Kenton's Cove Keelboat Canal Topic

[Nate]

Hey everyone, I'm 18 now and have faint memories of Kenton's Cove Keelboat Canal and would like to ask for your help in understanding what the ride was about.

I'm pretty sure I rode it a couple times in my early childhood because I remember a rotating loading platform so I'm pretty sure I am thinking of the right attraction?

Anyways, I don't remember alot about the ride itself. I would like to know how it worked. I am curious on many aspects, such as:

Was twice as tall as the kings Mill that stands today?

Which did you prefer riding?

Why was it removed?

How did the boats travel side by side, did they race?

Was it really fast and intense?

Any info on this ride would be greatly appreciated!

[welchce]

There was a rotating loading platform as I remember. I don't know about the height but it was probably twice as tall if not taller. I don't really remember riding though I might have once. It was removed for TR:TR. The boats only split for the drop I believe; they traveled in the same flume until before the drop where there were two right next to each other and then it came back together after the drop. That's all I have and I'm pretty sure it's all correct. Hopefully someone here who rode it while in their prime can speak. I'm only a year older than you.

[Browntggrr]

http://www.KICentral.com/history/photos/di...at=0&pos=59

That is a nice picture of KCKC. You can see the rotating platform, as well as the double drop rather clearly.

I am not sure of the exact height, but it was much taller than most flume rides. You can also compare the ride height to the tree height in the picture.

It was removed for a combination of things: maintenance costs & construction of TR. Much like White Water Landing at CP.

KCKC did not race, nor was it an intense ride. But it was a terrific & relaxing family ride that did not get you soaked.

That is one of my most missed rides, at any park.

[WooferBearATL]

Incredibly relaxing and enjoyable ride through the tree tops as well.

[pkifreakhogg]

Ya i really do miss this ride alot. It was alot of fun riding around in the tree tops.

[pkifreakhogg]

Also there were alot of que lines right in front on the ride plus there was a pond there that had alot of fish in it. You did get pretty wet also.

[DeLorean Rider]

It was believed that having the double drop would allow for more capacity and for years they used the switch. I believe that the last time that both sides were still used was 1997, after that the arm that would change the trough was stationary on the inside drop.

My favorite part of the ride was the "hydro-launch" (didnt make that up), the small hill at the bottom of the first drop. That and the fact that even the longest line went quickly.

PS: Why is this in KI Polls forum?

[Hank]

White Water Landing at Cedar Point was the same ride.

[jzarley]

Incredibly relaxing and enjoyable ride through the tree tops as well.

When I was little I thought this was the scariest ride at KI because my older brother told me that snakes could fall out of those trees into the boats! I was always so relieved to get to the drop because that meant I had made it through the trees without a snake dropping on me!

(Although, to be honest, that's just one of the many phobias my brother tried to inflict on me as a child! <g>)

[westcoaster]

great ride it was , and Kings Island needs a nother great family Water Ride:

[SeasonPass4Life]

KCKC is by far the ride I miss the most at KI. As a kid I was fascinated by the rotating loading platform. (I also loved the Smurfs Enchanted Voyage for the same reason.)

As I got older I loved the ride through the trees and especially the small hop at the bottom of the drop. If you had enough weight in your boat you would make quite a splash. I also remember the lift hill being so long that there were two conveyor belts that were used to get you to the top. My older sister freaked me out by telling me that sometimes the boats would get stuck on the spot where you changed from one belt to the next. Of course that never happened to us.

KCKC was one of the rides that our family, all 5 of us, always rode together. I wish that it was around for my daughter to experience.

[Dvo]

^Scooby Doo still has the rotating platform. As for KCKC, I remember it well. I rode it every time I went to the park. All of the above is correct. Here's the ride from start to finish:

You start in the loading station and get into an assigned "log." Then you slowly rotate around until you reach the end of the station and you're on your way. You then slowly float to the lift hill, which is two long conveyor belts. I'd probably guess that it was about 80 feet tall. Once you got to the top of the hill, you went down a small (about 4 ft) drop, and then it wound around the treetops. Another part of this ride is that when you are winding around, you pass the boats in front of and behind you, so you could talk to them. Then after about a 2 minute cruise at the top, you come around the final bend. That was one of my favorite parts too, because the water would "pile up" near the drop, and the increased water level would slow the boat down, creating a lot of anticipation for the drop. Then you'd go through the switch (I don't think I ever saw them using the right side) and go down the huge drop, and go over the hydro-launch at the bottom and return to the station. KCKC was a really fun, relaxing ride. I would much rather have that than TRTR.

[KIBeast]

^Actually, you didn't board a log, but a keelboat. It looked quite different from a log. The Kings Mill Log Flume had the log shaped boats.

I really loved this ride and now I'm really sorry it got replaced by that horrid excuse for a giant top spin.

[DeLorean Rider]

We used to always pretend we were riding in a bobsled on KCKC.

[Dvo]

The hydro launch was always my favorite. I always rode with my hands up down the hill, and I'd get scared every time that I was going to be launched right out of the boat!

[WooferBearATL]

^Actually, you didn't board a log, but a keelboat. It looked quite different from a log. The Kings Mill Log Flume had the log shaped boats.

I really loved this ride and now I'm really sorry it got replaced by that horrid excuse for a giant top spin.

Nope, Sure always looked like a log to me.

[Nate]

PS: Why is this in KI Polls forum?

Sorry, I'm new to these forums and didn't know a better place to put it. Thanks so far for all the info especially the walk-through! Some of that jogged my long term memory but I have absolutely no idea what the hydro launch was and do not remember it at all. Could someone explain more on that? From what I got it was just an additional 4 foot drop after the big fall?

[AZ Kinda Guy]

I'm really sorry it got replaced by that horrid excuse for a giant top spin.

Compared to which other giant top spin?

[Dvo]

The hydro launch was basically a bunny hill, similar to the one after the first drop on Racer. On KCKC, you went down the big drop and then went immediately over a small hill really fast and you would get a little bit of airtime on a flume ride. Then you would come down for the splash finish.

In this photo

http://www.KICentral.com/history/photos/di...at=0&pos=58

you can kind of see the hydro launch. At the bottom of the double-drop, you can see a small area in the track that has two brown "fins" that acted as the "hill."

[Nate]

Okay, I can clearly see the drop now thanks. One of my questions was which one did you guys prefer to ride? KCKC or Kings Mill? I would guess KCKC due to it's height?

[jondrewfoo]

i was pretty little when i rode that, but i sure loved it. it was a massive water ride, that really was just amazing. i miss it, and really dont like Tomb Raider at all, they shouldnt take out something thats a great ride, even if for maintenance issues. i would doubt it ran into near as many issues as Tomb Raider has...

[Dvo]

Hmm, that's a tough one. I like KCKC because of the bigger drop. But I actually think that you got wetter on Kings Mill. I always used to ride in the front seat as a kid and I would come off Kings Mill DRENCHED! I also remember standing in line for Kings Mill, and if a boat that had 4 or 5 people came down, the people in line could even get wet from the splash. I think I liked Kings Mill better.

[SeasonPass4Life]

^Actually, you didn't board a log, but a keelboat. It looked quite different from a log. The Kings Mill Log Flume had the log shaped boats.

I really loved this ride and now I'm really sorry it got replaced by that horrid excuse for a giant top spin.

Nope, Sure always looked like a log to me.

Actually KIBeast you are correct. When we were kids we called both of the flume rides at KI, the big log ride (KCKC) and the little log ride (KMLF) I had not thought about it earlier but they were small versions of a Keel Boat and not a log. At any rate I really miss this ride and would enjoy it so much more than TR:TR.

[KIBeast]

Here is the Keel Boat.

Here is the Log Flume

[The Interpreter]

The Coal Cracker at Hersheypark is also essentially the same ride.

http://www.hersheypa.com/attractions/hersh...q=yes&id=19

Hydroflumes were very different from log flumes. The ride experience was also different...somehow the hydroflumes always seemed to speed along their course, while log flumes kind of floated around theirs....

[Rollercoast19]

Our family would also call KCKC the "big log ride" and Kings Mill the "little log ride." I really enjoyed the drop the most on KCKC. KCKC was the ride that made my mom afraid of rollercosters/heights. The highest coaster she has been on since is Adventure Express, and the reason she rides this is because it has a curved drop instead of a traditional drop.

[Nate]

The Coal cracker looks similar to KCKC. Are higher hydroflumes now illegal to run? My friend said that KCKC was too high to legally rebuild. Were the keelboats 4 seaters?

[CoastersRZ]

No, they are not illegal to run now. See the Interpreter`s post about the similar ride at Hersheypark. Theoretically, if Kings Island wanted to build a similar ride to KCKC, they could, if they wanted to pay the cost for it. But why would they want to do that? As the saying goes with most rides, you can build as high as your pocket can afford. (Obviously, in some parks, there are exceptions, like with local zoning codes).

I believe that the boats could have 4-5 people in them.

[Nate]

Good to know, I wish KCKC replaced Congo Falls. I personally do not care for Congo Falls due to the extreme lack of variety. (though it'd be unbelievably fun if you had 20 friends with you to fill up the huge boat!)

I wish Tomb raider was put in place of Congo falls, not KCKC. Does anyone else agree?

[Browntggrr]

^ A big ugly building should be in the back of the park, not the front.