We're passionate about all things Dollywood and Sevier County, and we want to share that passion with you. Come along as we explore all that this beautiful area has to offer. From Dollywood and Splash Country to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and Cades Cove, there's something for everyone in Sevier County.
We're also big fans of Dolly Parton, and we'll be sure to keep you up-to-date on her latest news and projects. We're sure you'll find something to love here.
Showing posts with label Dollywood Videos. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Dollywood Videos. Show all posts
I hope everyone is doing well and enjoying Spring. If you subscribe to my YouTube Channel, you know I have been slowly publishing new videos from this past Opening Day on March 8th, 2024.
I am pleased to tell you all of my Opening Day Videos are published, and I hope you enjoy them.
This one is from the Country Fair area. The Scrambler has been polished to its mirror finish for the start of the season. I was looking at a video from October of the Scrambler and it was silver, but not at all polished and kind of had a matte finish about it - the seats I mean. But it's all polished and looking sharp for the start of the season. I love the freeze-frame aspect of catching one little moment of joy in everyone's faces.
This one is from Jukebox Junction. I do believe the new drink fountain outside of Red's is new for this year. A couple of years ago Dollywood mentioned that they were going to spend a lot of money on improvements to all of the restaurants in the park and so I suspect this is part of that effort. I love seeing all the little changes from one season to the next. Some are more obvious than others, some more exciting than others.
This is from the brand new Dolly Parton Sing-A-Long show that is at the Back Porch Theater in the Riverside Area. I mean, this is fun singing Dolly's biggest hits alongside your friends and family.
I also published three short videos from Opening Day, including the Dolly Parton Parade that is so much fun. Dolly rides in her floral covered vintage DeWitt through parts of the park and everyone is so excited to see her...it is quite the site to see and experience. It never gets old.
Here is Part One, check that out below...
Here is Part Two, check that out below...
Be sure to Subscribe and select to receive notifications when I publish videos. Also follow me on my Facebook Page for updates there too.
It's time for my SECOND Year In Review for What's Up at Dollywood the bloggy vlog and the YouTube Channel! 🥳
A huge shoutout to all of you who tune in each day - you're the reason I do what I do! Whether you're glued to my videos, devouring my blog posts, or hanging out on Facebook, your support means the world.
From newbie to know-it-all: a year of East Tennessee adventures
Launching this channel, blog, and Facebook page has been like a wild roller coaster ride through East Tennessee, and I'm loving every twist and turn! Sharing my videos and content with you all has been the fuel that keeps me going.
One thing I've learned this year is what you guys truly crave: insider tips on making the most of your time here, without blowing your budget. Whether it's hidden gems off the beaten path or creative ways to score Dollywood deals, I'm all about helping you experience the best of East Tennessee and helping you prioritize what matters most for your trip.
Speaking of Dollywood, keeping up with Dolly Parton is a full-time job in itself! The woman's a whirlwind of energy, churning out hit songs, hosting theme park extravaganzas, and somehow finding time to be everyone's favorite aunt. I honestly don't know where she finds the hours, but her infectious spirit just makes me want to work harder and bring you even more awesome content in 2024.
So, buckle up, East Tennessee adventurers! Next year, get ready for even deeper dives, hidden treasures uncovered, and enough Dolly Parton updates to satisfy your biggest superfan. Thanks for being on this journey with me – here's to making 2024 our most epic year yet!
Let's dive into the world of W.U.A.D. videos! We can tackle the long-form adventures first, savoring each one like a delicious multi-course meal, and then zip through the short-form highlights like a lightning-fast scavenger hunt. Ready to explore?
🟢My first video was a short video and it about Dolly's Time Capsule at the DreamMore Resort at Dollywood. It's a Pandora's box of Dolly delights, waiting to be unleashed!
🟢 2nd - Frozen moments of mountain magic, captured by Dollywood, in a video.
🟢 3rd - Forget dusty history books and sepia-toned tours, this ain't your grandma's courthouse statue. This is Dolly Parton, bronzed and bedazzled, ready to sass your socks off from the Sevier County steps!
🟢 4th - Mountain Slidewinder may be history, but the memories live on!
🟢 5th - The Smokies sing Dolly's anthem! Get ready for a heart-stopping season kick-off as Dollywood throws the party of the century for "I Will Always Love You.
🟢 6th - Forget dusty photo albums, this is real mountain magic! Big Bear Mountain's preview day rekindles the thrill of childhood coaster rides, with off-ride footage that'll make your inner child high-five with glee.
🟢 7th - Forget park maps, this is your front-row seat to Big Bear's fury! Strap in for the ultimate POV journey, then let Dolly's "Big Bear Mountain" soundtrack your screams as you plummet, twist, and loop through a winter wonderland of thrills.
🟢 8th - Prepare to have your petals blown off! Dollywood's Food & Flower Festival paints the park in floral masterpieces, culinary kaleidoscopes and enough magic umbrellas to make your Instagram explode.
🟢 9th - Buckle up, sunshine seekers! Summer Celebration Part 1 explodes onto Dollywood's scene, sun-kissed rides,overflowing with thrills, chills, and enough good times to melt a Dollywood hot dog on a July afternoon.
🟢 10th - Dust off your dancing shoes, the Smokies are calling! Summer Celebration Part 2 is a time capsule of summer nights, with fireworks whispering nostalgic stories and drone lights painting pictures of carefree laughter in the sky.
🟢 11th - Forget boring playlists, Good Vibes is a high-octane musical rollercoaster! The 2023 cast cranks the volume and the adrenaline, taking you on a genre-hopping thrill ride that'll leave you breathless and begging for another loop.
🟢 12th - Hold onto your hats and your high notes! Big Bear Mountain throws you into a white-knuckle adventure, and Dolly's soundtrack fuels the fire. Sing until your lungs turn blue, scream until your voice cracks, this is a musical rollercoaster you won't soon forget!
🟢 13th - Whispers of "Jolene" mingle with the clang of hammers! The Dolly Parton Experience is a symphony of progress, and our update lets you hear the sweet music of an icon's legacy taking shape.
🟢 14th - Buckle up, leaf peepers! My Dollywood Harvest Festival Day was a nature hike turned carnival, with roller coaster screams echoing through pumpkin patches and enough pumpkin spice to fuel a squirrel army.
🟢 15th - Hold onto your haunted hats, Dollywood's Harvest Festival turns into a graveyard rave after dark! Join me on a tour of glowing jack-o-lanterns, towering pumpkin sculptures, and enough spooky surprises to keep your heart pounding like a haunted drum.
🟢 16th - Forget falling leaves, molten masterpieces reign! Step inside Dollywood's Blown Glass Shop during Harvest Festival, where fiery furnaces sculpt pumpkin dreams and every breath blooms into incandescent autumn splendor.
🟢 17th - Bundle up, snow bunnies! Smoky Mountain Christmas transforms into a winter wonderland playground. Let's race down frosted rollercoasters, sing along to caroling choirs, and lose ourselves in a blizzard of festive excitement.
🟢 18th - My Night at Smoky Mountain Christmas
Remember childhood nights spent gazing at Christmas lights and whispering wishes to Santa? My Smoky Mountain adventure rekindled that magic. Join me on a journey through holiday music, hot chocolate, and memories that glow brighter than any holiday bulb.
🟢 19th - Joyful Drone Show at Smoky Mountain Christmas
Forget sugar plum fairies, these drones dance on moonlight! The Joyful Drone Show transforms the Smokies into a canvas of festive dreams, painting Christmas silhouettes in stardust and showering the winter wonderland with a million twinkling stories, set to a symphony of A-listers.
🟢 20th - Hold onto your mittens, the glass is about to blow! Dive into the Blown Glass Shop during Smoky Mountain Christmas, where molten marvels take shape in a whirlwind of fiery artistry and enough holiday heat to melt a gingerbread mansion.
Scrolled, swiped, and slayed! 2023 was my year of micro-moments, embracing the short-form video format and proving that brevity can be beautiful.
🔴 Buried like a rhinestone secret, Dolly's time capsule whispered stories from Dollywood's heart. In this short, I'll show you where the time capsule lives at Dollywood's DreamMore Resort at Dollywood.
🔴 Forget tourist traps, this monument breathes! Delve into the soul of Dolly's statue, where laughter echoes in the wind and every tourist snap captures a fragment of her indomitable spirit.
🔴 Mountain Slidewinder may be history, but the memories live on!
🔴 Whispers of "gardenia" mingle with the sizzle of grills! Join me on a sensory feast through the Flower & Food Festival, where floral sculptures tower like enchanted chefs and every course whispers tales of blooming creativity.
🔴 Hold onto your hot cocoa, this short film is a frosty thrill ride! Experience the icy bite of February air as we navigate the construction zone, capture the breathtaking panoramas, and showcase the indomitable spirit of progress even in the heart of winter.
🔴 Forget mud season, Big Bear blossoms with progress! Join me on a cinematic journey through March's construction, where steel beams reach for sun-kissed slopes and every whirring drill whispers tales of a mountain awakening.
🔴 Forget confetti, this parade rains rhinestones! Dive into the glittery whirlwind of the Dolly Parton Parade at IWALY, where feathers twirl like confetti, laughter echoes like Dolly's own, and the fan frenzy is infectious!
🔴 Hold onto your hard hats, Big Bear's construction is a mid-March adrenaline rush! Buckle up as we zoom through bustling work crews, dodge trucks hauling lumber, and capture the pulse-pounding rhythm of a mountain shedding its winter coat.
🔴 Forget ordinary shelves, these walls ooze plushy magic! Dive into my Squishmallow Store mid-March update, where cuddly cuties stack like rainbow dreams and every squeak whispers tales of snuggle-worthy joy.
🔴 Forget pollen clouds, this shop blooms with vibrant threads! Dive into my Butterfly Strings Shop April update, where trinkets and treasures of music royalty shimmers like butterfly wings.
🔴 Buckle up, music lovers! This short musical performance of the "Love Always" Band at Dollywood will leave you with Dolly flavored kisses.
🔴 Forget boring progress reports, this is a construction rollercoaster!
🔴 Hold onto your handkerchiefs, Dolly's story is a rollercoaster of emotions! Buckle up as she swings between joyful childhood memories and tearful moments of adversity, her voice soaring like a mountain eagle, capturing the infectious spirit that propelled her from patchwork girl to country queen.
🔴 Forget boring progress reports, this is a construction rollercoaster!
🔴 Whispers of "I Will Always Love You" mingle with the twang of a banjo. Witness the goosebump-inducing moment when Dolly and Whitney's voices intertwine, their musical legacies colliding in a breathtaking performance that transcends genre and time.
🔴 Forget falling leaves, this store blooms with cuddly chaos! Dive into the Squishmallow September update, where velvety friends stack like fluffy rainbows and every squeak whispers tales of autumnal snuggles.
We want to wish everyone a great Holiday and Merry Christmas!
We've got three Smoky Mountain Christmas videos to share with you now, and my night at Dollywood is currently in edit, so I plan to publish that in the near future, so hold tight for that one. You won't want to miss it.
Check out what I have published so far!
🔔 My Day at Smoky Mountain Christmas
🔔My visit to the Mountain Blown Glass Shop
🔔Joyful Drone Show! - New for 2023.
I hope everyone is having a great holiday! I will be back later this week with my second-annual year-in-review with all of my Dollywood related YouTube videos from 2023. If you don't want to wait, check out every single one of my Dollywood Videos Right Here
Here is a round-up of recent Dolly interviews. Dolly has been on a blitz lately, giving interviews left and right in anticipation of the release of her rock album, Rock Star, out Friday, November 17th, 2023.
Dolly Parton Interviews
During the grand opening of the HeartSong Lodge and Resort, Dolly Parton sat down for a series of interviews with various media outlets.
United Kingdom Promotional Trip
As part of her recent promotional trip to the United Kingdom, Dolly Parton conducted an interview with BBC reporter, Zoe Ball.
CBS and ABC Interviews
Dolly Parton has also been featured in recent interviews with CBS and ABC.
🟢🟢🟢
Nashville's Talk of the Town - a 30-minute episode dedicated to Dollywood, HeartSong, their Dolly interview and a nice look at Nashville's Lipscomb University's exhibit on Dolly's style team gurus who make Dolly's clothes for all her various events, performances, engagements, etc. Its a peek behind the curtain, so to speak, or Behind The Seams, as Dolly puts it in her new book, which is the basis for the exhibit. Watch that HERE.
Dollywood has released information related to the Harvest Festival, including the Tasting Pass and their festival menu. The Harvest Festival starts on Wednesday, September 20th thru October 30th, excluding Tuesdays.
Just FYI for your planning: Dollywood is closed Tuesday October 31st thru Friday November 3rd, then Dollywood opens back up on Saturday the 4th with the Christmas Festival. Also, Dollywood is closed Every Tuesday until Tuesday December 4th.
I have rounded up all the information that I could find and put it one place for you to look over. Let me know if I have missed anything in the comments. Let's see what's up, let's dig into it all!
🟠FOOD
We'll start with what Wes Ramey had to say about the offerings in the Dollywood Blog:
"Dollywood’s award-winning culinary team has been hard at work incorporating the comforting smells of sweet pumpkin treats and warm apple cider into delicious fall dishes, drinks and desserts, including a pulled pork sandwich with pumpkin spice BBQ sauce, three bean pumpkin chili, salted maple potato tornado, toasted pumpkin sausage and ricotta flatbread, and spiced pumpkin bisque with toasted pepitas. Are you hungry yet? I know that I am, and the items I just listed are just a few of the tempting tastes found parkwide as part of the Harvest Festival menu."
Click on any picture to enlarge - These are from the Dollywood Website, Check it out HERE.
🟠TASTING PASS
🟠What's New Around The Park?
Dollywood Blog writer Jennifer Webb shares what's new for the festival this year!
Every season, we try to give our Great Pumpkin LumiNights presented by Covenant Health a “glow-up,” and this season is no different. The award-winning nighttime experience once again features a number of whimsical pumpkin displays, like the pumpkin spider, the pumpkin guitar, and new this year, the pumpkin honey bees.
This season, Great Pumpkin LumiNights makes its way to Market Square. The area serves as the centerpiece for the event with the focal point—the 40 ft. tall expertly-carved pumpkin tree. New this year is the Honey Bee display. During the day, this bee-autiful display offers a pop of color near the returning Hug A Bee Beekeeper experience. By night, these buzzing bees create a sweet lighted moment for your family.
In Craftsman’s Valley, the pumpkin guitar glows to life as it strums Dolly’s famous hit, “My Tennessee Mountain Home,” and the not-so-spooky pumpkin spider greets you with his glowing grin. Other guest favorites include the friendly pumpkin frogs at Drop Line Pond, the bright-eyed pumpkin bats at Mystery Mine and much more. These vivid displays bring crisp autumn nights alive, making Great Pumpkin LumiNights the ultimate fall event for creating special family memories and Instagram-worthy moments.
There are plenty of activities your family can enjoy during Great Pumpkin LumiNights. With thousands of carved pumpkins throughout the park, it takes a number of talented pumpkin carvers to create the festive displays. Everyone in the family will enjoy learning how to carve a pumpkin masterpiece from Dollywood’s “pumpkin artists” during these demonstrations. Kids-and kids at heart-will love turning into human jack-o-lanterns with Glow face paint. Face painters create unique designs with glow-in-the- dark face paint during the day that come to life at night!
The Great Pumpkin LumiNights Tour offers an exclusive behind-the-scenes look at Great Pumpkin LumiNights, and Gold and Diamond Passholders receive a special discount! This two-hour guided walking tour highlights all of your festival favorites. Participants will enjoy festive refreshments, a dip-your-own-candle activity, character meet & greets, front-of-the-line access on Mystery Mine and more. To learn more about booking the Great Pumpkin LumiNights Tour, visit our website.
Make sure your Dollywood days turn into exciting theme park evenings during Dollywood’s Harvest Festival featuring Great Pumpkin LumiNights.
My family loves to take photos when we visit, and there’s a colorful new photo op right when we enter the park called Harvest Sky. We can’t wait to stand beneath the thousands of vibrant, shimmering leaves swaying in the breeze along Showstreet. Then we’ll definitely have to stand in front of the colossal pumpkins—last year’s pumpkins ranged in weight from 800 to 1500 lbs. each and came from growers across the East Coast. We also love stopping by and seeing all the visiting artisans to see what amazing handmade wares they have brought with them, with many of them demonstrating their skills and techniques while creating one-of-a-kind treasures that we can purchase to take home with us to relive our time at Dollywood this fall whenever we want.
Want some tunes as part of your Harvest Festival day at the park? You’re in luck, because live music is at the heart and soul of fall at Dollywood with Southern gospel, bluegrass and country artists found performing throughout the park. Rhonda Vincent and The Rage, Jeannie Seely, Emily Ann Roberts, Dailey and Vincent, Triumphant Quartet, Hannah Dasher and The Isaacs are just a few of the performers set to take the stage – be prepared to sing along and enjoy some new music that just might head to the top of your musical favorites list. Performances take place on indoor and outdoor stages throughout the park, allowing the beautiful sounds to echo through the landscape here in the Great Smoky Mountains.
⭐Check out Dollywood's Website for the latest information about Special Harvest Entertainment. HERE.
🎃 🎃 🎃
The 2023 Harvest Festival at Dollywood is just around the corner! Check out my video from last year's festival to get a preview of all the fun you can expect.
🔵Blog Posts with other Helpful Trip Planning information
Hotels with High Ratings in Pigeon Forge. I have created a spreadsheet that incorporates ratings from different reliable sources, and ranked hotels in the area. I've listed out columns for things like indoor pools, hot tubs and more on the spreadsheet. Very helpful if you, or someone in your group is looking for a specific amenity.
Top Breakfast Restaurants in Pigeon Forge. I have created a list of the best Breakfast restaurants in Pigeon Forge using ratings from various reliable sources, and ranked them in my blog post.
Tons of YouTube videos - I have so many YouTube videos of Dollywood including every festival and lots of general park updates as well as many Big Bear Mountain construction updates from all of 2022. Check out my 2022 End of Year Recap to see all of my Dollywood videos from 2022.
As summer comes to a close in the United States, I wanted to share a highlight from Dollywood's Summer Celebration: the full performance of "Good Vibes." I included this same show in Part 1 of my Summer Celebration series, but I believe it deserves its own stand-alone video. I find myself watching it several times a week for pleasure - I love this show and the cast this year has such great harmony!
Hi Everyone, This duet was released in early August of 2023 and I wanted to share it with you all.
I think if you liked the Whitney Version, you'll like or love this one too. Whitney's version of Step by Step appears on the Preacher's Wife Soundtrack from 1996, if you couldn't remember, like me. Annie Lennox wrote this song as a B-side to her 1992 single Precious.
“In 1996, ‘Step By Step’ is a song I would blast on cassette in my beat up Volkswagen Golf as I drove to my job at Medicare,” shares Grant. “The dream when I moved to Nashville was music, not Medicare, but I had to do what was necessary to keep going. This song was my reminder to keep putting one foot in front of the other. If you would’ve told me then that one day, I would not only be recording this song, but doing it with an international icon, I never ever would’ve believed it. I still can’t believe it.”
Some fellow vloggers - Adventures That Rock - were lucky enough to be in the audience at Dollywood this past spring when Natalie Grant was performing, and she was joined on-stage by none other than Dolly herself! Check their video out below.
If you're curious - Here's Annie Lennox's version of Step by Step, Then Whitney's version below that.
I hope you all are enjoying your summer! Dollywood's Summer Celebration just concluded, but you can watch all the highlights from my day at the park! I have TWO videos to share with you from my day. In Part 1, I will take you around the park to check out all the decorations, watch some of the rides, and of course people watch! I have the Full Performance of Good Vibes and a couple of songs from The Smoky Mountain String Band.
In Part 2, I will take you up to Wildwood Grove for the dance party. After that, the Fireworks and Drone show takes place and is definitely a must-see attraction!
I have a new video to share with you all! This is from Dollywood's Flower & Food Festival for 2023.
In this video I focus a lot more on the "Flower" end of things with this festival. I shoot the festival by myself, and I can only eat so much, so, check out all the other vloggers who will show you that side of the festival. I love filming all the great landscaping and you can see that a lot of thought and planning goes into making this a reality.
Speaking of landscaping, The company that Dollywood partners with to create their mosaicultures is called Mosaicultures International and they are based in Montreal, Canada. Check their website out below - they feature lots of photos of Dollywood and lots of other impressive installations at other locations.
While enjoying my day admiring all of the festival decorations, I took in two very popular shows at Dollywood right now. A Brighter Day at the Back Porch Theater and later in the day I saw The Hall Sisters perform their show on the porch of the chapel. I wasn't sure what to expect exactly with the Hall Sisters, but they harmonize and play well together, it was definitely a great highlight from this day at Dollywood. And of course, A Brighter Day never disappoints, and the cast and crew are all amazingly talented singers and musicians. See Both Shows If You Can! This festival runs until June 11th, 2023.
Big Bear Mountain is OPEN!
I will share with you this video of Dolly Parton and Eugene Naughton (Dollywood President) open Big Bear Mountain on May 12th, 2023. Dolly Parton performs an original song that I placed over a POV video for Big Bear AND you can sing along to her catchy tune. I love playing it over and over.
Dollywood was gracious to invite some season pass holders to a Rider Preview Day for Big Bear and that was on Monday, May 8th for me - there were several days to choose from. I have a very extensive look at Big Bear in my video that I'll share below.
I really had an excellent first impression with my ride on BBM. I'll break down the different elements below:
Ride Plaza / Queue Areas / Station - The ride plaza is very spacious and there is a lot of room to check out the roller coaster from countless angles. There is a great ride sign for Big Bear. I've already seen a lot of selfies on social media in front of it. The queue has room for hundreds of people if needed, and it probably will be for a while. The overall theme of the ride is that we are all looking for Big Bear, and so the queue fits with that type of expedition/rugged theming that they chose. Lots of maps, photos, trinkets and whatnot all add to the experience. The station is set up much like the other coasters at Dollywood. The cubbies come in small and large, and I was able to fit my backpack in the larger cubby no problem. The station is at grade level, so folks in wheelchairs and ECV's should have an easy time accessing the station.
Trains - I found them very comfortable. They are bucket-style seats that are padded, and the only restraint is an individual lap bar that I didn't have any issues with. I'm 5 foot 8 inches, so I don't have a lot of legs to scrunch up into the train. For a comparison, this seemed a whole lot roomier than Lightning Rod and a bit roomier than Thunderhead - to compare to other Dollywood trains. I noticed on one row of the train, the side wall was on a hinge, so that may be the row that has more room for those with prosthetics or other considerations. I didn't' see it in action, so I'm not certain, but that's most likely what that particular row is for. Of course, the folks at the Ride Accessibility Center near the front gate of the park will have all of that information available.
Furthermore, I think the trains look super cool. I love all the little details on them like the jerry cans on the back, and the little bits of mud splatters that are near the wheel wells - all of it is so cool. The headlights and taillights both illuminate and look great. The on-board audio sounded really well. I think they had some speakers in some areas too, maybe for a backup or maybe to reinforce the audio sound effects? Not sure, but either way its a nice addition. It takes me back to my dear Opryland and the stuffed bear on Grizzly River Rampage.
There are two trains that I saw, not sure if there is a third train. On preview day one train would launch from the station as the other was going into the brakes, so a third train would stack if they used it. They may have a third train coming later so they can have a spare to do maintenance on - since Dollywood's season is nearly year-round at this point. That would be some insurance for always being able to run two trains.
Ride Itself / Layout - I love this layout. I have ridden lots of record-breaking rollercoasters and those are fine, but what I love most is just exactly what Big Bear is, and that's forceful launches, and lots of meandering around side to side, up and down. Nothing too crazy that snaps your neck back and forth like I-305 or Maverick. The transitions were so smooth in between all the direction changes that it all just felt so natural and well designed. It's zippy! The first launch out of the station gets the job done, which is to get you to the second launch. I love love love the fact that the train does not come to a stop before the 2nd launch. So many new multi-launchers will bring everything to a grinding halt before a launch and I despise that - such a buzzkill for me (see: Copperhead Strike, Maverick, Time Traveler, there are many others). Big Bear Mountain avoids that nightmare and really, once you are on your way you will not stop for 3,990 feet. The pacing for me is fast and it stays fast until the end. The little dip under the pathway is cool finale to the whole ride. Super smooth brake run and then the friction wheels whisk it right in to the station pronto.
The waterfall area is cool, but you go through it so quickly that it's over before you know it. Don't blink!
Overall - I'm really impressed with everything about this new coaster. I think it will impress many who look at it and go meh. It's definitely not meh to me. I can't wait for summer so I can see how it looks and rides in the dark of night. I'm sure it will be as fun in October-December when the sun sets around 5 o'clock.
Here is Dolly introducing the world to BBM at Dollywood.
Hi Everyone, I was able to attend the first day of rider previews for Big Bear Mountain at Dollywood. Far Below is a batch of pics and a couple vids I shot with my phone. I've edited a short-form and a long-form videos, and those are below.
Video Update - Here's a short of Big Bear Mountain
Video #2 - Here's a 10 minute video filled to the brim with every available angle I could find around Big Bear Mountain.
Here's a social media post from Dollywood from 5/11/2023.
And Dollywood posted this too.... It's A Lot, All At Once!!!
On Friday, May 12, Diamond Passholders will have access to register for exclusive ride event times between 11:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. The ride will then open to the general public at the conclusion of those ride times.
I also have a short video to share. This will likely be my last construction update for Big Bear Mountain since it's opening soon. You will see in my video that there has been a lot of progress on the areas around the station since my last video on March 10th. They're hustling along!
I'm really excited for this coaster! I've ridden record-breaking coasters of all types, but Big Bear has what I love most which is good pacing - it doesn't stop anywhere along the course like other multi-launchers tend to do, and it looks as though it keeps a good pace up throughout the ride. Other things I think I will like about it will be that the three launches will be forceful, but not uncomfortable, and then some great hills and loads of curves. The theming looks to be well thought out and well executed. I can't wait to see it up close and see more details. Plus, it's a really long coaster and who doesn't love that?
The fact that it has a 39" height requirement will mean that this could be the first coaster for lots of kiddos. I have so many good memories of working up the courage to ride Wabash Cannonball at Opryland and now I see kids half the age I was then, getting off of Lightning Rod - kids seem a lot more brave today than they were when I was 8 to 12'ish, lol. But anyway, this will be a good starter or mid-sized coaster for a new generation.
Big Bear Mountain is a new generation Vekoma roller coaster, and it's been a long time since two Vekoma roller coasters have operated in Tennessee. The first two Vekoma coasters were Chaos and The Hangman, which were located at Opryland and closed with the park in 1997. I sadly never got to ride The Hangman because I never in my wildest dreams imagined that they would close Opryland. Now, in 2023, we have Dragonflier and Big Bear Mountain, two Vekomas....so that's pretty cool to me too.
