I finally get to add Shivering Timbers to my ride list. Woo-hoo! What a great ride!
Michigan's Adventure was well worth the trip as a family vacation day. They have something for everyone. The last time I was there it was called Deer Park, there was no water park, and they had a whole lot more trees. From the view atop ST, I'd say they have a whole lotta room to grow.
What do you want to know (what do I want to tell you)? The longest wait was for the Wolverine Wildcat. I stayed with my boyz (2.5 & 6mos) while mom rode with the girlz. They were only running one train and several of the seats were closed off. That and single riders helped make the wait somewhere around 30-45 minutes. Shivering Timbers was no more than 5 minutes both times I rode. The contrast in these two waits surprised me a bit. I would have expected it the other way around.
It was great to see such a blend of children, family, and adult-thrill rides. Of course there are the coasters and decent array of exciting flat rides (well Chaos was broke - ah, destroyed). They had a Tilt-a-Whirl, which I happen to think is an awesome flat ride. Most of the coasters (two woodies, Mad Mouse, Cork Screw) are basically at the Family level with Shivering Timbers (and hopefully a hyper) for the extreme enthusiasts. But it was really cool to see kiddie rides that do more than just go 'round. They go 'round and the kidz get to push buttons, ring bells, pull elevator bars and basically, pretend they are doing some really cool things. They have boats that float in the water, which I haven't seen since I was a little boy, and the operate offered for me to ride with my son. The Bi-Planes and Dumbo can be raised and lowered by the child riders. They had those fire engines that make all those annoying buzzer sounds. I was watching a boy riding the motorcycles. The bikes would go around, pop a wheely, and jump a ramp. The boy was into it. He would rise up in his seat everytime the jump came around. I'll bet that boy had some dreams to go home with that night.
Shivering Timbers was a blast! What an excellent coaster design. A nice long, fast ride and all from one lift hill. A couple of neat hops, a dive, a side-to-side trick, and the helix make the ride so much more than a simple out and back. The trains are pretty comfortable too. Hats off to CCI.
We spent the early afternoon on rides, then went to the waterpark for a few hours. The water park also has a great blend of activities for the whole family. There are two wave pools (one for smaller kidz), a lazy river, many water slides, two large kiddie play areas. Why would anyone go to Pleasure Beach (Muskegon) when they could get the water park and amusement park combined at MI Adv?
After all this, we thought sustenance would be a good idea. Subs and pizza were pretty normal. Did you know Sobe has sports drinks the're selling at parks now?
Thru the summer, MI Adv has the Royal Hanneford circus. Three shows a day in a one ring circus. Very well worth the time. The acts included Magician, Aerial Acrobatics, Tumblers, Chimpansies, Horses, Elephants. It was great! The best show I'd ever seen between rides at any amusement park. My 2.5 yr old son watch with wide eyes the whole time.
We finished out the day bouncing my son around the kiddie rides while my girlz played games. What a great day and a whole lotta fun. The park hours are only 11-9, but the family is usually pretty tired by that time anyway. Cedar Fair bought a gem. This park can only get better.
A comment regarding the location. The park is rather out of the way. The thing I see supporting it is the tourist cities of Muskegon, Grand Haven, Holland, Silver Lake and Sleeping Bear state parks. These are awesome recreation areas. The best beaches are right there in the upper West coast of the mitt. Much better than the ocean, if you ask me. Fine sand, clean beaches, fresh water, breathtaking sunsets. Take the family camping. Spend a day at Michigan's Adventure. Take a ride on the Mac Woods Dunes before going home Sunday. If you have a suitable recreation vehicle, you can drive the dunes yourself at Silver Lake.
All-in-all, a great weekend. Thanx for letting me share just a few highlights with you.
escKey said:
" That and single riders helped make the wait somewhere around 30-45 minutes. Shivering Timbers was no more than 5 minutes both times I rode. The contrast in these two waits surprised me a bit. I would have expected it the other way around.
My friend and I noticed the same thing when we were there last month. We were amazed that we could ride ST 4 or 5 times in the time it takes to ride Wolverine Wildcat once. The one train operation definitely has a lot to do with it, but I also think that many people may feel "intimidated" by ST, and Wolverine Wildcat is a good compromise for them. It's more thrilling than Zach's Zoomer, but not as hardcore as ST.
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Don't hate the player, hate the game.
