Sunday, November 22, 2015

The Flying Dutchman


This attraction is loosely based on the one from Eftling in Netherlands. It will be a combination of dark ride, flume, and roller coaster. 


We enter through the cobble stone streets of a quaint sea side village of Rhinehaven. Standing among the shops and dominate among the building is a gothic Dutch manor house composed of wood and stone with a turret that seems to serve as a lighthouse to guide ship to prevent shipwrecks.    

Entering the facade of the attraction, we navigate our way through a small candlelit hallway and into an anti-chamber where we wait for 10 minuets. The doors then open, as a servant in 17th century attire leads us to the library with a large painting on the fireplace. The painting starts to come alive and tells the legend of The Flying Dutchman.
" In the year 1678, Captain Hendrik van der Decken, a wealthy dutch sea merchant of the East Indian Co, seated in the New World and built this house for his bride Katrina. His trading business brought happiness to him and his wife. It was on that stormy night on Easter, Hendrik set out for sea. Dissipate his wife's pleas that it was forbiten to go out on a holy day. The arrogant Van der Decken would believe in any nonsense and sailed away. From that day Hendrik was never seen again and his still waits for his return. "


After that, a secret passageway opens to lead us into an underground tunnel lit by lanterns. If you're lucky enough, you may spot a hidden treasure in small corner. 

Emerging from the cellars, we now find ourselves in the boarding docks where we board a barge that will carry 12 passengers in three rows. 

The barge begins to glides through the bustling port where life like animatronics of townsfolk can be seen going about their business. We then pass between two massive ships and through the canal and into the open sea, where the sky is dark and cloudless. 

Unearthly songs can be heard within the void coming the ruined remains of old figureheads of sea sirens in the jagged rocks. The figure of woman can be seen standing on the edge of a cliff waiting for someone to return.   


The strikes of lighten from the sky exposes the ghostly vessel of The Flying Dutchman hovering above the stormy clouds, as it advances quickly to us. Our barge is then take up to the accursed ship as we dodge through ghostly crew members in every direction.


The barge then begins to ascend to a an up hill lift, at the summit is the ghost of Captain Van der Deken at the steering wheel and taunts us.  
"I will sail, storm or no storm, forbidden or not. Even sail for entirety."
"And you shall sail with us until the end of time."

Doors open and the barge shoots in a curved declination through a tunnel. After this some airtime in a bunny hop and an 85 degree horseshoe. A steep fall and a left curve bring the barge back into the water. The barge then slowly glides to the unloading docks as disembark  the barge and back to land.