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By Coasterdad (Ed. note: Coasterdad wrote this article during the first full week of Wildwater Kingdom's operation and has visited the new water park at least two more times since.) Let me begin by saying that Wildwater Kingdom is one of the most beautiful water parks you will ever see and after visiting it four times this past week it gets better every time. This is THE best thing that Geauga Lake could have done with the park by far and I applaud Cedar Fair in their decision to build it. The first thing you notice as you walk through the south gate is the tropical color scheme on all the buildings. It looks like Cedar Fair tried to use as much of the old Sea World buildings as possible. There are many small shops and restrooms that have been converted for use in Wildwater Kingdom. While on the subject of using old Sea World buildings, one thing I noticed was that one of the outdoor grills that used to be for the original Shorty Pete's BBQ is now used as a food stand called Big Daddy's Turkey Legs. Right behind the Big Daddy's stand are the lockers and changing areas. It looks like some of the old lockers from Hurricane Hannah's have been moved here. It must also be noted that while many water parks out there are nothing but large oases of barren concrete, Wildwater Kingdom is broken up by landscaping, which adds more character to the water park. After a quick change I was off to Riptide Run, which is the park's action river. It looks like there are plenty of free tubes to go around as I was not asked to exit once I made a full circuit. Please note that on busier days you can rent a single or double tube at Boarders Beach Rental located right inside the main gate. Riptide Run is full of waterfalls, a wave making machine, and a few surprises I will let you find out for yourself. After a few laps in Riptide Run I was off to Coral Cove, which features an activity pool with basketball hoops, interactive water sprays, and floating objects you can climb on. The upper pool area of Coral Cove includes a relaxation area with bubbling pools with bench seating, waterfalls, and geysers, One attraction in Coral Cove not mentioned is the whirlpool in the far end of the lower area. Try it out and see if you can get out of the whirlpool's grasp. Next it was Liquid Lightning, a 65-foot ProSlide Tornado. Guests sit in a four-person cloverleaf shaped raft and are sent through an enclosed tube which leads into a 253-foot long funnel of water. This is one awesome ride! The drop right before the funnel caught me a little off guard and with four people in my raft it literally felt like we were going to tip as we rode up the side of the funnel. After a little hydroplaning through the funnel's exit we land into the splash pool. This is a must do ride and something I will be doing many times before this summer is over! I took a walk through Splash Landing as I do not have kids young enough for it anymore but this thing rocks! It's Hook's Lagoon on steroids. There are so many slides and water gadgets to play with that it will keep little ones (and big ones) occupied for hours. I counted over ten slides throughout the complex with some you don't need to be a kid to ride. You might want to be careful where you stand when you are in Splash Landing. Listen for the clanging noise to speed up because when it does a bucket located on top of the complex tips every few minutes with over 1,000 gallons of water! Next I was off to Thunder Falls, which is the former Hurricane Mountain in Hurricane Hannah's water park. I did the yellow tube slide and it seemed to be running as good as it ever did when it was located on the other side of the lake. You won't go hungry during your stay at Wildwater Kingdom. There are many food and beverage stands throughout including the aforementioned Big Daddy's Turkey Legs as well as Pizza Pier and a Ben and Jerry's ice cream location. In all, Wildwater Kingdom is a must see if you are into water parks and even if you're not you must come to check out this amazing complex. I can't even imagine this water park getting much better but after Phase Two is completed next year, it will nearly double in size. It's incredible just thinking about it!
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