Big Bear Mountain Track Arrives at Dollywood

 Hi Everyone,

Dollywood has posted images of Big Bear Mountain's track arrival to Dollywood, on social media.  This is exciting because it means that vertical construction will begin soon enough, and we'll be able to start seeing noticeable progress in Big Bear Mountain.  Up until now, we've seen site preparation and footer formations taking shape.  Well, now or sooner than later we'll see columns on the footers and then the track can begin to be added.   

Courtesy of Dollywood's Facebook Page

Here's a link to my blog post about the announcement of Big Bear Mountain - Take a look here.

You can watch the announcement with Dolly below.  Below that is the ride animation.

Until Next Time!

🚨New Video 🚨 Dollywood's Big Bear Mountain Construction Update, from August 31, 2022 👷‍♂️👷🏻‍♀️🏗️

 Hi Everyone!

I have a new video for you today of a recent look at the Big Bear Mountain construction site.  This is my first video since the official announcement back on August 5th, 2022.   You'll see in the video that construction has ramped up in scope, but they are still completing a lot of site preparation work and beginning to form footers for the ride.

Watch the video to see what's up at the construction site!

Here's some images of what you'll see in the video....

the waterfall and tunnel near the Giant Tree Swing

the waterfall and tunnel near the Giant Tree Swing

the flyover after 2nd launch, behind Black Bear Trail ride

the side-by-side launch area

Here's the station area from March to August.

Looking back at the station area from March 11, 2022

Looking back at the station area from April 22, 2022

Looking back at the station area from June 21, 2022

The station area on August 31, 2022

What are you most looking forward to on Big Bear Mountain?  Let me know in the comments.

Until next time!

$34 Million Dollar Expansion for Anakeesta

Hi Everyone,

Anakeesta - one of the newest and larger theme parks in the area, has announced massive new expansion plans.  In fact, they are planning to double in size!

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Here is WATE’s report on this expansion:

GATLINBURG, Tenn. (WATE) – Gatlinburg theme park Anakeesta on Thursday announced a $34-million expansion that will double the size of the guest experience over the next three years.

The park will add a new mountain coaster, a night walk with lighting and guided audio, a bird-house themed play area, and a European-themed village.

The new “Astra Lumina Enchanted Night Walk” will feature immersive lighting, projection and guided sound in partnership with Moment Factory, an award-winning multimedia entertainment studio. This will be Moment Factory’s first Lumina Night Walk experience in the United States and 15th in the world. It is set to open in November.

courtesy Anakeesta 

courtesy Anakeesta

In Spring of 2023, a “European-Themed Village” will open and offer two new attractions. The park will add a second mountain coaster called, “Hellbender.” One of the new attractions will be a double-railed mountain coaster in addition to the existing single-railed coaster, “Rail Runner.”

The second will be a birdhouse-inspired play zone as part of a new “European-Themed Village” where kids can enjoy three larger-than-life birdhouses, dozen adventure zones and seven slides winding more than 50 feet down the mountain.

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  European Village - courtesy Anakeesta↑

  
  

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  Bird House play area - courtesy Anakeesta↑

The first phase will also add a waterfall and cave system to their walking trails and gardens, allowing guests to walk behind falls and explore caves.

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Wow - I feel like I have been saying that over and over lately.  This is great for Anakeesta of course.  I have yet to visit this attraction, mainly because I wasn’t sure there was enough to do at the top of the mountain to justify it, and I’ll be honest, if you don’t go first thing in the morning, you will be faced with a very long waiting line at the bottom and the transportation to the top, specifically the chair lift/3 gondolas, or Chondola, as they call it, moves at a snail's pace and stops a lot.  So, my first impression of Anakeesta from the street level has not been impressive.  However, in reading about guests' experiences there, those have been overly positive for the most part.  I don't see many negative experiences.  So, I guess people don’t mind that the chondola is slow, they like what Anakeesta is serving, and they're about to give you lots more of it!

These attractions have staggered opening dates over the next three years, so  in some cases we’ll be waiting a bit to experience some of these attractions.

Let’s dig into the details a bit…

• New Mountain Coaster - Named “Hellbender”, named after the Smoky Mountain Salamander. The only other detail offered is that it’s a double-rail coaster.  Anakeesta’s other coaster is a single-rail - and that happens to be the only one of that type in the United States.  I’ve lost count, but there are at least a half-dozen other double-rail coasters in this area, and all but two are manufactured by Weigand (link https://wiegandsportsusa.com/).  Weigand makes a lot of cool stuff!  Another manufacturer, ADG Mountain Coasters (link ADG Mountainsides® | Mountain Coasters, Mountain Slides Design/Build (aquaticgroup.com)) is behind Ober Gatlinburg’s ‘Ski Mountain Coaster’.  A company called Brandauer made Anakeesta’s single-rail coaster “Rail Runner”.  Brandauer was acquired by SunKid, and that's how it is currently known - you can check their website out here (Sunkid: leisure experiences for the whole family (sunkidworld.com) .  So, it remains to be seen which company Anakeesta has chosen to make their second coaster, but often times, parks will buy two (or more) roller coasters from the same manufacturer in order to help with supply chain issues, spare and replacement parts, familiarity with the parties involved, and other advantages you would find by working with familar vendors.  That’s a lot of nerdy details!  Bottom line, we will not know more until Anakeesta tells us, or until it opens and someone - like me - goes and checks it out.

• Light Show - “Astra Lumina Enchanted Night Walk”.  This looks and sounds like it will be an immersive visual and audio experience.  I looked at Moment Factory’s website, and it boasts many very impressive projects that are unique and eye-catching.  Just check out their website to dig deeper because the pictures and video are impressive.  The article states that this will open this November, so we will find out soon enough.

• European Village - looks to me like more food and merchandise opportunities centered around a waterfall structure.  It does remind me of The Village in downtown Gatlinburg - like a block or two away from Anakeesta’s ‘storefront’ on the parkway.

• Birdhouse Playhouse with Slides - This is an extension of the European village and it looks pretty elaborate to me with play areas to run around and then the various slides, which are all unique.  Hopefully, adults will be able to enjoy the seven slides as well.  I look forward to checking this out when it’s completed.

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That about covers this analysis.  I think it's pretty impressive in the past couple of months that there have been four big announcements for the area. Dollywood's Big Bear Mountain Roller Coaster - and more, an all new construction amusement park Dig'n Zone, a $40 million dollar indoor water park expansion of Wilderness at the Smokies, and now Anakeesta's $34 million dollar expansion. We've seen an announcement this year that the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians will partner with one of the most immersive amusement park operators - Puy Du Fou for a storytelling experience at the Exit 407 project in Kodak, off of Interstate 40, along with a Buc-ees giant fueling center/food court/idk how else to describe it. Great things are in the works for the Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge, Sevierville areas of East Tennessee.

Have you been to Anakeesta and if so, what were your impressions of it?  Are you looking forward to one or more of these announced additions, if so which ones?  Let me know in the comments.

Until next time!

Wilderness At The Smokies Announces $40 Million dollar Expansion

 

Hi Everyone,

I see on social media that a lot of Dollywood fans are also big fans of the Wilderness At The Smokies waterpark resort.  And now there's going to be even more to love about Wilderness, because they have big expansion plans in the works.  They're adding a water coaster, a new lazy river, a ''cloud coaster'' that will go over parts of the Adventure Forest area, and a rooftop pool with a bar and grill.  As if that wasn't enough, Wilderness is building twelve 2,600 sq ft villas that can accommodate up to twelve guests.

Here is WATE's Report on this epic expansion:

SEVIERVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) — Tennessee’s largest indoor waterpark has announced plans for a $40-million expansion, the largest in the 15-year history of the Wilderness of the Smokies.

 

The Sevierville resort will add nearly 40,000 square feet to their Wild WaterDome indoor waterpark, offering several new attractions and improvements to existing amenities.

A groundbreaking ceremony will be held on September 15 with the project expected to be completed by fall 2023.

Headlining the renovations is the ‘Switchback Mountain,’ a three-story water coaster where riders will reach 29 miles per hour and feature a 22-foot drop. ‘

A release from the park said it will be the world’s first slide with Reverse AquaLucent effects, bringing eye-catching colors and patterns to the indoor park.

Other new attractions include the ‘Lookout Lagoon,’ a rooftop pool with a glass edge. The expanded rooftop area will also be home to an entertainment stage, bar and grill, and cabanas.

A new lazy river with LED color-changing kaleidoscope lighting and other visual effects will be constructed. The park will also add 500 seats to the waterpark and additional cabanas on the mezzanine and main levels.

In addition to the waterpark expansion, the resort will add a suspended ‘Cloud Coaster’ called the ‘Rocky Top Glider’ to the Adventure Forest section of the park. A park release said it will be the first of its kind in Tennessee and only the ninth in the world.

It will have a track length of approximately 400 linear feet with two lift hills, launching riders at a starting height of 18 feet with maximum heights of around 25 feet. This project is anticipated to be completed by Spring 2023 and the Adventure Forest will remain open during the construction.

An eight-person theater will also be added to the Adventure Forest, combining three-dimensional graphics and visual effects. The theater will be completed later this year.

The renovations will also expand food and beverage offerings throughout the park.

Lastly, the resort will construct a dozen, three-bedroom villas. These 2,600-square-foot villas will accommodate up to 12 guests, overlook the Sevierville Golf Course and are fully furnished with an electric fireplace, game room and pool table.

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Here is the press release from Wilderness At The Smokies:

OUR WILD WATERDOME IS ABOUT TO GET BIGGER!

August 18, 2022

We’re super excited to announce that in honor of our 15th anniversary which we will be celebrating in 2023, we have started a 40,000 square foot expansion of our Wild WaterDome.

The expansion will include:

Switchback Mountain, a three-story water coaster which will feature three steep drops, uphill blasts, high speeds and the premier of the world’s first slide with Reverse AquaLucent effects with colorful, spellbinding patterns. These special tubes will also allow light to filter through, adding brightness to the Wild WaterDome.

According to Pete, our Managing Director, “Switchback Mountain is guaranteed to be amazing! To get riders’ adrenaline pumping, the water coaster begins with a heart-pounding 22-foot drop at 29 mph before propelling the riders up into a right hairpin turn inside the first Reverse AquaLucent section. A second drop will follow into an open flume, followed by an uphill blast into a sharp left turn inside another Reverse AquaLucent tube with different patterns. For thrill’s sake, the coaster will repeat a third time into a final set of patterns inside another Reverse AquaLucent tube. To round out the sensations, riders will loop through a dark tube before finishing in an open flume.”

The waterpark expansion will also include Forbidden Caverns Lazy River, featuring an immersive tunnel experience complete with LED color changing kaleidoscope lighting, mirrors and projections.

Finally, the resort will be taking advantage of the waterpark’s expanded rooftop by adding Lookout Lagoon, a roof top pool with a glass edge. This area will also be home to the Peak Rooftop Bar and Grill, three rooftop cabanas and entertainment stage area. For convenience, an elevator will transport guests to and from this area.

Pete adds that per guest’s requests, the resort will be adding 500 seats to the waterpark, six additional cabanas on the mezzanine level of the waterpark and nine additional on the main level.

The anticipated completion of this expansion is fall of 2023. Watch our blog for other developments in the works!

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Wow, well that is a lot to look forward to!  With the new Soaky Mountain Water Park and now these new additions to Wilderness, there will be a lot to see and do at this location.  What are you looking forward to the most?  Let me know your thoughts in the comments!

Until next time!