Georgia On My Mind Trip Report

Hello :}

Have you got Georgia on your mind? I do! How can you not?! Georgia is a treasure trove of roller coaster-type-merriment!

I think we're all familiar by now with Six Flags Over Georgia, which is where today's Georgia adventure begins, but do you know about the oddball steel coaster credits of the Greater Atlanta Metropolitan Area? 

You're about to! :}

Good morning, Six Flags! It's always nice to be back. 

The primary goal of the morning was achieved right at the gate: 2015 Six Flags Season Pass processing! 

Next order of business: The State of the Georgia Cyclone Address! 

Georgia Cyclone is giving superb rides. Absolutely superb.

Wherever you are, get down here and ride this coaster. 

It got real hot, real fast, so I decided it was time for a Log Jamboree!

Look! A line for the Log Jamboree! This is unprecedented. 

Even the longest line can be made bearable with great photo-taking opportunities. :} 

At this point in the day, I decided that I would spend my three hours of Six Flags Over Georgia time riding just the classics.

SFOG Classic Series is GO!

It's an easy choice to make when rides like DareDevil Dive are running two cars.

Crime Wave may not be an old ride, but it is an old concept. Regardless, I skipped it today.

WAAAH! MINDBENDER IS CLOSED?!!?

(*spoiler alert* The ride does re-open later. No need to panic.)

The train, however, is down for a longer stretch; its grounds and stations are being used as haunts. 

Speaking of haunts, it's always haunting season for the monsters at the Monster Mansion!

In addition to the train tracks (and the rapids ride), the Hanson Cars track also becomes a haunt durning haunting season! :} 

Even if I wanted to ride Superman, I still would so not be up for its BS loading times. 

So. Yeah.

Bye Superman! See ya next time. 

Great American Scream Machine will take precedence over Superman every time.

(Also, I had the best ride on it ever. End of season wood coaster rides FTW!)

And now it's Ninja Time!

^_^

I love Ninja more and more with each passing season. The magic seat (front row, back car) never fails me. 

Everyone wave to GASM from the Ninja station!

I couldn't decide which version of this picture to use: drop shot or loop shot. 

So I chose both. :}

Nope. 

<3

</3

Today happens to be Muslim Family Day. What does this mean for me?

It means I get to sneak into the picnic grove midway and take advantage of a bonus Ninja vantage point! :D

I wanted to ride the sky ride, but it didn't look open.

Wait, nevermind! It's open. :}

A visit to Six Flags Over Georgia would be woefully incomplete without a ride on the Lickskillet Sky Buckets!

This ride is vintage tractor-approved. :}

XTREME SKY RIDE POV CRAZINESS IN GEORGIA!

As I was exiting, I found this cool guy hanging out on a zip tie. 

I have no idea what he is, but he's cool. :}

Monster Mansion is so lovely. No rides this time, but I just can't say enough good things about this ride.

At this point in the day, we were fast approaching 2PM, and it was time for me to check on Mindbender again before I headed to the next destination!

Good news: Mindbender is open!

Not-as-good-news: 45 minute wait.

At least Mindbender's queue has awesome foliage. 

Now here's something you don't see every day: the backside of DareDevil Dive!

Mindbender! It's so good to see you!

Welp. That explains the one-train operation. 

Overflow queue for Mindbender = epic first loop exposure. 

I never thought I'd see Mindbender's queue this full!

Hooray! The ride at the end of the tunnel. :}

Thank you for a lovely 3 hours, Six Flags! I'll be back soon! :}

The walk back to general parking always makes for great photo ops. :}

In other news, Scorcher needs a paint job in the worst way.

Scorcher's looking more grungy than Gotham!

- BONUS SFOG PHOTO TIME - 

The Six Flags Dr exit on I-20 provides a pretty stellar view of Six Flags Over Georgia. After years of telling myself that I should do this, I finally took a stroll on the overpass to take some pictures!

Bear in mind that this sidewalk doesn't actually lead to anything. It just dead-ends on the other side of the bridge.

I got a lot of strange looks. And it was hot out.

#sacrificeforart

#worthit

Despite the conditions, I was feeling pretty fulfilled as I took these pictures. 

In fact, I would've stayed longer if it wasn't so hot. 

And if I wasn't harboring the fear of getting plowed into by traffic.

Just a couple more!

…and I'm spent! Off to the next adventure:

Fun Junction!

We're off to a good start with an Eyerly Aircraft Spider. :}

Target: sighted!

Time for a ride on the 900ft Hi-Miler, the Scream'n Eagle!

(Good thing they labeled the coaster for us, so that we'd know what it is.)

Scream'n Eagle is a delight. So much more comfortable than its overgrown counterpart at Scandia. 

This is quite the happening place.

Wandering around this place is an experience all its own; there's no telling what you'll discover!

Fun Junction seems to be suffering from a bit of an identity crisis. What was once the parking lot for this family entertainment center is now the center of the park. Rides pepper the grassy areas of the property, but the vast expanse of former parking still needs to be dealt with. 

Legitimacy Level: Golf Kart Coaster.

Until this year, Fun Junction was "Dixieland,"and contains all the usual suspects one would expect from a park with such a moniker.

It's easy to see how the place has transitioned from a family entertainment center (one that wrapped around its parking lot with a miniature golf course, bumper boats, and other usual FEC fare) into a traditional amusement park, but I would say that the full extent of the transformation is far from realized. 

The indoor portion of the park is pretty solid, and it needs to be with the amount of extreme heat this area gets. I would imagine that on days when people are actually here, this is where they are during peak sun hours.

Bye Fun Junction! I'll be curious to see how (if) you progress. :}

And helloooooo WILDCAT!!!

And hello North Georgia State Fair!

Have you ever seen a more beautiful Schwarzkopf Wildcat? If not, then it's probably because this magnificent specimen received a head-to-toe remodel last year and is now at the top of its game!

Between this stellar Wildcat and Mindbender (which is just a short drive away), I would say the Atlanta area has some serious #schwarzkopfgame! 

Riding the Wildcat with me today is my brother-in-law, Mike Washam!

Photo by my sister, Erin Washam. :}

Perhaps the greatest detail of this marvelous Wildcat is its fleet of custom taxicabs, which feature a German flag on the hood and the Schwarzkopf seal next to the driver's side door. :}

I'm sure I'm not the only one who's seen this Wildcat and felt nostalgic for the similarly-painted Cedar Point Wildcat.

Ride operations are super-legit for Wildcat. Empty cars are moved from the exit platform to the loading platform by hand! :}

We'll be back for more rides on Wildcat later. Next stop; the agricultural exposition!

Family photo with the chickens! Erin, Mike, and baby Emma. :}

The agg-expo had a wide variety of flamboyant poultry on display,

as well as many other feathered friends. :}

Baby ducks had their run of several different animal pens. 

It's easy for them to squeeze through the fences and visit other birds. :}

Some of the birds looked like royalty, nonchalantly collecting the praise of passers by. 

Others looked like celestial bodies, or perhaps giant spaceships, slowly drifting about their enclosures.

Here we have some wee, peeping chickie-nuggies. :}

There are other animals here too, including playful calves.

And alpacas that are plotting their takeover of the snack booth.

There's even a couple of dinosaurs emus.

O_o

And finally, some snuggly babes. :}

Next, more Wildcat action!

I guess you could say that Wildcat is the fair's…

…FLAGship ride! Hah! :}

Emma taking a break to read. :}

I can't wait to take Emma for a ride on this someday!

Ok! Time to explore more of the fair! I'll be back in a little while, Wildcat! :}

 While the Wildcat is separate from the rest of the carnival rides, the Sky Ride does connect them. 

The Sky Ride is a nice, long ride. And so festive, too. :}

Housed inside a large trailer is this antique carousel organ, which plays every 10 minutes or so. 

And here's Emma with a balloon. :}

COIN PUSHERS!!!

*o*

Coin pushers alone are great, but this one comes with a 5-year-old ambassador!

I didn't win anything, but here's a picture of Emma grabbing her foot. :}

We thought about putting her in a bubble, but she's probably a bit too young.

Ooh! Anyone who's been to Scandinavia may recognize these. :}

I'm back again, Wildcat!

The sun is starting to set, which means it's time for baby Emma to go home! Bye you guys!

Our North Georgia State Fair adventure is far from over, however!

In fact, as you can see, it's time for a ride on the Sky Ride!

What a view!

The carnival spread is pretty darn solid. 

And the locals are quite friendly. :}

ENTERPRISE!!!

Back the other way now! If you hand the ride ops your tickets as you come in, you can get your round trip without getting back in line. ^_^

Nope.

Even these balloons are like NOPE BYE.

Have you ever seen such a cute traditional Tilt-A-Whirl? :}

The chairswing here is a classic. You know it's old when the ride operator booth is inside the ride!

#statefairselfie

A round trip was a very relaxed and drawn out process. Notice how much darker it's gotten since we started!

I'm back for a third round, Wildcat!

The camera just loves you. :}

Woosh!

Sunset time is best time. :}

The party continued to ramp up as the sun continued to set.

Fans of Tennessee's Williamson County Fair and other southern fairs may recognize this iconic Ferris Wheel: The 1962 Seattle World's Fair Wheel!

My last few rides on one of these lead to some legit nausea, so it was a no from me tonight. 

You may be wondering if I've been alone this whole time since the fam left. As a matter-o-fact, I managed to scrounge up some company after my ride on the Sky Ride:

It's MICHAEL! :D

Fresh from his weekend at Carowinds' Carolina Coaster Classic!

After dark, Wildcat transforms into: NIGHTCAT!

M&M loves chairswings so we went for a ride. :}

WACKY WORM CREDIT!

<3 So happy together <3

We thought about the Enterprise, but we skipped it this time. 

However, we did not miss the Ferris Wheel. :}

I think of all the Ferris Wheels I've ridden, this one has to be the grooviest!

Normal mode.

*FIREWORKS MODE*

I love these seats. They look like flying saucers. :}

We have liftoff!

While I think the German fairs have spoiled me for life, the North Georgia State Fair is pretty darn swell.

Can you spot Wildcat? :}

Up-and-over!

I'm suddenly in the mood for seafood.

Decisions, decisions!

A soft-shelled Blue Crab was the obvious choice. And it was divine. Possibly the best fair food I've ever eaten. M&M had the crab cake. :}

Goodnight Wildcat + The North Georgia State Fair! Thank you for existing and kicking ass! See you next year for sure!

Hoo! Wasn't that an exciting whirlwind-tour of Atlanta's coasters? I had a blast. :}

October may be fast approaching, but the coastering season is far from over! I hope you like surprises! 

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