Photo TR: Condor and Gnome @ Silverwood

We used Gnome's move into Portland State as an excuse to make a five hour drive to the otherwise "too remote to justify the travel expenses" Silverwood across the Idaho border. We met in Seattle and stayed at the Green Tortoise Hostel for no other reason than that neither of us had ever done a hostel before. It was an interesting experience, but not one that we'll probably jump at the chance to repeat in the future. Spaghetti and downtown pub crawls are two things that you'd think would be pretty hard to screw up, but Green Tortoise managed to do just that on both accounts. Glad we tried it, but it was just the preamble to the real reason for our trip: riding some great wooden coasters!

Obligatory shot of the world's shortest "tall building," the Space Needle.

We had two totally dry days in Seattle, but rain all day at Silverwood. Figures. At least it's not a corporate park. Most rides should still be open.

I know what you're thinking: That rain is soooooooooo going to mess up our hair.

Want to guess what wasn't open? This guy! Not a huge deal since we had both been on GIBs before, but it's still a credit we may never get.

First ride of the day was Corkscrew! We didn't expect much, but we were both looking forward to it since Knott's has been our home park for years and Corkscrew was a few years before our time.

It was actually much better than we ever could have thought! Still relatively smooth for an Arrow and it takes the double corkscrew faster than later, trim-braked loopers like Viper.

"Dr. Jones, you and I are merely passing through history. This, this *is* history."

Kyle is very excited about replacing The Boss as his favorite wooden coaster.

"Yes! I finally get to add a legit top 20 wooden coaster to my list!"

And... Boss is apparently still tops for him. I probably shouldn't be talking, after all I'm a guy that has Raptor as my #2 steel... We both thought that Tremors was awesome though!

Much of this section has been topper tracked by RMC. I've heard parts of Tremors used to be pretty rough, but now the whole thing is perfectly smooth! It pulls some decent laterals through here.

Riding Tremors meant getting pelted in the face with rain at 50 mph all day. It was amusing for maybe the first two or three laps, but the backwards-facing Timber Terror was certainly easier to repeat. We still rode Tremors ten times by the end of the day!

Both woodies were absolutely flying over the rain-slicked track. Great airtime on Tremors going in and out of the tunnels.

I loved Tremors' first drop. Among CCI coasters it's as good if not better than the first drops on Ghostrider or The Legend.

Too cold and wet for Aftershock today. Might be Vekoma stall-city otherwise!

Tremors' far turn also features topper track. It's always interesting how you can feel a clear difference between stretches with the two track styles. None of it was rough whatsoever.

Proud members of the TPR Pepsi rebellion!

Timber Terror gives Silverwood a great one-two punch.

Yep, it's backwards for Halloween at Scarywood! I've done it before on Colossus and KI's Racer, but this would be my first time facing backwards on a "good" wooden coaster. Mad props to the ride op who manned Timber Terror by himself all day and was still faster than any crew in Southern California!

Timber Terror doesn't have topper track and it doesn't need it. Only the pullout of the first drop was on the rough side. The drop is a bit shorter than Tremors' but has just as much air.

Silverwood is still relatively obscure compared to the country's larger parks, but when one of its coasters does get attention it's usually Tremors. We had less of an idea what to expect from Timber Terror. Both of us were pleasantly surprised that we could honestly not decide which coaster was better. Terror gets overshadowed but it's every bit as good and the simple out & back plus helix layout actually works to its advantage. That basic layout shows clear progression and ends satisfyingly whereas Tremors feels more aimless and meandering.

I'm not sure how much of that appeal had to do with the backwards element and lack of rain in my face, but where I anticipated only one new top 10 woodie, instead I got two! Silverwood is also well-known for its cleanliness and landscaping, and it's easy to see why. Simple, but effective.

Spin Cycle was another highlight. It really is the perfect flat ride for this park. The guests love it.

This one was a surprise. Panic Plunge was our first ARM drop tower, and holy crap! It's better than Lex Luthor despite being maybe 1/4 the height. The airtime is so strong and sudden.

Please... Call me whatever you like, but I don't even do water rides when it's sunny and dry! Looks like a decent flume though if you're into them.

Something tells me Silverwood's Thunder Mountain will re-open sooner than Disneyland's.

More Corkscrew!

You'd never guess from looking at it, but the first drop actually has a solid pop of air in the back car!

"People, come out of your rooms so we can play 'The Shining'!"

Multnomah Falls on the way to Portland.

With enough Photoshop know-how and a little time, I just might be able to forge this as a Gustave Dore painting.

Always amazed how you do the coasters in the rain. A rainy day is a total bummer for me and prefer to do a museum or shopping on a rainy day.

Awesome pictures!

Really love the look of Spincycle, and hope for one over here in the future.

Great report!

I like to read reviews from parks that are often overlooked. Those wooden coasters look like they pack a punch! Shame you couldn't get the GIB credit though.

The last picture showing the falls looks like it could be taken from Radiator Spring Racers (with the bridge going over the fall).

Great report! Those two coasters do look fantastic, and those ARM towers are f'n scary. Yup, better than most of the taller Intamin and S&S towers.

Thanks for the pics! I've always wanted to go to Silverwood, though it's off the beaten track. It's west of the Rockies, so it isn't terribly far from me, and the two CCIs look amazing (and well maintained). And yes, ARM/Larson drop towers are absolutely insane. I rode a stubby, innocent looking 70' version at a ghetto carnival, and I thought even that was better than LL:DOD!

Always amazed how you do the coasters in the rain. A rainy day is a total bummer for me and prefer to do a museum or shopping on a rainy day.

It wasnt easy, but we didnt have much choice considering how much time we invested to travel there. Had the park been open friday, it would have been perfect but unfortunately it was only open saturday/sunday. We just had to deal with the ferocity of the PNW. Lol

With that said, I thought the hostel was great. I would consider doing it again under the right circumstances. The best part, imo, is meeting people from all over the world. Gotta love those german/australian/irish girls

Isn't Silverwood just awesome? I love the place! Too bad you couldn't get on Aftershock, it really is a great ride. Jealous you got to ride Timber Terror backwards!

Also I forgot to post my own trip report of Silverwood earlier in the year, so if you want to see that, it's here: http://forum.nolimits-exchange.com/comments.php?DiscussionID=2810&page=1#Item_12 (Scroll down to the Silverwood review and pictures).

Great TR of a great place! I personally think Aftershock is worth the trip back, and if you go in the summer, Boulder Beach is a great water park!

Those crazy ARM/Larson towers...also rode the said stubby 70' tower at the fair this past summer...more intense than any of the Intamin towers I've done (LL:DOD and Drop Tower). One of these days I'd like to hit up Silverwood primarily for the 2 woodies. If only there were other parks nearby to add to a trip... The 2 said coasters look pretty darn good!

I loved the quirkiness of Silver. Relaxing in the Main Street Theater at Silverwood, did you notice if they still show "3 Stooges" movies. I also really like their train ride.