Troy M.
Yelp
An absolutely astounding theme park all around. This park was definitely worth the five hour drive up here alone! I should probably start off with that I had thoroughly planned for this trip, so that will reflect my outlook on this park. I also visited the park the day (1/3/2024) that children in Minnesota were back in school after Winter Break so lines were nonexistent. (I would recommend it heavily especially because the website for the park shows when certain rides will be closed for scheduled maintenance. That one feature could just save you from visiting when your #1 to-do attraction is closed.) First off, the rides are spectacular. You have four awesome coasters and a decent flat ride collection with a few stand-outs. SpongeBob SquarePants Rock Bottom Plunge is the only Euro-Fighter in the Midwest (and the only 410-model to be built), and even though Monster at Adventureland is steeper, This one still provides a unique experience. However, I've only seen this coaster using one train (even in videos of the ride) when they have 5-6 trains just sitting there, so I bet the lines can slow to a crawl on busy days. That being said, that entrance is simply glorious. A "MY EYES!!" reference will do quite nicely here. Next up, is Fairly Odd Coaster. What makes this coaster special is that it was the first-of-its-kind to ever exist. Plus, as of the year that I visited, the ride was in its 20th season of operation so that made it even more special in my eyes. I rode on the lighter side of the vehicle though, and my views SUCKED! I got barely any spinning, and I was always facing in the worst direction possible! Main point: Ride on the heavier side. Do be warned that this coaster easily had the longest line in the park not just at one time of day but 24/7. I assume it's the appeal of a tall family coaster or spinning coasters being fairly rare in the Midwest. Either way, now you know. Avatar Airbender is a unique coaster (believe it or not - it's considered a coaster!) that made you feel as it you were going to burst out of the ceiling of the Mall. It's a great source of some airtime and the spinning (when it actually spun a lot) added an extra delightful layer to this ride. The spinning can really vary depending on a variety of factors, like weight, placement of people, etc. My perception of the ride is hampered due to the fact that it was the only ride while I was at the park that broke down. Even after it was fixed, some restraints were broken so the ride had to operate at reduced capacity. Pepsi Orange Streak was a mildly thrilling, long, and scenic coaster that gave you a grand tour of the park. It reminded me of a Mine-Train coaster but instead of being close to the ground, you were up in the air. Even better, the ride went through the Log Chute (more on that later) ride so you could wave hello to the people on the ride. The coaster's second lift hill was also in the Log Chute area which I thought was neat since it was pretty dark while you were going up the lift hill. As for Back at the Barnyard Hayride, it's nothing to write home about. I just rode it for the coaster credit. I will admit that in the back row, those turns can be a little whippy. I hope that Triple-Five re-themes this ride since most kids nowadays have no idea what Back at the Barnyard is. The stand-out non-coaster ride is easily Log Chute. Sure, it may not be themed to Nickelodeon but the ride has been at the park since the park opened. To begin, I thought this coaster was going to be closed (since the website said the ride only operated on weekends) but I soon learned (thankfully) that the ride was going to be operating from Noon until close! I do have to commend the park for changing the schedule of such an amazing attraction. The ride was a little creepy since I rode it alone and the Paul Bunyan and Babe the Blue Ox (supposedly) Animatronics were un-moving, adding to the creepy-factor. I did like how at the top of the two drops, there were employees at a stand to operate the ride properly. I appreciate the park keeping this aspect of the attraction alive as it felt like going back in time since most log flumes do not do this anymore due to staffing issues and all that. Speaking of the drops, they were wet but not too wet. My advice is to take off everything that you don't need so that you still have clothes that are dry and can warm you up. For example, if you are wearing a sweatshirt with a t-shirt underneath, take the sweatshirt off but keep the t-shirt on so that clothing that doesn't have to get soaked gets soaked. My favorite flat rides were Brain Surge (a ride based on a TV show that nobody really knows about that has lost media but aired when this park was transformed into Nickelodeon Universe so that's why it's themed to the TV show) and TMNT Shell Shock, a rare Gerstlauer Sky Fly that is fortunately becoming more common in the Midwest. Overall, I would DEFINITELY recommend visiting this park, whoever you are. I will be back!