So on my Canada trip in late June and early July one of my stops was Canada's Wonderland. I really wanted to go to this park because they have the Leviathan and Behemoth, B&M Giga and Hypercoasters. For my Canada trip, I actually went to LaRonde in Montreal first because the forecast for June 28 was supposed to be showers in Toronto (the day I went to Wonderland). Before I woke up on the morning I went to LaRonde, I had a nightmare where I forgot to buy Fast Lane Plus Passes at Wonderland, so while in Ottawa, I got my Fast Lane Plus pass online at the hotel so I could ride the rides with barely any waits. It was decided that the 28th would have to be the day to go to Wonderland because I was spending the 29th to go to the Toronto Zoo. I actually spent the morning of the 28th driving to Wonderland from Ottawa and the traffic was such a mess. After checking into my hotel, I drove to the park. Coming into the front gates, I was so excited because I could see Behemoth and Leviathan which loomed over the park like giant steel guards. All of the hype was killing me, so when I parked the car, I headed into the park and got my Fast Lane Plus from my printed receipt.
After getting my Fast Lane Plus, I headed straight for Leviathan. With anxiety and excitement gripping me, I immediately got into the Fast Lane entrance. I was nervous. I had ridden the 310 foot Millennium Force at Cedar Point in Sandusky, OH and that was more bark than bite due to the gradual slope to the drop. Leviathan on the other hand is just a giant 306 foot straight drop to the ground. I knew I could handle everything after the drop so I got in the 2nd row and buckled up. Up the lift hill I went and when I got to the top I thought to myself "It'll be over before you know it". We went down the drop and boy is it a doozie! It was complete weightlessness from the top to the bottom and then as soon as you see the tunnel you realize that you're already up at the high right banked turn. Then after a giant airtime hill and a massive 140 foot turnaround you hit another airtime hill a left turn and hit the brakes (which takes up a long portion of the end of the coaster). I did enjoy the first half of the ride (even the first drop) but I feel that the 2nd half of Leviathan doesn't really do anything special. I came off of it feeling that Millennium Force is better.
After Leviathan, I rode Vortex. This Arrow suspended coaster is the largest of its kind left and travels at a speed of up to 55 miles an hours. It starts by going up Wonder Mountain and then drops down the side and does turns and helixes on the lake. I sat in the last row and I was surprised to find that while the ride doesn't throw you around, it does reverberate a lot and it feels like it takes a while for your body to feel the G's on those curves. I came off feeling ok but not exhilarated enough to ride it again.
Next up was the Behemoth. This hypercoaster is 230 feet and has a lot of amazing floater airtime. I sat in the front row on my first ride and was amazed by the sights and thrills it produces. When you sit in the front you have some extra time at the start of the first drop waiting for the rest of the cars in the train to push you over the edge. This provided great views of the park and various buildings and hotels in the view. Then down the big drop which like Leviathan is very smooth and offers a great sense of speed. If you're sitting in the front you feel like your going the fastest at the bottom of the drop, while if your in the back it feels faster going down the drop instead of coming out of it. Over a massive airtime hill and then into a hammerhead turn which provides perhaps the best scenic view of the area. Then several more bunny hills and a mid-course brake run. Then after a downward and upward helix you have two more bunny hills before ending your ride. I liked Behemoth a lot more than Leviathan. The second time I rode it I sat in the 7th car and it makes for a much more thrilling ride. It feels like you're being yanked down the big drop and over the airtime hills. Actually, if you can handle sitting in the back of Behemoth, you can handle Leviathan. I noticed that sitting towards the back on Behemoth felt like the 2nd row of Leviathan! All in all a great ride that has overshadowed the Intimidator at Carowinds, Goliath at LaRonde and Leviathan at Wonderland!
After Behemoth I rode the Mighty Canadian Minebuster. I'm not going to elaborate here. It was a great fun wooden coaster with a fantastic surprise tunnel helix at the end, but it gave me a slight headache so I decided not to re-ride it. After that I rode Psyclone and got a hamburger to eat. It was getting to sunset time so I headed over to Dragon Fire to check that out. An Arrow looping coaster with 2 loops and 2 corkscrews it was a fun ride. I sat in the last row and it did not disappoint. The corkscrews and helixes were especially fun which glued me to my seat. It's such a shame that so many people complain about old Arrow coasters and saying that they get headaches. I really like them not only because of their aesthetic looks but also because it feels like I'm riding history. Arrow coasters were the coasters that started the coaster wars and many of them gave park visitors everywhere their first experience of going upside down. After Dragon Fire, I checked to see if The Bat was open. It was closed so I moved on. After riding Time Warp which felt very unsafe due to the way you are positioned in the coaster I went on the Backlot Stunt Coaster. This ride may look like a kiddie coaster but has some serious G's especially those spiraling up the top of the helix after the first launch. It also has some nice quick drops and street scenery before heading back to the station.
By this time it was getting dark so I decided which rides I wanted to ride before the park closed. It was nearing 9:30PM so I decided to take one final voyage on the Leviathan, this time in the front. It was getting dark so I was in for a surprise! I sat in the front car and went up the lift hill. Going down the drop I realized that with no seat row in front of me, I could feel all the wind in my face traveling 92 miles an hour in what seemed to me in my imagination as riding a real Leviathan in a massive Nor'Easter on a loud choppy sea. I could hear the wind howl and the Leviathan roar as the creature took me around the darkened parking lot trying to buck me off over the monstrous waves of water that it navigated. It was cold and intense but I could see a structure in the distance and after a few more gigantic twists and turns I finally reached the safety of land ho!!! The Leviathan beached on the sandy shore as I came to a still with the beautiful vista of Canada's Wonderland in all its glory in view. I took out my phone and took a panoramic of the magical scene laid out before me before a ride operator could notice. After getting off, I took in some views of Wonder Mountain illuminated against the dark Canadian sky. Since it was Canada's 150th, the park had celebrations going on with various signs and shows. It was awesome to visit, but so much more spectacular visiting on such a historic celebration! On the way out I got some birthday cake flavored fudge as when I visit a Cedar Fair park it's my tradition to get fudge of a different flavor for each park I visit. It was very good but very rich.
To conclude my visit, I must say that the Fast Lane Plus pass was worth every penny. So many rides including both Leviathan and Behemoth had line waits of over an hour and a half and I would not have been able to get as many rides in if I didn't have the pass. I spent 5 hours at the park and had such a great time. I didn't get to ride all the rides as there were some I could ride elsewhere like Flight Deck which is a clone of Endor Attack at LaRonde which I rode there. Guardians of Wonder Mountain didn't have a Fast Lane Plus entrance so I skipped it. Besides, I find those shoot the target rides rather boring anyways. I highly recommend a visit for you Zoochatters who are planning a trip to the Toronto Zoo and are also coaster enthusiasts. Another tip would be to try to plan to arrive at the park a half hour early. I thought the traffic was really rough and was routed by my GPS the long route through downtown Toronto at rush hour to Vaughn so that was a hassle. The trip was totally worth it and I hope to go back again sometime!
After getting my Fast Lane Plus, I headed straight for Leviathan. With anxiety and excitement gripping me, I immediately got into the Fast Lane entrance. I was nervous. I had ridden the 310 foot Millennium Force at Cedar Point in Sandusky, OH and that was more bark than bite due to the gradual slope to the drop. Leviathan on the other hand is just a giant 306 foot straight drop to the ground. I knew I could handle everything after the drop so I got in the 2nd row and buckled up. Up the lift hill I went and when I got to the top I thought to myself "It'll be over before you know it". We went down the drop and boy is it a doozie! It was complete weightlessness from the top to the bottom and then as soon as you see the tunnel you realize that you're already up at the high right banked turn. Then after a giant airtime hill and a massive 140 foot turnaround you hit another airtime hill a left turn and hit the brakes (which takes up a long portion of the end of the coaster). I did enjoy the first half of the ride (even the first drop) but I feel that the 2nd half of Leviathan doesn't really do anything special. I came off of it feeling that Millennium Force is better.
After Leviathan, I rode Vortex. This Arrow suspended coaster is the largest of its kind left and travels at a speed of up to 55 miles an hours. It starts by going up Wonder Mountain and then drops down the side and does turns and helixes on the lake. I sat in the last row and I was surprised to find that while the ride doesn't throw you around, it does reverberate a lot and it feels like it takes a while for your body to feel the G's on those curves. I came off feeling ok but not exhilarated enough to ride it again.
Next up was the Behemoth. This hypercoaster is 230 feet and has a lot of amazing floater airtime. I sat in the front row on my first ride and was amazed by the sights and thrills it produces. When you sit in the front you have some extra time at the start of the first drop waiting for the rest of the cars in the train to push you over the edge. This provided great views of the park and various buildings and hotels in the view. Then down the big drop which like Leviathan is very smooth and offers a great sense of speed. If you're sitting in the front you feel like your going the fastest at the bottom of the drop, while if your in the back it feels faster going down the drop instead of coming out of it. Over a massive airtime hill and then into a hammerhead turn which provides perhaps the best scenic view of the area. Then several more bunny hills and a mid-course brake run. Then after a downward and upward helix you have two more bunny hills before ending your ride. I liked Behemoth a lot more than Leviathan. The second time I rode it I sat in the 7th car and it makes for a much more thrilling ride. It feels like you're being yanked down the big drop and over the airtime hills. Actually, if you can handle sitting in the back of Behemoth, you can handle Leviathan. I noticed that sitting towards the back on Behemoth felt like the 2nd row of Leviathan! All in all a great ride that has overshadowed the Intimidator at Carowinds, Goliath at LaRonde and Leviathan at Wonderland!
After Behemoth I rode the Mighty Canadian Minebuster. I'm not going to elaborate here. It was a great fun wooden coaster with a fantastic surprise tunnel helix at the end, but it gave me a slight headache so I decided not to re-ride it. After that I rode Psyclone and got a hamburger to eat. It was getting to sunset time so I headed over to Dragon Fire to check that out. An Arrow looping coaster with 2 loops and 2 corkscrews it was a fun ride. I sat in the last row and it did not disappoint. The corkscrews and helixes were especially fun which glued me to my seat. It's such a shame that so many people complain about old Arrow coasters and saying that they get headaches. I really like them not only because of their aesthetic looks but also because it feels like I'm riding history. Arrow coasters were the coasters that started the coaster wars and many of them gave park visitors everywhere their first experience of going upside down. After Dragon Fire, I checked to see if The Bat was open. It was closed so I moved on. After riding Time Warp which felt very unsafe due to the way you are positioned in the coaster I went on the Backlot Stunt Coaster. This ride may look like a kiddie coaster but has some serious G's especially those spiraling up the top of the helix after the first launch. It also has some nice quick drops and street scenery before heading back to the station.
By this time it was getting dark so I decided which rides I wanted to ride before the park closed. It was nearing 9:30PM so I decided to take one final voyage on the Leviathan, this time in the front. It was getting dark so I was in for a surprise! I sat in the front car and went up the lift hill. Going down the drop I realized that with no seat row in front of me, I could feel all the wind in my face traveling 92 miles an hour in what seemed to me in my imagination as riding a real Leviathan in a massive Nor'Easter on a loud choppy sea. I could hear the wind howl and the Leviathan roar as the creature took me around the darkened parking lot trying to buck me off over the monstrous waves of water that it navigated. It was cold and intense but I could see a structure in the distance and after a few more gigantic twists and turns I finally reached the safety of land ho!!! The Leviathan beached on the sandy shore as I came to a still with the beautiful vista of Canada's Wonderland in all its glory in view. I took out my phone and took a panoramic of the magical scene laid out before me before a ride operator could notice. After getting off, I took in some views of Wonder Mountain illuminated against the dark Canadian sky. Since it was Canada's 150th, the park had celebrations going on with various signs and shows. It was awesome to visit, but so much more spectacular visiting on such a historic celebration! On the way out I got some birthday cake flavored fudge as when I visit a Cedar Fair park it's my tradition to get fudge of a different flavor for each park I visit. It was very good but very rich.
To conclude my visit, I must say that the Fast Lane Plus pass was worth every penny. So many rides including both Leviathan and Behemoth had line waits of over an hour and a half and I would not have been able to get as many rides in if I didn't have the pass. I spent 5 hours at the park and had such a great time. I didn't get to ride all the rides as there were some I could ride elsewhere like Flight Deck which is a clone of Endor Attack at LaRonde which I rode there. Guardians of Wonder Mountain didn't have a Fast Lane Plus entrance so I skipped it. Besides, I find those shoot the target rides rather boring anyways. I highly recommend a visit for you Zoochatters who are planning a trip to the Toronto Zoo and are also coaster enthusiasts. Another tip would be to try to plan to arrive at the park a half hour early. I thought the traffic was really rough and was routed by my GPS the long route through downtown Toronto at rush hour to Vaughn so that was a hassle. The trip was totally worth it and I hope to go back again sometime!