Originally Posted By juicer I know that River Country closed a couple years ago - So what's happening with it? Is it all falling apart? Or all bulldozed over?
Originally Posted By TDLFAN It's sitting there decaying I'd presume. Some one said they were using the complex for special rpivate gatherings but I have never seen anything happening in that area since the park closed.
Originally Posted By Skylardad How about Discovery Island (or Decaying Island)? It seems like it could be prime real estate to develop on (along with River Country), but what do you put there now? River Country may be easier to develop since it is adjacent to the campground. Maybe another Playground (yawn) for the kids whose parents are parasailing.
Originally Posted By bloona Im sure I read on here ages ago that they had now stopped the special private events there. not certain
Originally Posted By Kennesaw Tom There are no private events being held there. The place is decaying. I went to the site back in January of 2005 and River Country looked terrible, trash cans around. There is still power getting to the site as a few lights were on in the area. Its a shame just watching it decay like that. But look at the rest of the WDW property. It still has trees down from the hurricanes several years ago. The former airfield is now a equipment storage area. Apparently "grounds keeping" only relates to roads and the immediate park areas.
Originally Posted By Disneymom443 Why did they close it down in the first place? Was it just not getting enough people? Just wondering.
Originally Posted By leemac My understanding is that River Country reached a point of no return. It needed a lot of maintenance to keep it going due to age and WDW knew that families would prefer BB and TL due to both being larger, offering more slides and being a heck of a lot easier to get to. So WDW opted to mothball it. I always enjoyed RC but there just wasn't really enough to do.
Originally Posted By leemac <<But look at the rest of the WDW property. It still has trees down from the hurricanes several years ago. >> Tom the honest truth about the hurricane-damaged trees is that WDW wanted to remove them but they were advised by ecologists that consult from their Environmentality program that it would do more harm than good. So they surveyed clumps of trees to make sure they couldn't fall on cars or pedestrians etc and have left them.
Originally Posted By TDLFAN And it looks awful. Furthermore, if Disney really cared a hoot about "enviromentality", they would have never destroyed so much of the biomasses around the property in favor of tacky economy hotels and unneeded theme parks that have saturated the WDW experience and compromised qualuty standards all over the property.
Originally Posted By bloona <<"unneeded theme parks" >> ? I think any theme parks there arent really envioromentally friendly. At least leaving the trees is a step in the right direction I guess.
Originally Posted By t1lersm0m Lee, can you explain the environmental affects of leaving the trees, as compared to removing them? How is leaving them there beneficial?
Originally Posted By DVC_dad Back to the Topic of River Country...I am sad to say that I never had a chance to go there, but in reality, I never would have gone there anyway. It is a Fantastic Voyage just to get into the Campground for the Hoop De Doo Review. I can't imagine ever going to River Country even if it WAS still there.
Originally Posted By TDLFAN River Country was fun. The only gripe I had with it is that you had to be a swimmer to enjoy some of the slides there. Also, you were basically swimming in Bay Lake, so the water color in the central area always looked a bit... brownish. Other than that, I used to love the big slide they had there...which designed in "steps". It was also the first water park where I saw the now commonplace waterslides we see around.
Originally Posted By DVC_dad <<<swimming in Bay Lake>>> Water quality is pretty easy to maintain in a man made, controlled pool/water slide area. (Provided you don't have idiots who just pretend to check it every 30 mins or so) Do you think this issue of swimming in a more natural body of water could have contributed to Disney shutting the place down?
Originally Posted By DVC_dad ^^^___ But then again I regularly swim with wild Geese in the Boardwalk pool. I am sure they do bad things in the pool.
Originally Posted By TDLFAN >>(Provided you don't have idiots who just pretend to check it every 30 mins or so)<< Or pee in it. >>Do you think this issue of swimming in a more natural body of water could have contributed to Disney shutting the place down?<< I don't know. Maybe, but I would say budgets were the reason more than anything as I am told maintenance costs and competition for nearby Typhoon L and BB helped seal RC's fate.
Originally Posted By ssWEDguy >> the water color in the central area always looked a bit... brownish. << Spoken like someone who's not spent much time swimming in real lakes. I'm from Minnesota (Missouri originally), and real lake swimming picnics are prevalent there. The same water the water ski boats go zipping by in. I think TDLFAN is right. The main reason was probably economics, and competition with the much more facile and upscale TL and BB.
Originally Posted By leemac <<Lee, can you explain the environmental affects of leaving the trees, as compared to removing them? How is leaving them there beneficial?>> I'm no ecologist but my understanding is that due to close clumping of trees by removing the damaged tree could upset the roots of the survivors which could kill them in turn.
