for a long time until he re-meets the slope. Hopefully gracefully.

The slide is just the "down" part, though there's a fake upramp/jump (not pictured). What *is* pictured here is a family having a discussion in the viewing area. They must have been here a while. Why do I say that? Because only the one woman is watching this death-defying slide. It's hard to ignore in real life. Yet the other woman is having a conversation with the man, who is listening intently (and blowing his nose?) The family wasn't my target when taking the picture - I don't know them - but I found it an odd foreground once I saw the picture at home.

Snow makers?

It seems to be Blizzard Beach week around here.

At real ski slopes, they use nozzles to spray water in a super-fine mist into the sub-freezing temperatures, and the result is artificial snow (technically ice, but the particles are so small it's almost the same as snow).

Blizzard Beach is themed as a freak snowstorm in Florida, turned into a ski resort, but now the sun is back and everything is melting (hence the flume rides with water). There are lots of authentic touches, but one of my favorites is the snowblower. There are a couple in the teen area Ski Patrol. Obviously there's no snow here, but the fine mist of water is welcome anyway in the summer heat.

More ski lifts from Blizzard Beach

Continuing the post from yesterday we have this photo of the chair lift, from underneath. Seems to be a cloudy day, but if the sun should break through, don't worry because there's an umbrella to shield you from all those rays. The umbrella isn't too authentic to actual ski lifts, but to re-inject some realism, they've helpfully planted some fake skis to go under your feet, so you can feel like you're on the real thing.

Hey, at least it's a ride! How many water parks can boast they have a ride?

Chairlifts and Gondola

A water park uses gravity to provide propulsion down the slides. Pretty obvious statement, that. But it comes at a cost. First, you have to get UP there so you can slide down, and that pretty much means you have to walk up lots of stairs on a day at a water park. At Blizzard Beach, there's an alternative to walking up all those steps. You can wait in the line (usually 15 minutes) to take the chair lift, themed like a ski lift.

And anyone needed accommodations has an alternative, too. At the left side of this picture you'll see the sole gondola on the line.

It's neat to be on the chair lift without all your ski gear; feels weird to this ex-skier (I say "ex" because now that I'm in Florida, there's no skiing to be had!)

Sprinklers in Blizzard Beach

Here's a photo from 2006, where you can see what is essentially a river down every walkway. The idea here is to provide a pathway for people with bare feet to not get their feet so burned by the hot sun on the concrete.

They still have sprinklers, but these days they are turned off (as we saw last weekend) or turned all the way down, so the effect is much more localizaed; say, just going over a bridge.

It's a subtle effect, but a good one, and when it's not present, everyone suffers a little bit.

Walk into Blizzard Beach

It was a dark and stormy day... in 2006. What can I say? I sit on the images sometimes before I act on them. This set will take us in the walk into Blizzard Beach. Don't you wish you were there now?

We'll stop this tour at the changing room, though. We'll save the man-thongs and bikini shots for some other day!

Aquatica - Random Shots

Continuing the "start of summer" and "welcome back" vibe, here are random shots of Aquatica. I promise to offer more narratives (or at least more FOCUS) in posts after this week. It's spring cleaning, and I have to get rid of shots that don't belong.

In the meantime, enjoy!

Typhoon Lagoon Food Prices 2011

With the new season comes new prices. Here are most of them:

The refill mug now costs $10.75 per day

There's a hot dog stand near Crush 'n Gusher (it was there in previous years too).

Here are the prices for the hot dog stand:

Closer to the Sharks we have Typhoon Tilly's Snack Shack:

... and here's that menu:

Next to the Snack Stand is the similarly named Typhoon Tilly's Food and Spirits:

Where the menu is partly visual with pictures:

... and also partly just words, for the smaller items:

First Day of Summer!

Sorry for that long, unanticipated hiatus. But we're back now that summer has returned officially today. We'll celebrate with a quick glance into Typhoon Lagoon.

Apparently, the surf is up!

Let's head on over to Crush 'n' Gusher. Which line should we join? There are three.

Looks like we're in for a bumpy ride. Hang on!!