Wild Waters

Wild Waters is a water park in Silver Springs, Florida. It is the sister park of Silver Springs Theme Park in Silver Springs. Because Wild Waters is the sister park of Silver Springs, it has many trees and shady areas. There are picnic areas, a snack bar, and an open-air fast food restaurant counter. The park also has a sand volleyball court and a gift shop.

Wild Waters is a favorite attraction for tourists visiting the Ocala and Silver Springs area, as well as local residents. It is a small park by modern standards, but offers a more relaxed atmosphere than its mega water park competitors. Wild Waters has a special niche, attracting people wanting to enjoy a more traditional water park experience. It was among the first water parks in the country to use fiberglass flumes, something that has become the industry standard.

Rides & Attractions

A partial view of "The Hurricane" from outside the park.

The Hurricane: A large figure eight shaped double flume. Standing approximately 80 feet tall, it is the largest ride in the park. A large spiral staircase takes visitors to the summit. There are two flumes, which run adjacent to each other. Riders must use tubes to ride, which they have to carry to the top. This due to the ride not originally requiring the use of tubes. The finale of the ride is a long dark tunnel before a turbulent splash pool.

Osceola's Revenge and Bunyan's Bend: Dual flumes that are part of the Silver River Flumes area. Both flumes begin at the same point, but do not run parallel and have different patterns. Both feature many drops and turns, and both end at the same splash pool. Osceola's Revenge has an extra drop, and is therefore rated with a higher thrill level than Bunyon's Bend.

A view of the "Silver Bullet" from State Road 40.

Silver Bullet: Wild Waters only speed flumes, they are part of the Silver River Flumes area. Dual speed flumes run side by side and end in a large splash pool. Unlike newer speed flumes, the Silver Bullet does not go straight down from the top. The flumes have two dips, with plateaus in between them.

Mini Monster: A single flume that is part of the Silver River Flumes area. The ride is very short and only has a few turns, with no dips. It then ends into a splash pool.

Wavepool: A 450,000 gallon pool that alternates between calm waves and generating waves after a certain period of time. The waves can reach up to four feet tall at the deepest end of the pool. The deck surrounding the wave pool is filled with lounge chairs.

"Kachunga”: An interactive, educational animal exhibit, featuring snakes, turtles and alligators.

“The Mark Robinson Show at the Comedy Lab”: Dubbed as wholesome PG entertainment from the world of comedy, magic, juggling and more, inside a 500-seat open air theater; $10 per show for all customers.

“Wild Wave Surf Simulator”: Interactive surf board allows customers to ride in a green screen booth; $5 per ride and $10 per video for all customers.

“Cool Kids Cove”: A Kids water ride area that includes Henry Flagler’s Boat of Bounce, Caterpillar Tunnel of Fun, and Silver Springs Kiddie Canoe and Kayaks, to name a few; $3 per ride.^[2]

A partial view of the "Alligator Ambush" ride and its quota from outside the park.

Alligator Ambush: A newer flume, constructed in early 2008. The ride consists of an enclosed water flume which exits into a slide funnel (commonly referred to as a "toilet bowl"). After exiting the funnel, riders enter another short tube, and then end in an open chute.

Defunct Rides

In the early 1990s the park added several new water flumes including the Tornado, the Thunderbolt, and the Twin Twister as part of an ambitious expansion plan. Unlike the other flumes in the park whose frames were constructed of wood and concrete, the new ride's frames were made of steel. In 2006 the Twin Twister, ThunderBolt and Tornado were all taken out of service and dismantled. This was due to cost-cutting measures, as well as safety concerns. The steel frames of the rides were showing obvious signs of corrosion in the humid Central Florida environment.

The former name of the children's play area was "Bonanza". It had towers equipped with water cannons that could be sprayed down onto people below. The towers were connected to each other via rope bridges. On the ground next to the towers were bunkers also equipped with water cannons that could be fired at the towers. A fully enclosed flume left from the top of one of the towers, and emptied into the pool below. The Bonanza was closed and demolished in the mid 1990s to make way for the new children's area.

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Wild Waters.

• Official website