Nestled in the beautiful Adirondack Mountains in upstate New York is the town of Lake George. It is located on the south shore of the gorgeous fresh water lake of the same name. Lake George is a year-round tourist destination. In the winter, there is skiing, sledding, and ice skating. In the summer, Lake George is famous for fishing (salmon, bass, pike, and trout), whitewater rafting, and golfing. The town is filled with fascinating shops, restaurants, museums, and art galleries.
The Great Escape and Splashwater Kingdom began in 1954 as Storytown, USA. It was a five acre theme park with four employees. Built by Charles R. Wood, it highlited characters from Mother Goose. In 1965, the Alice In Wonderland area was introduced. In 1996, The Great Escape was sold to Premier Parks which eventually became Six Flags. Today, the park spans over 140 acres and features more than 125 rides, shows, and amusement attractions.
The park is home to seven coasters plus a large water park. Our goal for this trip was to ride the historic hybrid coaster Comet.
Brochure courtesy of The Great Escape
Roadrunner Express is a zippy family coaster. It is a steel sit down ride built by Zamperla, and has been operating since 2005.
Roadrunner Express - Beep Beep! (Photo courtesy of The Great Escape)
Canyon Blaster is an Arrow mine ride. It has been operating at The Great Escape since 2003. It is a steel sit down coaster that features two lift hills and a double helix. The ride is 56 feet high, 2000 feet long, and lasts for two and a half minutes. It's an experience worth repeating.
Canyon Blaster - the train dropping into the Old West Photo (Photo by Tammy Staie www.rcdb.com)
The Alpine Bobsled debuted at the park in 1998. It was built by Intamin AG/ Swiss Bob of Switzerland. The cars travel freely in a curvaceous trough. Bobsled rides are becoming a rarity. The coaster is approximately 64 feet high and travels a distance of 1,490 feet. The ride lasts one minute and forty seconds.
Alpine Bobsled - the train begins its winding descent (Photo by Shredley)
Boomerang Coast-To-Coaster is a standard Vekoma boomerang-shuttle ride. It has been operating since 1997. Guests receive three forward and three backward inversions. The ride boasts G forces of 5.2. The train reaches speeds up to 47 miles per hour, and the ride lasts almost two minutes. We thoroughly enjoyed this particular boomerang.
Boomerang Coast-To-Coaster - a smooth shuttle (Photo by Shredley)
Joni and Shredley at the entrance (Photo by Joyce Harris)
Near Boomerang Coast-To-Coaster, in the Storytown section of the park, the keiki and their families can visit Alice in Wonderland. We took a mid-afternoon break to peruse this enchanting exhibit. We were delighted by the people-sized characters that dwell in this magic place.
Joni and Shredley enter Wonderland (Photo by Joyce Harris)
This rabbit's late for an important date (Photo by Shredley)
Greetings from the brothers Tweedle, Dee and Dum (Photo by Shredley)
Smile! We're on Joyce's camera (Photo by Joyce Harris)
Near the entrance to the park is the steel looping coaster Steamin' Demon. It turns riders upside down three times while negotiating a double corkscrew and a vertical loop. Steamin' Demon opened at the park in 1984, and was their first roller coaster. It was built by Arrow Development Co., and designed by Ron Toomer. This coaster is 95 feet high, 1,430 feet long, and the ride lasts one and a half minutes.
Steamin' Demon - a devilish ride (Photo by Shredley)
The Nightmare at Crack Axle Canyon is housed in a six-story, 16,000 square foot enclosure. It was designed by Buro Stengel and manufactured by Schwarzkopf. It has been operating at The Great Escape since 1999. Riders are treated to a rollicking twisted maze of steel track in complete darkness. This chaotic ride lasts 1 ½ minutes and travels on 1,772 feet of track. We enjoyed this unusual experience.
Nightmare - a rough and tumble fantasy waits inside (Photo by Shredley)
Now on to the finest and the fastest. The Comet is the superstar of the park. It is a steel structure with a wooden track. It began its life in 1927 as the formidable Crystal Beach Cyclone, and was redesigned and erected at the Great Escape in 1994.
Riders on the platform peruse the history of the Comet (Photo by Shredley)
Roller coaster enthusiasts from around the world flock to this wonderful ride for its steep drops, great airtime, and wild turns. Designed by Herb Schmeck, the Comet delivers three minutes of absolute bliss!
Comet - the magnificent first drop (Photo courtesy of The Great Escape)
Comet - first drop - front seat view (Photo by Joe Schwartz www.joyrides.com)
Joni and Shredley begin their ride - Shaka! (Photo by Joyce Harris)
Joni, Shredley, and Joyce on Comet - great air / hair time (On-ride photo by The Great Escape)
Thank you Lake George and The Great Escape for a delightful day!
Our August column will take us to Santa Claus, Indiana to visit three great wooden roller coasters at Holiday World.
Much Aloha!
-Joni and Shredley
Next Installment: Chapter XXXVI: The Parks; Holiday World - Santa Claus, IN
Related Links:
www.sixflags.com
www.rcdb.com
www.joyrides.com
www.aceonline.org
