bert425

a few more pics from the Evening at Holiday Park (until I can get time to post the daytime update). happy riders, about to ride back row on Expedition GeForce. and yes, the airtime back there is amazing. Happy TPR riders, getting rides in before the rain starts: and my last ride before calling it due to rain. . .I'm in row 6, my face is covered by my hand protecting from the rain (that HURTS when it hits you going fast on a coaster). . LOL but many of these folks braved the rain and rode it over and over until soaking wet. Hopefully will be able to get next update ready in next few days. Unfortunately, life kinda got in the way a bit. . . but working on improving things, and hope to update soon.

if they're anything like the ones at SWSA? (and I assume they are all coming from same supplier perhaps?) . . they were pretty strong. Was feeling it after the 3rd.

really nice report. I honestly had no idea that "Monster Stomp" is a packaged show. . .costumes, sets, and show are exactly the same as in the other parks? for some reason, I never even considered that! pretty cool, actually.

^ just my 2cents: Cliffhanger gets VERY rattly if the train is not completely full. I don't understand that one myself, other than that since it's a new 7 seat design, it throws off the balance? I've ridden over a dozen times now, and I've had rattly rides, but only when the train is less than 1/2 full (and you said it was a slow night). My favorite seat is back row, station load side - you almost touch the ground in that last helix, and it makes it more thrilling (plus a TON of airtime in the back row on the drops). as to the houses? I'd never done any of the Six Flags Houses before - other than the permanent Voodoo one during the Mardi Gras event. As such, I didn't notice several of them are the same as prior years. so to ME? Buried Alive and RockKill were impressive (as I didnt' know they were the same or some things didn't work). I also praised CarnEvil, and even said that for what it is, the 3D effects are quite good. exact same impression of the new house tho. . just lots of torn sheets and smeared blood/poop. . . tho we were there on a Sat. night that was packed, so the house was crammed full of scare actors. So that one was way less about the props, and more about the physical actors in our case, tho I too thought it was "meh" in terms of house design. They DID hide that arcade area well tho!

^ Best part of those figures? the interchangable heads. . so you can display them with the creatures killing the kids, and coming from the masks! awesome.

buy the quick queue? the calendar doesn't go out into 2023 yet, so no firm price, but expect to be ~$90 for a Friday in Jan.

Day 4, part III - we shortly arrived at the Hotel Löwengarten in Speyer, Germany and got checked in and settled into the room. the view from our room. . . the rain had stopped completely. . (it had been drizzling when we got to the hotel), so a group of folks was going out to explore the town's nightlife (a couple of groups actually). . tho one group of folks seemed more interested in the local pub rather than just food I synced up with mostly the folks I had hung around with all day, plus a couple of others, and we set out to wander the streets and find someplace for dinner. a bunch of pics while we wandered around this beautiful German town looking for a place to eat: really loved the architecture around here! ooo. . a central square. This looks busy, and promising. straight ahead was a place that seemed to be a local brewhouse that also had food. we headed that way to take a look at what was offered, and see what kind of food. the menu looked really good, so we decided to try it out. The owner (nor staff) spoke very little English, but he was thrilled to have a group come in on what was a rainy evening and I'm sure kept folks in. the group of us tonight. clockwise Ltr: Ian, Jon, James, AJ, Ryan, Andrew, and myself and we were being blessed (I think?) by this guy in the alcove over our tables luckily Ryan spoke enough German to get us seated, and to translate what some of the offerings were (some of us also used google translate on the menu) While most went for Beer -- I mean, we were in Germany - I'm not a big Beer fan, so went for a Riesling. the owner asked me if I wanted small or large, so I said large. yup. .this is what came out. . a TUMBLER of Riesling. and yes, I was absolutely feeling it by the end of the meal. .LOL Cheers!!! I had munched at Tripsdrill, and at Holiday Park, and wasn't super hungry, so I did the Octopus appetizer. it was absolutely amazing, one of the best things I had on the trip, and grilled just perfect! James had, I think, one of the Schnitzel varieties (as did several others) tho I think Ian had a pita ? (in Germany?) but oh yes, we saved room for desert. . I mean. . . . I had the Apfelstrudel. . . it was SO good. and so rich, I recall sharing it with folks. the owner came over after our meal and brought us several rounds of shots. they were licorice flavor (which i *hate*). . but since he brought them as a gift, I went ahead and drank it. . .then he brought over another round for the table. they were gifts, as he was happy to have tourist customers, so we sucked it up and drank them (tho those that don't drink passed along the shots to others, since it's rude NOT to take them). i think the 1st one might have been Underberg, since that's a liquor that promotes digestion . . yes, I looked up "German liquor that tastes like licorice". . . I was most definitely feeling my tumbler of wine (and the shots) as we made our way back to the hotel - as it was finally getting dark. (not many pics, as they came out blurry. . gee . . I wonder why????? ) but I made sure to take a pic of this tiny fairy door - near someone's normal sized front door - as we passed by. and tons of cigarette machines. . on almost every corner. the amount of stickers on it was very punk tho, and pleased me finally getting up to the room, and ready to crash after a long day, I finally remembered to snap a pic of the room: Decent size, and comfy beds. . we were only here overnight tho, as we checked out in the morning prior to heading back to Holiday Park to enjoy the full park. decent size bathroom and enough space to spread out - even if just overnight. drunk bert, with nose strip on to prevent snoring (James said it doesn't work. . LOL. . but hey, I was tipsy), sending a good night pic home to Nick () and then turned in for the night. it had been a great day, and we still had so much of the trip left ahead of us!

. . starts planning trip to Great Adventure next August. . . .

oh. .the "scary' swag I got from the TCM Gas Station store: the pumpkins spin! bwaaaa-haaaa-haaaaa the rotor spins! a gift from Amy. . she saw me eyeing it and bought it for me!!!

I know I'm in the middle of my massive Trip Report on the trip I took to Europe hitting parks and having fun with TPR. . . but interrupting that to gush about this fantastic thing I did last night. and hey, 'tis the season, right? my friends have been really trying to keep me pretty occupied, so I don't go under due to the grief of losing my spouse back in July. With Halloween quickly approaching, they've been booking me up every Weekend - with last weekend at FrightFest at SFFT, and two weeks before that Howl-O-Scream at SWSA. although I've lived in Austin for well over 35 years, I still have yet to do some of the "local" attractions that have popped up over the last couple of decades. (tho I'm really looking forward to COTALand opening up, as I'm sure I'll do that a LOT once they get more out there - tho I did go to the track/COTA occasionally with my late spouse for races and/or concerts). what made me think of COTA (Circuit of the Americas)? Well, it's F1 weekend here in Austin, but we also passed it last night on our way out to Scream Hollow. I'd seen Scream Hollow mentioned on the Travel Chanel, but wasn't really sure what it was, other than a "spooky" attraction. A haunted house for Halloween. Well, I was certainly mistaken. Located ~35 minutes from Austin, between Bastrop & Smithville - down a long, pretty deserted looking road (that passes right in front of "the Gas Station". . . where they filmed scenes from the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre - and has been turned in to Slaughter BBQ & gift shop - so of course we stopped in there too on the way. . .LOL) is what's basically a permanent "Ren-fair" installation that's basically a theme park dedicated to all things "scare the shit out of you" the official tag for the place is "Wicked Halloween Park" - but I think my description better sums it up. The owners live in a big castle (spookily lit at night) that overlooks the property. And it's quite a large property - encompassing a Halloween Museum, several food stands, drink stands, gift shop, stage for live music, 4 very large houses, and a common area that's decked out in scary decorations & lights - not to mention the scare actors roaming freely among the patrons, very often scaring the crap out of them by sneaking up behind. tho I called it a "theme park" the only "ride" they have is the Haunted Hayride - which is groups of 20 or so pulled behind a tractor thru the woods as creatures come at you from all sides. It's brilliant, and had the longest line of the night (at about a 30 minute wait, and was still worth it). . . but damn this place is super immersive. You aren't allowed to take pictures or film inside the houses, and although I did get permission from the owner's Son, when i was introduced to him by my friend Amy (who is the one who really convinced me to go last night), I only took a few in the houses. Because really. . you need to experience them yourself. the Four houses are all really well done, with tons of long dark hallways, really impressive "gotchas" sprinkled thruout, my overall impression? Food: what we had was really good - tho they were out of a few things, and as it got later in the evening, and the place hit capacity (think the Manager told me it was 3000), many food items on the menus were sold out. Oh, we still found stuff to eat (the voodoo fries - french fries covered in Queso, pico, and brisket were fantastic, and are a great "sponge" to sop up an alcohol drank). And the Pizza seemed really popular and was still selling right up until closing time. the prices are super reasonable too. But if you are gonna eat, eat early if possible - maybe the 1st hour they open, but before the houses really open. Drinks: well below "park" prices, with water and soda only $2, and most drinks/beer in the $6 range. I didn't notice any mixed drinks - but there are several bars, and it wouldn't surprise me if at least one of them was pouring by hand. . . tho vast majority of the crowd was drinking Beer, or canned Margaritas (surprisingly quite good), or Cider (locally made. . the Honey Cider is so good!). the Haunts themselves/Scare actors: As many places are these days ? They are very short staffed - resulting in only a few scare actors in the houses (that should have over a dozen - there were tons of nooks and crannies where I would think a scare actor would hide to scare guests). But that means way fewer jump scares and you can enjoy the long (and really detailed) effects in the houses. Each of the 4 main houses has at least one stand out feature that makes that house worth going thru. and these are not "quick" houses - each one took at least 12-15 minutes to go thru. And in *more* than one of them, we got lost and had to backtrack to find the correct way to go in order to move forward - while a scare actor watched us from above and taunted/laughed at us. the only place there were "enough" scare actors is on the Haunted Hayride, which is where they clearly needed to put the most - it's a very large area - and they have been promoting as a new attraction (the storyline on the Haunted Hayride involved the Wendigo in the woods that has been killing people). So no issue at all with the lack of "in house" scares. . I still feel like we absolutely were terrified in each house, at least a few times. It’s a good time Entertainment: as noted, there are some scare actors roaming the grounds oustide of the houses, but the biggest entertainment aspect is right at the front of the property - next to the main bar/food stand: a stage with live music. That has a DJ spinning between sets, so there's always music coming from the front of the grounds. I saw quite a few folks dancing out on the floor in front of the state, so people really seemed to like it. Price: tho you can buy a ticket for just admission, or just admission and one attraction. . . the way to go is the combo ticket. Which we got on Saturday night. For only ~$40, you get access to the grounds (pretty cool on their own), all 4 houses, and the haunted hayride. That comes out to less than $10 a house. it's really a steal, and no wonder they hit capacity almost every night. So yeah, get your tickets online to ensure you can get in! best part? Tho they are only open from Mid-Sept thru end of year on certain days? the weekend after Halloween, they do "Scream Hollow: Pitch Dark Experience" - where the houses all operate with NO LIGHTS AT ALL. (the one that's mostly dark was already terrifiying. . I'm excited, and really considering going back for this event to do them all in the dark). and then in December? they do an Overlay of the houses/park for "Twisted Christmas" - hosted by Krampus. I'm *absolutely* going back for that. this place doesn't get near enough publicity, for as great as it is. . so that's partly why I wanted to write up a Trip Report on it. if you're in Texas, anywhere near the Austin area (tho some of my friends that met up with us last night came from San Antonio. . so still not too far) - this place is WELL worth a visit. now.. on to some pics! where we were going (snagged from online. . just so y'all have the website in case you wanted to check it out) Stopping at "the Gas Station". . where they filmed a key part of Tobe Hooper's original "Texas Chainsaw Massacre" inside, is not only a place to order BBQ. . but a fantastic gift shop, filled with all things scary! the main group of folks I met up with for Scream Hollow in the Gas Station gift shop. (Clockwise from the front: Amy, me, Russell, Spy, Paige) a short trip down a deserted dirt road, into a massive field (free parking!!!). . and we were at the gates shortly before open. Gates open ~6:40pm, houses open at dusk ~7:40pm OPEN. . .time for food and drinks! but first let's check out the place the museum is a $9 upcharge, so didn't go into that (tho will on the next visit. . . it was my first time there, so wanted to do all the included stuff first, and knew it was a sold out night. . so focused on haunts, food, and drink tonight. And meeting folks that Amy knew thru Thrill Seekers United - several of whom work at Scream Hollow as fear actors, or were driving down from San Antonio to meet up with us. as mentioned..it's a permanent installation, even if not open year round. . you can see what I meant by comparing it to a Ren-faire. the mens urinals are "themed" LOL what's this? I feel like I'm being watched while I'm peeing (the sign outside DID say the bathrooms are "under surveillance" HAHAHAHAHA. . brilliant!! and I'll bet it freaks out a drunk or two every night. . . ok. . twist my arm. . will get some food and drink. NOTED! the Igor dog. . .and the amazing Honey Cider (that I really didn't *need* 5 of. . but damn were so good. The cider, I had 5 ciders. . only one wiener) the four "houses" are all at the end of the main entry walkway: the entrance to Sinister Circus. not open until dusk, so the scare actors/ticket takers, mingle with guests out front. oh hell yes. . I love me a throne! Mansion of Terror House: Mansion of Terror on the left, Wicked Darkness on the right Asylum house a better view of Wicked Darkness. . . .won't spoil any of the houses, but they are NOT kidding when they say darkness. this is one of the houses were were completely lost in, and a scare actor friend had to come direct us on the right path. . LOL two of the bars. . tho the one on the left also sells the hot dogs. on the far right is the pizza place. any good Halloween Attraction needs a black cat. this is Salem peeking into the Halloween Museum I really did like many of the shirts and most of the merch they have avail. . but I did NOT need another T-shirt, so settled for a pic of this one. free roaming scare actors. . tho it was starting to get dark, and the houses were about to open. first more drinks tho. . (the fangs were the "fun" gift if you ordered Margaritas. . which some in our group did) Adrian. . a new friend I met last night, and a boss (and scare actor) at Scream Hollow. he was dressed as a dead/demon Victorian girl doll? LOL.. I dunno, but it was creepy. very effective! yeah. . we're a bit buzzed now. . not bad, but just enough to start heading to the houses! just look how amazing this place starts to look at night! Live music already going near the front gates/bar. an Electric Chair photo op? Don't mind if i do. . .. starting to get busy. . let's hit the houses Paige is a giant scaredy cat. . . Russell had a ball sneaking up on her all night and scaring the pee out of her (and Amy). . . managed to catch this pic, while Paige is completely oblivious! the lines for the houses are all out in the open. . with the lighted trees being VERY effective in setting atmosphere. inside the houses are probably 80% indoors, with some outdoor sections connecting the buildings, as the houses all have multiple buildings to wind in and out of. and take her anywhere. . . one of the few indoor pics I took - all from Sinister Circus (and yes, had permission to take/post. . but not posting many, because don't want to spoil). but look how well done! our friend Erica showed up, as we were getting in line for Asylum. and more of our friend (this time from Houston) showed up NOTED! and ignored - cant turn this fabulous flame off! in front of the Horror Mansion house. It's over in a dark corner of the queue..but my night vision camera lights it up. . . and it is. . . ummmm. . maybe a bit awkward. that face! yup. . can def. tell they hit capacity! That's Kelly behind me making the face when I took this picture. I didn't know her, but she thought I didn't catch her making the face and was trying to photobomb my pic. I took it anyways, and when we passed her in the queue a few moments later, I asked her, her name. "why?" - oh, because I want to call you by name when I post the picture you were making the face in "I didn't make any face" - yes you did, in the picture I was taking, but you thought I didn't notice? "I didn't" -- shows her picture -- I'm going to do a trip report and use this pic, so I want to note your name. (sorta embarrassed I called her out, I think) "oh. . . . Kelly" LOL Wicked Darkness. . probably my favorite house. almost Pitch Black in there.. . for 15 minutes. . wandering a meandering trail, in the dark. loved this one. random scar actors mingling in the main square the entrance to the hayride LOL.. forgot about this. . . . in the Sinister Circus line.. with a clowns rubber chicken Tractors pulling trailers thru the woods, while attacked by zombies and wendigos. . . . so good! Adrian even joined us on our hayride. can't take him anywhere either. . . and then we hung out and drank and munched on Voodoo fries until it hit midnight, and they told us "you don't have to go home, but you can't stay here' one of the staff was wearing the Twisted Christmas shirt. . that one I DO want to buy. so *have* to go back for this in Dec. hope you enjoyed the pics. it's a great place, and I can't believe it took me THIS long to discover it. I'll certainly be a return customer.

^ During the Summer Six Flags parks (for the most part) are like Carnival Cruises without the Hairy Chest Contest

oh. . before Part III. . the swag from Tripsdrill: my Shot glass that I used for wine sample: the shotglass I was gifted as an extra souvenir (from James, I believe). . there were several options that were handed out. and the two magnets I picked up. . still not at a park yet with larger size shirts (that I liked enough to buy) yet. . . lenticular. . it moves when you tilt it.

Day 4, part II - evening rides on Expedition GeForce at Holiday Park! the sky is starting to look a little angry (Andy!!!) . .but we made it here to Holiday Park. .and we quickly made our way towards the front gate to meet our park guide it didn't look too busy up here, by the impressive front gates. . but then again, it was fairly late in the day (I think around 5?), and the park closed shortly. artsy shot of the drop tower thru the front gates soon enough, we were in the park, and being led back to the tell-tale orange track of this famously brilliant coaster - the crown jewel of this park: Expedition GeForce the ride is sponsored by a local rock station, and there was some pretty heavy music playing over the speakers in the station (if I recall, Metallica, W.A.S.P. , Slayer, etc) oh. and yeah, it lives up to it. . this ride was SO good. TONS of airtime, and that first angled drop? in the back? amazing. Intamin goodness, and proud of it! it doesn't look too intimidating. . but oh my, what a great ride full of airtime hills, and that speed. TPR got a bunch of rides in before the sky decided it was gonna start raining. taking a break to go to the bathroom. yes. . the toilet over here by GeForce is actually called the "Pipi station". . . . wheeeee! cant' recall his name, but here's a pic of our park rep/guide . . and Andy looking guilty for the coming downpour once it REALLY started coming down, several of us abandoned the coaster (we'd gotten multiple rides already, and were gonna be back in the park tomorrow). we put on our parkas, and huddled for cover under a covered portion of the queue. . . while a few of the more enthusiastic enthusiasts on the trip, braved the pouring (and stinging) rain, to keep riding. the park kept running the coaster for those who wanted to keep riding. . .even tho they all came off *completely* soaked. Here's Robb headed to join us under the shelter, and modeling the TPR Parka that many of us made use of. eventually, the ERT time (and the rain ended). . and we all made our way back towards the bus. . thru an eerily deserted (and very wet) Holiday Park. we'd be back tomorrow morning! but for now, it was past 7pm, and it had been a long day. We headed back onto the bus for the short drive to Hotel Löwengarten in Speyer, Germany. we had to unload the bus, check in, and it was still early enough (and the rain had stopped) that we had time to head out into the town to explore a bit - and find something for dinner. to be continued in part III with pics of the town, and the lovely brewhouse we found for dinner. .

the masturbating idols get blue balls. . .it's perfect

^ I think it's hysterical. . .LOL if they sold a magnet of puking guy (lenticular, like they do with the Maypole), I'd TOTALLY have bought it.

HIGHLY recommend the San Antonio Zoo for a 1/2 day as well. . it's a great zoo, and coupons avail. on line. also? assume you'll have a car? make the ~45 minute drive to Seguin to ZDTs Amusement Center (it's basically a glorified Malibu Gand Prix). . but they have the worlds only wooden Shuttle Coaster in Switchback. . and it's WELL worth the drive for just that (tho they have a few other rides there too). https://www.zdtamusement.com/

lemme adjust comment on Karacho. and 100% agreed on that Vekoma. .it was SO good!

there's no "off season" SFFT and SWSA are year round parks. (there might be weekend ops only, but probably will be open during the week for Mardi Gras stuff anyways) bad weather has nothing to do with coaster ops at Fiesta.. it's all going to depend on how windy it is. As it's in a quarry, if it's windy, several of the coasters will go down. but they often get everythign back up anyways. as to weather? it's Texas.. . unless we get another freak snowstorm like two years ago? It will be in the 50s or 60's and temps won't impact ride ops.

Day 4, part 1: Tripsdrill ! so this day was the earliest "up and out" of the entire trip. . .we had a very full day ahead of us: leaving Europa Park at 6am, spending a good chunk of the the day at Tripsdrill, and then heading out to Holiday Park in the afternoon for some night-time ERT on Expedition GeForce! so we were all up and in our hotel lobby bright and early. can't say that I was super perky, but I still stopped to snap a pic of the beautiful chandelier in the hotel lobby at Europa Park. and then we got the bus loaded up, and said goodbye to Rust. . and headed out towards Tripsdrill. the Countryside is very pretty. . I had to keep reminding myself we were in Germany, and not France any longer. (less windmills) and before too long. . in the middle of rolling green hills, and beautiful farmhouses, we made a turn and I spotted this sign: and moments later? this. a brand new, suspended Vekoma rollercoaster peeking thru the trees. (with the "spike" of a shuttle coaster sticking up in the middle of it???) we made it here for park open - before park open, actually. . . but shortly, the park folks met the group, and led us over to the newest ride in the park (the above coaster) This is the station for Volldampf - the shuttle coaster that has the red track. we'd come back to this in a bit, but yeah, my eyes hadnt' been playing tricks on me - the family Boomerang shuttle coaster "Volldampf" does interact quite closely with the Vekoma suspended. . . intertwining with it and making an excellent (and exciting) option for those too small (or too scared) to ride the bigger, suspended coaster. a better look at that "spike" from the shuttle coaster, poking thru the center of the new Vekoma the front of the train has a terrified sheep hanging onto it . . .LOL but we were mainly here for this. . the newest Vekoma Suspended: Hals Uber Kopf - I believe they said it opened in 2021. tho I'm not exactly sure what the theming was - this was a weird park, and I loved the hell out of it! - much of the theming here SEEMED to be set around German folk tales? So probably something to do with that? 7 guys slaying a bear? not sure how it tied to a suspended coaster with a few inversions. . but it's still a great coaster! and I love how the queue brings you thru the structure. I was a bit wary about riding what I knew was a Vekoma. . . but I absolutely adored that they have the park name/logo on every row hanging between the seats. really COMFORTABLE seats too. wheeee!!! what did I think of it? AMAZING. . and I think my favorite coaster in the park (tho there were some rides in the park that absolutely make this a must visit park). This coaster in particular? high on that "must visit" list - it has AIR TIME! Yes. . . Airtime. On a Suspended coaster! on a VEKOMA Suspended coaster. so smooth, and fun, and so many great elements. . .color me super impressed. and look at that near miss with Volldampf track right here. . . (we were the only ones in the park at the moment, so no chance right now to get the trains together) tho later in the day when we came back to ride again? did manage to get the Boomerang with people on it. speaking of Volldampf. . . after our morning ERT rides, the park had just opened, and the Park Reps walked us over to Volldampf to give TPR a ride. the seats were comfy, and the atmosphere on this is so incredible (since you're moving in and out of the other coaster). . but at the end of the day? it's a family Boomerang, that is really just kinda "meh" . . which is fine, as the Vekoma is so A+ level. since I see Brad and AJ on this train with me, this pic must be courtesy of Elissa or Robb. backwards thru the station. this park is not only full of charm (and WTF is this stuff????). . but also there were a bunch of these 3D illusion "street paintings" thruout the park. not sure if these are permanent installations, or just for a special event and they just happened to be there. . but these were so great (even if some of the illusions worked better than others) oh, I mentioned some WTF stuff in this park? how about this game: you shoot eggs out of a chicken's ass into the open mouths of the villagers (and donkeys). yeah. . . . of COURSE I loved it! the park reps were walking us back to the rear of the park - stopping along the way to ride Rasender Tausendfüßler (Raging Millipede?) the longest coaster train I've ever been on! (pics in a moment). . but that was just a quick stop along the way back to Karacho. . the park's "Smiler" clone (at least I think that's what they told me, it's a clone) EDIT: per Elissa below, it's not a Smiler clone, but it IS similar to Smiler in places it's right across the courtyard from Mamut. . . I LOVED this test seat. yes. . this is the test seat for the trains! speaking of. . these trains are incredible. . . I was glad we got some "ERT" on it, as it was one train ops . . but wow, what a train it is! I mean. . look at this! tho for me? the highlight is this animatronic guy placed in the exit queue. as the train unloads, and the riders exit? he's triggered. . . HAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHA. . . brilliant, right? Pic courtesy of, I think, Brad. what did I think? well, having never ridden Smiler, I had no idea what to expect. (in particular that 1st surprise in the dark after leaving the station). I liked it. due to the 1 train restriction, I think I only rode it twice, but I did enjoy it, and if that Vekoma wasn't in the park, this would easily be the #1 coaster here. Apparently this sign is infamous. . but I needed to pee anyways by this point, and it made me laugh, so I snapped a pic of it. and just LOOK at this view - out the windows over the urinal - one gets while peeing. This flat is back over here in this area as well. . I didn't realize until after I got back and saw some posts here on TPR from other parks, that this ride is just an "out of the box" one. . but I was impressed with the theming when we saw it. no time to ride it now, as we had to head over to Mammut. . but will come back shortly! This coaster really does look quite impressive. . and apparently it's the only Wooden Coaster ever built by Gerstlauer. the queue line is also filled with mannequins and animatronics. . .very well themed. Tho after riding a couple of times, I wasn't quite sure what the theme was really? A haunted lumber Mill? The trains seem to go to hell at one point in the course. the train design is fantastic tho! I really did like the uniform. . but yeah. . some eye-candy and the older operator saw me ask him to take a selfie and said : "pose with him!!!" so I did the train, the station, the look of the ride is all great. The ride itself? just kinda . . . "meh". . . it doesn't really do anything. It just kind of meanders, and doesn't have any forces at all. . no laterals, no air. . it's just kind of there. I guess that's why it's a one of a kind? but the animatronic section that kicks off the ride in the lumbermill prior to the lifthill was fun. it's a wooden coaster.. wasnt' terrible, wasn't great. . . .but I rode it a few times. (which may, or may not, have had to do with the operators ) Pic courtestly of Elissa I believe. next up we headed over to G'sengte Sau, the park's Bobsled. and a historic as it's the first coaster every built by Gerstlauer it weaves in and out of the "castle" and has some fun airtime hills built into the landscape. and of course, some fun theming and animatronics/mannequins in the queue line (a theme here at this park) whee! Not sure whom these are by, but they seem like Brad pics. . or possibly AJ or Andy ? I guess not Andy, since I took this pic with him in it. . LOL more "illusion" street art. and we met up with @Pedrinhoand his family who came out to meet up with Robb & TPR at the park. . and we ended up riding this with them (tho his son did NOT want to share a car with me. . LOL) Was still great to meet him and his family. . we then crossed back over the courtyard for the park's infamous (that I wasn't aware of at the time) flume ride. wait. .the logs in the log flume are bathtubs? HA!!! I love this this pic is courtesy of AJ, if I'm not mistaken. and if I look freaked out? it's not because I was worried about getting wet. . it's because just before the drop, the ride brings you thru some bathhouses full of nekkid women. . . bewbs EVERYWHERE. . . some of them on young, pretty girl mannequins. . . and some of them hanging low to the ground on elderly, chubby, mannequins. I was traumatized I tell you! and nobody on the trip *warned* me what was about to happen! (I think it was karma from the universe that I had been enjoying the eye candy earlier at Mammut). since was already wet from the flume. . we headed across the courtyard for the park's rapids ride, that looked like it would get one pretty soaked. but it's a beautiful park (I say again) and some nice views of Karacho from the rapids ride queue. . .which was themed to Washing Clothes (I dont' seem to have any pictures. . but it was the "history" of washing in creeks, and then barrels, and then washing machines. the ride ultimately didnt' get us any more soaked than we already were from the bathtub flume. . so give it a ride if you're at this park. here's a pic of the park map. which really doesn't do the park justice. . there are SO many things. . crammed everywhere. .that the map makes the park look pretty small. Could have easily spent another full day here.. there's just that much to do! (and I haven't even talked about the WFT walkthru stuff that I'll get to soon) More street illusion art can't recall what this is a pic of?. . . but I'm guessing an animatronic show that is triggered when folks walk by in front? and I THINK this was the entrance to Rasender Tausendfüßler. . it looks overgrown and scary. . so I'm guessing so. never been on a train this long, and this is a double figure 8 layout. . that they sent us thru four times (if I'm not mistaken), moving pretty fast around a fountain in the center. The fountain, I remember, because when we rode I REALLY had to pee. . .and we kept zooming by it. LOL. just LOOK how long this train is!! and then we rode in a Crockpot. no really Tripsdrill has two rides like this - you sit in a thing that meanders thru a course among hedges and flowers, and spins. they look so innocent. . they are not, and can really trigger some nausea . But hey . . we rode in a crockpot! oh, they have one of these too - some massive thrill rides hidden thruout the park. (I didn't ride this, it scared me. . tho I DID ride a similar version later in the trip at another park) the theming all over this park is so nice. . . I mean, it's in a beautiful location, but the effort put into making even the "non ride" sections look so nice, is impressive. sculpture gardens, just randomly in a section of the park. and yes, the "teacups" ride is in a building that looks like a giant coffee grinder. . how awesome is that? one of the WFT things. . a leprechaun trash "sucker".. you put your hand in the mouth, and it sucks the trash in. Bizzarre! we had heard there was a wine sampling/tasting area in this park - and had been given free passes to try. . so we wandered over to where we thought that area was. this looked sorta themed to vinyards? Lovely. looking across the animal enclosure at the maypole ride. . it looked like a drop tower, but was really a nice "lift and spin" ride. speaking of animal enclosure. . I saw two in here. . and they were sleeping Smart sheep! we wandered back to the front section of the park, and came across this absolutely charming kiddie flume (that adults were not allowed to ride). so adults get to ride in bathtubs. . kids get to ride in sacks of flour. and closeby was this giant windmill. . . with a really fun slide inside, that one sits on burlap sacks to slide down. after climbing the massive amount of steps to the top. whee! so if the maypole isn't the drop tower, does Tripsdrill have one? Yup, they do. .the "treehouse". . . situated across the lake from Hals-über-Kopf - which we were going to ride again shortly. the lake has one of those "slow moving boat rides" that also works as a splash battle. . but I didnt' ride this here, as we were only in park until 3pm, and there was way too much I still wanted to do here, that I didnt' want to spend 10 minutes slowly moving around the lake. here is the treehouse drop tower tho. hmm. . not very high. . .but it had been highly recommended that we ride it. I won't really spoil - other than what you can see in the pics - but this SCARED THE SHIT OUT OF ME !! so, so good. and absolutely a do not miss in this park. and when we came down after our cycle, the operator said something to us in German, and we didnt' know what he was asking, and so we gave him a thumbs up (thinking he was asking if we liked it). . apparently he asked if we wanted to go again - as he cycled us back thru again! Just as terrifying the 2nd time. Ride it, enjoy it, and hang on for dear life! back to Hals-über-Kopf for another ride.. and noting the bird nests in the trees that the ride encircles. with nesting birds in them! SUCH a lovely setting. . . wowza there goes the family boomerang, as we're walking thru the queue for Hals-über-Kopf we made our way back to the "Vinyard" section, and went the the wine museum - where we were each given a Tripsdrill shot glass for sampling/souvenir purposes (that's what the upcharge is for, really, but we got gifted passes for them)..and then down the winding steps to the wine cellar. where there are multiple options to sample different wines. after having wine. . we made the BRILLIANT decision to ride the other "Spinning" ride - similar to the crockpots. . but this time in wine barrels. yeah.. all smiles now. . got off it a little green tho. . . . how about a picture of Jere ? he hasn't' been in any of my pics yet . . here he is walking by and laughing at us in the wine barrel. it doesn't look like it spins much. . and it doesnt. at first. then once starts spinning? it really doesn't stop. (and you can't control the spins!) feeling a bit wobbly after the spinning, we decided to check out some of the walk up WTF attractions that are all over this park. and the lovely gardens around everywhere. yup. .a nekkid Adam and Eve. but watch out for the serpent hidden in the trees on the right - as one of our group discovered when they leaned in a little closer to look at the nudity. the serpent SPRAYS you with "venom" (water), if you lean in too close. HAHAHAHHAHAHA and then there are the pulleys at this well..that you pull on and what comes up? apparently children that you are drowning! (are they witches? who knows? WTF). this baker is making a cake for a wedding. that happens if you stand there and watch long enough. . with a full procession slowly marching from one side to the other. what is this "dead creature" in a box. with a crank? I don't speak German, but that sign is implying to turn the crank. . . which activates this entire animatronic forest scene. . . . bizzare! these are ladders that you climb up. then an animatronic comes out of the window and yells at you. no. really. HAHAHAHAHAHA. and this guy was a love doctor. . who, I believe, told James and I that we were going to be very happy together! it was getting close to leaving time. . so we did a quick lap around the parts of the park we hadn't been to yet. yes, the tilt-a-whirl is themed.. you ride inside pies! but we *had* to do the funhouse we had heard about, but somehow had been missing. luckily we bumped into Robb & Elissa with Kristen who kindly brought us right to the funhouse entrance so we could experience it. while some of our group went to ride the giant plane ride, James and I went over to ride the park's closest thing to a Carousel (well. .it's not a carousel at all. . but it has horses). you can choose to ride on the horses. . . or in the carriage that the horses "pull" of course we chose the horses. these are the faces one makes, when the ride starts moving on the course, and one realizes that the horses are going to "Gallop" the entire way.. throwing you back and forth, and almost tossing you off the ride, so you hang on for dear life, laughing the entire time. catching our breath after our hilarious horse & buggy ride, we met up with the rest of the group for a snack. mmmmm. . everything looked good. but I went for the Nutella Crepe. . which was so hot, burned myself inhaling it (it was really good. . and we were so early in the trip, I hadn't burned out on Nutella just yet) another game where you shoot balls out of a milk container, into a cow's udders. (oh, and a nice German fellow who was waiting for his crepes as well what can I say? I still needed something to even out those bewbs from the flume ride! again. . stunning views in this park! (think this pic may have been from the Maypole ride) um. . I dunno a photo op with Ian? Sure. . why not. at least I got to be the guy this time whee! another moment of WTF. . near the maypole. the outhouse door pops open, and the man pooping, yells at you! such a bizarre park. .and I LOVED it so much. a pic of the group I was hanging with by Brad (I think) from the elevated monorail ride as he passed above us. and with the Maypole ride done, and some quick shopping at the front gate, we headed back out to the bus. we quickly were on our way.. we had to make it to Holiday Park for some ERT tonight on Expedition GeForce - but it had already been an amazing day. to be continued. . .

Had a pretty amazing time yesterday attending American Coaster Enthusiast's FrightBash - held during Fright Fest at Six Flags Fiesta Texas with my friends. yes, had a great time even going the day after Covid Booster AND flu shot. (lots of Tylenol every 5 hours kept the "blech" away) and even *finally* bumped into Luke and got to spend the whole day with him! 1st time I've managed to synch up with him since TPR Japan tour in 2019 (every time he's at SFFT, I happen to be at SWSA. . no, really! I always seem to be in San Antonio on those days, but at the other park. . LOL). we got 1st ride of the day on Poltergeist, reserved seating at the shows (including fireworks that were AMAZING), skip the lines at the haunts, and much more - including after hours ERT on Dr.D's Cliffhanger (so good at night), Iron Rattler, and Roadrunner Express. the park was absolutely PACKED. . I mean, hard to move packed, and the lines for everything (food, haunts, rides) were insane. If you go during Frightfest? Spend the $$ for Flash Pass, as well as VIP access to the Haunts - it's the only way to get them all done! (luckily, by attending as part of an "event", that was covered for me yesterday) anyways, it was a blast! here are too many pictures the badge and the agenda (Iron Rattler got added to evening ERT. . and the pass ended up being usable as Flash Pass during the day. . saved us a good 1 1/2 hour line on Bug's Flume ride!) Park Map for Fright Fest. . . . SFFT really went all out. and much of it is VERY adult. . I saw multiple crying kids (to which I have to say "good". . I mean, they are warning the parents, and tho MANY families with small kids left before 7 (the park stayed packed anyways), there were a lot of strollers and little kids still in the park post 9pm) most of the shows were very good (tho Curse of the Zombie Prom needs a bit of help figuring out what the storyline is. . .tho it's nice it's in Zaragoza. . so a/c and cushioned seats!. . and it holds a LOT of people) I only had the Bloodbag drinks. . but oh my. . .very good. (rum drink) OMG. .it's LUKE! 1st ride of the day, we got walked back to Poltergeist - my favorite coaster in the park! we were in ~1/2 hour before park opened, so after getting a ride on Polty, some of us wandered over to Wonder Woman to be in line when the park officially opened in 10 minutes or so. While Iron Rattler is still 1 train ops (sad face. . they are stuck waiting on the NEW train *and* the Refurbed 2nd train (yes, still) from Gerstlaur ). . . Wondy is back up to 2 train ops. .so that's progress! Especially since Frightfest is so packed! empty now, because the park isn't open just yet. . so can get some great pics. Rockville High is a Haunt for FrightFest (RockKill). . . we'll get a lights on walkthru tour in a little bit! speaking of. . . No scare actors, because it was early in the day. . but very cool to get a good look at the sets. when we went thru later last night, the place was PACKED with scare actors. Really good haunt. attention to detail is impressive. . since it the dim lights later, you couldn't even see this! these move later. . . a visit to SFFT is never complete without lunch at Sangerfest Halle (Schnitzel sandwhich, Baked Potatoes, and 1/2 chicken are all back! and on the meal plan!). . and without a stop to say hello to "Sweet Connie" by the ladies restroom. after a quick snack it was time for the 1st show. . . the new one "Curse of the Zombie Prom". . it was . . . um. . . ok. But the sets are great, and they were entertaining. . . .as was park president Jeffrey Siebert - who posed for me, when he spotted me in our row to watch the show the scare zones around the park look great - as usual. and interestingly, Houngans House of Voodoo (the permanent "house"), during the day is a kid friendly, lights on, walk thru. . that turns into the "Curse of Rougaru" haunt at night, with scare actors and lots of jump scares. What a great idea, and fantastic use of an existing space! of course, I had to ride my bunny on the Carousel. and got Luke to ride with me we wandered the park and rode lots of stuff (that flash pass badge was a lifesaver on a packed day like today) next "show" was the Unleashing. which is basically Dr. Diabolical introducing her monsters into the park. they used to pour into the park via the train station in CrackAxle with lights and fog effects. . but with the steampunk retheme of Crackaxle - and the heavy theming to Dr. Diabolical - this makes way more sense, and was more effective I think. Short, but I loved this. and just look how close the theater is to the ride! here comes the Doctor. . from the back of the arena.. down the center aisle to the stage. she insults and teases the audience, and tortures a couple of them (plants. . but still effective) and then calls forth her creatures: as noted. . .Flash Pass is a MUST during Frightfest. . .and yes, we got a little moist. . . first maze after 35+ minute line for bloodbag drinks (no.. really!) the jump scares weren't too effective here. .but the atmosphere in here (it's a collapsed mine theme).. was incredible. it's amazing what they crammed in here. (in fact, all the haunts LOOKED amazing. . great job Fiesta Texas. . very high end setpieces) (out of order, but this was randomly in the kids section. . LOL) PACKED. . this is the non-VIP pass line! Fear Acres is the big "free" haunt zone that's over in Whitewater Bay. . it was so packed, and with so many strollers? we bailed on it after waiting in the line and not moving for 5 minutes. .there were too many other haunts we wanted to get thru. heard it was fun tho, and full of fear actors. also in the kids area. . this is supposed to be a corn maze for the daytime kiddo stuff. . but it was open, so we walked thru it. they did an AMAZING job. . this is GREAT. Toss some scare actors in here, and this could easily be a top haunt here. headed towards RockKill and the boardwalk haunts (CarnEvil 3D (very good for what they have to work with, and the 3D effects are really good with the paper glasses they hand out) and the new outdoor Cemetery Maze) yeah. . busy! Wonder Woman looks SO good at night the outdoors Cemetery haunt. Dang my good nightvision on my phone. . makes him look WAY less scary the atmosphere in this outdoor maze / haunt is so great! time for the next show! Dr. D's Monster Bash best show of the day if you dont' count the "Frightful Finale" fireworks. Some of the best non-disney evening fireworks I've ever seen. even has an appearance of the Phantom, and the Fireworks blowing up a Chandelier that flies down over the crowd! incredible show to end the night.

I blame widower brain that I keep calling you John. . of COURSE you're James, and I love you for putting up with me. (and hey. .I'm finally calling Andrew the correct name instead of Alexander. . apparently, I can only keep one name correct in my brain at a time)

thanks. I've done trip reports here for years tho. . and I think, perhaps, they sometimes are more detailed than this one. LOL. .if you wanna dig, I've done two prior ones with TPR. . . the 2018 USA trip, and the 2019 Japan trip. Plus several ones I do on trips with my late husband. but really glad you are enjoying. .thanks!

I love they are using video from Tidal Surge media day (SWSA) in the advertising for this. It must be the exact same model, right?

oh. .forgot to post the swag from Europa. no T-shirts, as the sizes were all teeny tiny for me. . . but some magnets and some Can Can Coaster souvenir Euro/coins.

^ LOL. .thanks. It's the only way I know how to do it. . . (and keep in mind, I'm using this as a "journaling" exercise as pushed by my therapist). but yeah. . this was me TRYING to cut it down and not be as detailed as I usually am.