Canada's Wonderland- May 15th, 2017

May 15th marked my third visit of the season to Canada's Wonderland. My brother Scott and our Mom had tagged along for the visit. It was a beautiful day as the weather was warm and sunny with hardly a cloud in the sky. As usual, we arrived at the park before opening time and rode everything we wanted to multiple times during our visit as the crowds were light as there were mostly school kids there on field trips. I had also experienced the all-new for 2017 Soaring Timbers three times during my visit. Be sure to check out photos of it below and a video of it in operation! Now, let's get on with those photos!

We arrived at Canada's Wonderland shortly before 9:30am and entered the park around 9:40am. Here is a beautiful Spring morning view of the Royal Fountains and Wonder Mountain.

While  we were waiting for the rides opening at 10am, we happened to notice to geese atop Wonder Mountain close to where the Victoria Falls High Divers dive. Here is one of the geese standing tall in the morning sun.

Here is Thunder Run completing a test run just minutes before opening for the day.

After riding many rides during our first hour and a half of of visit, we decided to head over to Action Zone and get a bite to eat. On our way over from Medieval Faire, I had captured this view of the Royal Fountains in mid rise.

A nice painted mural was put up above the Pizza Pizza location on International Street.

After eating lunch at the Chicken Shack, I decided to get my first of many photos of the pink blossoms which can be found around Canada's Wonderland in the Springtime.

Here is a train of passengers descending down the first hill on Behemoth.

Here is the great jumping machine, SledgeHammer in mid-jump!

Here is a view of Muskoka Plunge under construction. Since our last visit they have added a roof and many more slide pieces.

Here is a closer view of Muskoka Plunge under construction in Splash Works. Muskoka Plunge is a drop floor body slide manufactured by Splashtacular which operates out of the state of Kansas. Muskoka Plunge had replaced Body Blast, which had operated from 1992 until 2016.

While walking alongside Splash Works (which opens for the season on May 27th), I managed to capture this photo of one of Vortex's trains swooping over the water below! 

In White Water Canyon, we spotted some beautiful creeping myrtle sprawling alongside the path nearby TimberWolf Falls. 

Here are some afternoon exposure photos of the all-new for 2017 Soaring Timbers. Here is waiting for another load of passengers to board.

Here is a group of passengers getting restrained (and tightly squeezed!) on Soaring Timbers. Interestingly enough, Soaring Timbers was manufactured in 1995 by Mondial and is an Inferno ride model, which is a predecessor of the Top Scan (Shockwave). Prior to arriving at Canada's Wonderland, it had operated on the European fair circuit as 'Nightfly'. Cedar Fair (Canada's Wonderland's current owner) had acquired the Nightfly during a 2015 European ride search for classic amusement rides. Prior to arriving at Canada's Wonderland, it received a complete refurbishment in order to successfully operate for many years to come.

They're ready for take off! Below is a video I had captured of Soaring Timbers in operation.

Soaring Timbers definitely does have some amazing landscaping! Now, I will give my opinion of Soaring Timbers since I had rode it three times so far. During my first ride, my brother Scott and I had sat in the last row of the far gondola. Nearing the end of the ride, the gondola had dived towards the ground, giving the ultimate experience. During my second and third rides of the day, the gondolas had just turned and swayed throughout the ride, not going upside down. Soaring Timbers is a fun ride but, not intense as I had hoped.

Here is a beautiful shot of Vortex looking through a branch of pink blossoms.

Here are some more beautiful pink blossoms against the blue sky near the entrance to Planet Snoopy.

For all the White Water Canyon and TimberWolf Falls fans out there, both attraction open for another season on May 19th!

Here is another close-up shot of Muskoka Plunge under construction. They are definitely working hard in order to get it completed as Splash Works opens for the season on May 27th.

Here is Orbiter tilting high into the clear blue sky on this beautiful Spring day.

Here are some passengers catching the amazing amounts of airtime on Behemoth!

Here are some passengers enjoying the airtime on the wonderful Mighty Canadian Minebuster! I had my hands up during my morning ride on it as well, just like any coaster I ride that has airtime!

The carp were greatly enjoying a leisurely swim along the stream nearby Mighty Canadian Minebuster in Action Zone.

After taking a spin on Antique Carouse with my mom, I decided to capture this stunning photo of the Antique Carousel and these beautiful pink blossoms.

Here is Psyclone swinging higher and higher into the bright blue sky!

Okay, so anyone who truly knows me will know about the hate for Wild Beast I've had since my first and only ride back in August of 2010. I've avoided it during every visit ever since. It was rough, horrible, and completely painful. Since then I've been riding Mighty Canadian Minebuster, Ghoster Coaster, and other wooden roller coasters at other amusement parks I have visited. Well, this visit changed my opinion of Wild Beast. Before we get into details of  my new opinion for Wild Beast, let's go into a little bit of detail in regards of the work that has been done to Wild Beast over the past couple of years. During the 2014/2015 off-season, Wild Beast's first drop was retracked. During the 2015/2016 off-season,  a huge section of Wild Beast's track was retracked. I watch and listened for reviews to see how smooth and rideable it was during the 2016 season. After some good reviews, I decided it was time to re-ride the Wild Beast after six years and nine months since my last ride. I found it to be actually fun and enjoyable as it provided a relatively smooth experience. It was not the same Wild Beast I had experienced nearly seven years ago. I was completely amazed by the re-tracking so much so that I rode it three times in the second car of the purple train during my visit. During my second ride on Wild Beast of the day, Scott decided to ride to see what I was talking about. He also agreed that it was much smoother and enjoyable than what we had experienced six years and nine months ago! I am glad to see that the park had greatly improved Wild Beast and continue to do so as the years progress.

After my third and final ride on Wild Beast for the day, we had noticed this ground hog seeking refuge under the bridge that connects Medieval Faire to International Festival. At this time, he was looking at the children who had stopped to see what he was doing.

For Canada's 150th anniversary, Canada's Wonderland will be holding a Canada 150 event show throughout the month of July in Arthur's Baye located in Medieval Faire. They repainted the Arthur's Baye diving structure for the occasion.

After another fun and exciting day at Caanda's Wonderland we decided it was time to head home shortly after 4:20pm. Here is a photo of me, Scott, and our Mom standing in front of the Royal Fountains on International Street.

I thank you for taking the time to look at the photos and video of our third visit of the season to Canada's Wonderland! Be sure to stay tuned for more visits to Canada's Wonderland!