What did happen to river Country?

[disneymad1998]

Can anybody fill me in on what exactly did happen to River Country - We've been a number of times and it was never open.

Closest we got was at Mickey's back yard Barbeque in the same grounds!

Are there any plans for it?

[jclightchasr]

To my knowledge river country closed for two reasons.
1. Not being able to compete with Typhoon Lagoon and Blizzard Beach.
2. More importantly a parasite was said to possibly be in Florida freshwater lakes and this could cause a potential lawsuit. I have heard tell this is why there is no longer swimming in Bay Lake and the resort beaches are just there to look at and walk on instead of swim in now.
I believe the the majority if not all of river countries water source was from a fresh water lake. And I don't know if the water was treated chemically of just recirculated in and then back out.

Perhaps someone could give more information on this.

[SBETigg]

To my knowledge river country closed for two reasons.
1. Not being able to compete with Typhoon Lagoon and Blizzard Beach.
2. More importantly a parasite was said to possibly be in Florida freshwater lakes and this could cause a potential lawsuit. I have heard tell this is why there is no longer swimming in Bay Lake and the resort beaches are just there to look at and walk on instead of swim in now.
I believe the the majority if not all of river countries water source was from a fresh water lake. And I don't know if the water was treated chemically of just recirculated in and then back out.

Perhaps someone could give more information on this.

You're right- the water was mostly from Bay Lake and I don't think it was treated. A lot of the slides and attractions just went straight into the lagoon water, but there were some separate slides into a pool area, I think. The reason for the closure was the parasite. They don't allow swimming in the fresh water bodies due to FL laws regarding the risk.

And once they built the other water parks, there was no need to do extensive refurbishment on River Country to reopen it.

[sassafras]

Ok, I don't understand this. We were staying at the Wilderness Lodge in May, and we were there while they were having a triathalon. The swimming portion was done in Bay Lake, entering from land at the Wilderness Campground. Has it been long enough to have been safely treated?

[DisFan01]

I don't know where it ever was...

When it was open, where was it? :confused:

Thanks! :thumbsup:

[SBETigg]

River Country was located on Bay Lake, behind the Contemporary on the way to or right around Fort Wilderness. We took a boat launch from the Contemporary to get there and back.

I believe that the no swimming in fresh water is a precaution they can waive for things that don't involve deep diving or real underwater swimming. You can parasail, too. It's just too hard to regulate the swimmers in the lagoon to make sure no one is diving down under the water and obviously water park activities, like going down a slide and splashing in, can be risky.

The parasite in question is actually an amoeba form that can get in through the ears and nose (usually when water is forced deep in) and it burrows into the brain, resulting in eventual death. Quite nasty. It's a hazard in all fresh water bodies, but especially in warmer waters and still warm water. There were a few deaths from it in the news over the summer, I think in Arizona.

[PirateLover]

I once read that a contributing reason for the closing was new state rules concerning water parks. Pools and water activities must have their water originating from municipal water systems, not natural bodies of water. This was no doubt passed due to the parasite that Sheri was talking about. I think professional events like the triathlon are exempt because the participants are trained on how to take proper precautions, unlike the average vacationer.

Here (http://maps.live.com/default.aspx?v=2&cp=nr1pxh862nn3&style=o&lvl=2&scene=3930025) is a birdseye view of how it looks now

[SBETigg]

Thanks for sharing that! Cool to see it again, brings back memories. The slides were so fun, but it all looks so icky now.

[splashtest]

It's really a shame. We loved going to that park all the time, even when TL and BB opened. It was smaller and more quaint. They should have at least kept and open and used it for guests of the campground. I keep hoping I will read something telling me they plan on converting the land for guest use, but no I think it has been too long. I have seen other pics of it in it's current state and there is not much they can do but start from scratch. It's just so unlike Disney to leave this land in such a disgrace.

[wedway76]

Do they still let you water ski in Bay Lake?

I’ve always wanted to do that there but now I have second thoughts.

[NJ Camper]

Agreed it is a shame to leave it in this kind of shape you would think they would either just take it down to not have a eye sore or try to refurb or at least find another use for it maybe they could make a fishing pond for kids or a place to feed ducks and fish at least find something would be better then to let it just rot away:mickey:

[mouse-logic]

... I think professional events like the triathlon are exempt because the participants are trained on how to take proper precautions, unlike the average vacationer.

...and they all have to sign and submit a complete waiver of liability to compete.....unlike the average vacationer as well.