On Tuesday I took the afternoon off and accompanied the boys to Portland's historic amusement park on the Willamette River, Oaks Park. We went with one of Chris' friends, James, and his mom and sister. Unfortunately I didn't get around to taking photos of our outing, probably because I was too busy going on the rides!
Both older boys were quite brave--Chris went on the big roller coaster with me, in spite of last-minute trepidation. He's been on it before, but he got the jitters as we were waiting in line. Kieran went on the "Scrambler" and the ferris wheel for the first time and did great! I do realize that I'm not as young as I used to be, because the roller coaster combined with some of the other rides gave me a headache!
You can bet that I'll look for another opportunity soon to go back to Oaks Park and hit the Screamin' Eagle!! It looks much, much more scary than it actually feels like!
Both older boys were quite brave--Chris went on the big roller coaster with me, in spite of last-minute trepidation. He's been on it before, but he got the jitters as we were waiting in line. Kieran went on the "Scrambler" and the ferris wheel for the first time and did great! I do realize that I'm not as young as I used to be, because the roller coaster combined with some of the other rides gave me a headache!
Oaks Park's Newest ride, the Disko--very fun but gave me a headache!
But here's my addiction: the Screamin' Eagle. It looked positively terrifying when I was watching others on the ride, but for some bizarre reason I decided to give it a whirl. James was the only other person in our group who wanted to ride it, so we went together. I LOVED IT!!! Basically, you jump up into this seat and a bar comes down and locks you into your seat, and then the floor drops out and you're lifted up into the air. The ride spins around very fast, and then you're violently hurled into the air back and forth (while spinning around at breakneck speed). You're encouraged to take off your shoes, which contributes to a very freeing feeling!
The viewpoint from below
Akin to how I felt on Disney's "Twilight Zone Tower of Terror," as soon as the ride was over, I wanted to go again! I've never been addicted to anything more hazardous than coffee and books, but I had a revelation of what it must feel like. James and I went on it three times, and I would have gone more if we had started earlier. I've always enjoyed that feeling of falling! Crazy, eh? Mike thinks I should take up skydiving, but that's too risky for me. Somehow I feel more secure being on an amusement park ride than totally unsecured flying through the air.You can bet that I'll look for another opportunity soon to go back to Oaks Park and hit the Screamin' Eagle!! It looks much, much more scary than it actually feels like!
What we love about Oaks Park:
ReplyDelete1. The oaks themselves and the view of the river
2. The non-carniness of the staff. People you might invite to your home
3. Pretty darn clean.
4. Do I sound too Lutheran?
5. Do not go into that Lewis & Clark ride. Very depressing.
6. The 8x10 B&W glossies displayed in the skating rink
7. The idea of a destination resort at the end of a street car line
8. Cheap thrills
9. The merry-g0-round
10. The oaks. The oaks. The oaks