Relminger Farms-Carnation, WA
Associated parks:
None
We arrived at the "park" at around 11:30 and paid our $8 a head to get in. Our first stop was the Canoe Ride. This is a short track with little, plastic canoes running through it. The ride is tiny and would be pretty unforgettable except for the theming. The queue line travels through a beautiful NW forest and features Native American totem poles and a hand carved canoe. All the theming is better than the actual ride which is very short and not at all spectacular.
Our next stop was the Tolt River Railroad, a beautiful miniature steam train. The train leaves the station and travels briefly through the woods before going past several animal cages containing alpaca, donkeys, and emus. It then doubles back on itself and heads into a cool tunnel before returning to the station. This was the first ride that the farm added and it is still a beauty. The train itself is in good condition and there is even animatronics (alright, it's just one pourly done animatronic) along the way. This ride rivals and possibly even surpasses Silverwood's as the best train ride in the NW.
Next we went to ride the newest attraction, the Antique Auto Adventure. The ride opened earlier this year and was formerly located at Seattle Center. They've done an amazing job with the ride. The cars look fabulous and the landscaping during the first half is excellent. (The second half basically goes back-and-forth through the grass.)
Finally, we headed over to ride the Mine Twister Roller Coaster. This is a typical kiddie coaster, but just like the canoe ride, the Remlingers have made it special. The ride actually has a station building that looks like an old mine structure and to get on the ride you walk through what looks like a mine entrance. You get about 7 laps around the track (depending on whether or not the ride op falls asleep) and there is never a line. (In fact, there's never a line anywhere in the park.) The ride itself goes around in a circle, but the middle is full of rocks, plants, and trees.
Other rides and activities in the park include a kiddie ferris wheel, swing carousel, Flying Pumpkin ride, Tubs Of Fun, and the Hay Maze and Hay Jump. There are also a lot of animals around the park. There is a small petting zoo and free pony rides for the kids. Another cool thing is the Fire Watch Goat Climb. There is a shed where the goats live and a tower next door. You can send food up the tower and the goats will climb up a long ramp into the tower to get it. Kind of hard to explain, but it's really cool. There is a singing show featuring Eric Ode that was pretty good for the kids. They all got up and sang and danced along with Eric. It was pretty corny for adults, but the kids liked it.
The ride park is cool, but the theming is weird. The canoe ride, train ride, antique autos, and Mine Twister are themed to the max, but other rides are just plopped down in the middle of the gravel. There's no in between with the park. There is a great "Pioneer Farm" area with some really cool old buildings. I couldn't figure out if they were built as theming elements or if they were left over from the old days of the farm. Either way it works great.
Also located at the farm is the restaurant. They have great food here for a good price. The four of us ate for around $25 and the portions were huge. I had the Chipolte Chicken Salad Croisant and I highly recommend it to everyone. It was great. The kids meals came served on a Remlinger Farms frisbee (which the kids got to keep) and in a Remlinger Farms cup (ditto) for $5. They also had HUGE pieces of carrot cake, German chocolate brownies and other treats for sale in addition to ice cream cones. The restaurant is excellent and is worth every penny.
Finally there is the produce market. It features a plethora of fresh, farm-grown fruits and veggies as well as jams, salsas, etc. They also have a ton of different pies for sale. They all sounded great. We got a bumbleberry pie to bring home with us. (I haven't cooked it yet, but when we do I'll let you know how it is.) The entire store smells really good and the fruits look and taste great.
Overall, we really enjoyed Remlinger Farms. The ride park is still small, but it is just getting started. They've already opened the antique cars this year. Another cool looking pedal car ride is almost ready to open and they are working on something else over by the Mine Twister. The park is clean and relaxing. The older employees were very friendly, but the younger ones didn't really care. One thing we thought was kind of charming was this: all the mechanical rides are closed from 1:30 - 2:00 so the employees can take lunch break. Kind of funny. Remlinger is a great place to go if you have kids. They will love it and you will love watching them enjoy it. The park has some growing to do, but from what we saw today, they are willing to spend the money to do it. I could see this park adding quite a few more rides in the near future. A log flume or a small woodie would be perfect here. It will be interesting to see what the future holds for the NW's newest park. I think the park is a good value: admission is cheap, lunch was excellent, and the prices in the store are cheap. There's even pop machines inside the park that sell a 20 oz. bottle of pop for, get this, $1.00. You don't see that at most major parks. If any of you have kids and are looking for a fun day, I say, "Get to Remlinger Farms". The Farm has a down-home charm and friendliness to it. It isn't Holiday World or Silverwood, it isn't even an Enchanted Forest, but it's pretty good, and getting better.
Aaron
Aaron,where is this park located? It sound like a great place to take my grandaughter.See my CB info for a photo.
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Meet me at the PNE in 2003. Happy 45th birthday,Coaster!
The park is in Carnation. It's pretty close to Snoqualmie Falls (if you know where that is). It's about 25 miles east of Seattle (as the Raven flies). More specifically it's located on Hwy 203 between Monroe and North Bend. You take I-90 east until you get to North Bend and then turn north up 203 past Snoqualmie Falls. The farm is just south of Carnation, right before the bridge. It's marked with a big sign that you can't miss from Hwy 203. I hope that helps some.
I think your granddaughter would love it. It's definitely a kids' park, so people without children/grandchildren probably won't like it much. I'll have a bunch of pictures and info up on my website in a day or two. You can also check out their website here:
Aaron
*** This post was edited by NWTPG 8/31/2003 2:54:16 PM ***
http://wildonescoasterclub.tripod.com
Aaron
Thank you,Aaron!
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Meet me at the PNE in 2003. Happy 45th birthday,Coaster!
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Rob - Jerk/Loser - Standing up for the unfunny and unattractive. - Click here for details
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