Dollywood Discussion Thread

I just found out that one of my cousins moved to Tennessee. Like I needed another excuse to visit and stop by Dollywood.

I just found out that one of my cousins moved to Tennessee. Like I needed another excuse to visit and stop by Dollywood.

That depends, is making out with your cousin a good reason to come out to Tteenneessee? I mean, it would make sense, everyone else does it around here.

As we like to say here in the South. "You gotta purdy mouth boy!"

Just wondering if anyone can help me. I am trying to locate a ride layout plan for mystery mine. I do not know the ride that well as I have never been on it.

 

So if anyone could quickly draw up a line drawing of the attraction marking blocks, station locations for how many trains are there and the mechanics area that would be a real help!

This looks horrible, but it should help...

Orange is the track that's less visable. Purple are the two outside blocks. The lifts are marked. Storage/maintenance is under the station. There's a small section of track at the back of the station that uses a scissor-lift to lower or raise the trains to/from the maintenance area. I think there's room for three trains (really they're 8-person cars) down there, which means that four have to be on the course during operations. Hope that helps some.

I think there's room for three trains (really they're 8-person cars) down there, which means that four have to be on the course during operations. Hope that helps some.

Good illustration and close! Mystery Mine can operate with three cars, there is room for four on the maintenance spur.

Also, Dollywood has put together this video about park employees who volunteer their time in their local communities. It really brings to light the park's intention of theming Firechaser not just to firemen, but all who serve in their own way.

[youtu_be]

I think there's room for three trains (really they're 8-person cars) down there, which means that four have to be on the course during operations. Hope that helps some.

 

Good illustration and close! Mystery Mine can operate with three cars, there is room for four on the maintenance spur.

Thanks again! I can never have enough 'useless' info about DW!

ImagineerJohn - Here's some great pics of MM during construction, before the walls were put in.

http://www.themeparkreview.com/dollywood2007/sept9_2006.htm

Also, just in the off chance anyone from TPR may be intending to visit Dollywood tomorrow:

The original opening was 11AM, but due to expected inclement weather overnight, it is an evolving situation.

 

 

 

ImagineerJohn - Here's some great pics of MM during construction, before the walls were put in.

http://www.themeparkreview.com/dollywood2007/sept9_2006.htm

Thank you for the details and reference images. For one of the first custom eurofighters it looks like it would be an excellent ride.

Anyone planning to attend the Christmas Festival I would love to see a photo trip report full of Dolly's Christmas brilliance and some awesome Firechaser Express Construction!

It sounds like Thunderhead was down last Friday, does anyone know if it re-opened at all last weekend? Obviously these things are impossible to predict but I'm hoping they have it running this weekend since we'll be making our first trip to the park.

Here's a great little documentary by Devin Olson Media about Firechaser Express and how it honors volunteers.

[youtu_be]

It sounds like Thunderhead was down last Friday, does anyone know if it re-opened at all last weekend? Obviously these things are impossible to predict but I'm hoping they have it running this weekend since we'll be making our first trip to the park.

It did open eventually. We experienced a very early snow/ice storm last week and the temps never got high enough to melt all the ice off Thunderhead's track until Sunday. It should be good to go this weekend.

Slightly off topic but does Dollywood do anything special for Halloween?

^ No. I believe they hold a Southern Gospel Festival.

^Yeah, it's the Gospel and Harvest Festival. It's kinda an anti Halloween event. Unless you find organized religion scary, then it's terrifying!

The harvest and Halloween do kind of go together though. I guess you just have to look at it another way.

^ They do, but not with Southern Gospel mixed in with it. Gospel music and Halloween don't mix.

^Yeah, it's the Gospel and Harvest Festival. It's kinda an anti Halloween event. Unless you find organized religion scary, then it's terrifying!

I'm planning to go in October and my mother does not like Zombies/Monsters at Great America, But she loves Christian/Gospel music. So glad to know.

^ Gospel music and Halloween don't mix.

They aren't mixing Halloween and Gospel. They are mixing Fall Harvest with Gospel Music. Dollywood is in the smack dab middle of the bible belt and on top of that, full of Southern Baptists in the area. As a result, the Fall Harvest theme fits much better into the park than a Halloween Haunt event.

Just watched the full animation, i've got to say it looks great! A pure family coaster, and one great addition to Dollywood's line up of coasters...

Okay so we're packed to leave right from work and drive 11 hours to Dollywood. Tomorrow they're calling for a high of 43, 8-9 mph winds and overcast... but it looks like it won't rain. We'll be there for Saturday only.

Nothing is booked because we're watching the weather... I'm thinking we should go for it but I wish the temperature weren't so close to that 40 degree mark. If we don't go this weekend, next weekend is really the only chance we'll have to go and there's a 60 percent chance of rain. Any input? lol

I say go this weekend. Your chances are better than next weekend, plus even if you dont get to ride Coasters, the experience of the Christmas Festival is worth it. I've only been to the one at SDC but I know they are very similar.

Yesterday Dollywood posted a ton of great construction pictures on Facebook including lots of motors, track, and supports. Check it out!

I really hate that color scheme for the ride but it should still look nice. I don't see anything about green and gray that says "firefighting" but it should blend in nicely with the hill and keep from sticking out too much in the Wilderness Pass area. Really looking forward to seeing more vertical construction. Though is it supposed to open with the park in March? They seem a bit behind for some reason.

About the Halloween/Harvest/Southern Gospel event, I was thinking they could keep the Harvest and Southern Gospel thing but confine it to Showstreet, Jukebox Junction, Market Square, County Fair, Village, and Craftsman's Valley. The higher part of Craftsman's Valley, Wilderness Pass, and Timber Canyon all seem to be reserved as a "coaster" part of the park for the adrenaline junkies with the rest set aside for less daring parties to shop and see the eagles and the like. Anyway, getting to my point, keep Harvest & Southern Gospel in Market Square, Craftsman's Valley, Jukebox Junction, Showstreet, Village, and County Fair, but do a separate Halloween event at night with a completely different but overlapping schedule that stays in Timber Canyon, Wilderness Pass, and maybe the higher part of Craftsman's Valley. Do this at night with Gospel & Harvest running in the day. Maybe run the coasters at night and maybe get glowing Mystery Mine trains like Alton did as well as opening a few haunts? They could easily do something like Widow Makers at BGW over by Timber Canyon (with extra chainsaw awesomeness!), a continuation of the Mystery Mine story but as a walkthrough thing, maybe something themed to a night hike gone bad in Wilderness Pass, and turn that winding path between Showstreet and Timber Canyon into a scare zone? Tennessee has plenty of regional ghost stories and legends that they could easily build on. Do those and maybe a Cornstalkers-like thing in Owen's Farm and decorate the train? Run Skyzip at night so you can fly through the park in the dark? I'd really like to see what they could do with this and knowing Dollywood, it would be pretty epic.

^Your analogy would be akin to the 700 club showing porn the last half hour of their Sunday programming only in the month of October. Mind you, everything you mentioned sounds like heaven to me, but Dollywood just doesn't do horror. It's not realy their thing.

Guy "Thank you for riding the mighty Thunderhead. God bless, and praise Jesus!" Koepp

^Was just posting this exact same thing. It has been posted several times why there isn't a Halloween event at Dollywood.