In the early days of the World Wide Web (ie, mid 1990s into the 2000s), I took photos to share because there were so few pictures on the web. Back then, most folks didn’t even know the term “digital camera.” It was rare for me to see anyone else walking around Disneyland using one. Today, almost everyone carries a 4K camcorder and high-megapixel digital camera with them at all times — their phone.
Yet, I still take photos and share them, but today it is mostly for preservation. I frequently find myself consulting my galleries to see what used to be where. “Did they really cut a new hole in the sidewalk to add this tree? Wow, it looks like they did.”
Lost Island 2026 – new shade tree planted.
My recent visit to Lost Island Theme Park in Waterloo Iowa was the first time I have not taken my digital camera with me to a theme park since I got my first one in 1996. The few photos I took were done with my phone. The only time I previously did this was not by choice — I was visiting an attraction that did not allow digital cameras 😉 but was fine with cell phones. (More likely, still not fine with phones, but they know if they banned those they will lose customers…)
I also prefer using a digital camera out of politeness to guests around me. When we are in a dark area (such as a theater or indoor attraction), folks using their phones to take pictures/videos light up the area with their screens. I specifically get digital cameras that have an eyepiece/viewfinder so I can take pictures without emitting extra light from a screen. Folks who visit big parks like Disney or Universal will no doubt know what I am talking about when you have literally dozens of phone screens in front of you all lit up as you are trying to watch something in a darkened theater.
Is VR better for preservation?
Most folks rightfully think that virtual reality is only for viewing in a VR helmet. While this is true for that kind of VR, taking “VR photos” is really just taking a 360 degree image that lets you point the viewfinder later in any direction you choose. Unfortunately, the quality of these cameras is …very poor… compared to even a cheap cellphone. (Techies can read this blog post from another one of my sites for an explanation.)
Lately, I have been doing more VR recording using cheap consumer cameras such as the Insta360 X5 or DJI Osmo 360. While these cameras can take “normal” photos, they are nowhere as good as what I can take with my phone or digital camera. They also have no viewfinder so the screen has to be used when taking a phone (or a phone screen, linked to the camera) causing the battery life is much worse than a decent digital camera.
I take 360 degree photos to preserve the location. For example, using my phone I took this photo of the opening show at Lost Island:
I was pretty far away, so I used my phone’s zoom. The subject of the photo is the park’s characters. They represent the realms of the park (Fire, Earth, Water and Air). This photo is fine, but does not tell the full story like a VR photo can.
Here is a different photo, taken further back using the Insta360 X5 in photo mode.
Click that and you can look around and find the characters in the distance. You can also see the crowd level during this performance.
And as a moment in time, we now can see what early morning crowd levels were on a Saturday in early June in 2026. As the park’s popularity grows, there may be a day when hundreds of people are watching this show, but a close up of the characters will look the same and not reflect that.
But people hate effort…
The problem with 360 photos is the extra effort it takes to view them. While you can view them on a web page (if it has a special plug in such as the one above) or Facebook, you would need a special app installed to view it on your phone or on your computer. If I just send you this image, you probably wouldn’t care for how it looks:
DCIM\Camera01\IMG_20260606_110835_00_002.ins
Everything is all warped and wobbly due to this being a combination of two opposite-facing 180 degree fisheye lenses stitched together in this weird panorama.
Also, we tend to be a bit lazy. When you take a photo and show it to me, you did all the work composing that image to capture what you wanted me to see. If you show me a 360 photo, what were you taking a picture of? “Everything” is the answer. But why would I care? What would I want to look at in your photo of “everything”? Now I have to do work and scroll around and see if I can figure out what might be interesting in it.
Even if 360 photos eventually get supported natively on iPhones and Androids without requiring downloading a special viewer app, I am doubtful they would catch on. People hate effort.
But VR better for preservation…
Hopefully this silly demonstration makes the point that capturing a location in VR is a much better way to preserve all the details. Sure, someone can take a photo of the Disneyland castle…
Disneyland castle, 2022.
…but unless they took time to take other photos of areas around it, such as gardens, walkways and such…
Disneyland castle path, 2022.
…you really have no way to understand what the area was like. And that’s just fine — you see a picture, you either like it or dislike it or don’t care about it at all — and “it is what it is.”
Back to 1996
In 1996, my first digital camera has such limited memory I could only take 16 “high resolution” (i.e., 640×480) images before it was full. Instead, I would shoot in a much lower 320×240 resolution to capture more photos. Back then, that was still half the size of a PC screen with a VGA monitor.
In 2026, those 1996 photos and even the “high resolution” photos that camera took are the size of a thumbnail on a modern display 😉 They are even too tiny for my text watermark to fit on them when I share them on this blog:
Back to 2026
While modern cameras can take higher resolution photos, and have enough memory to take thousands of them in a day instead of dozens … you’d still not capture everything unless you were really trying. For example, in 1997 I created a “virtual tour of Disneyland Main Street”. You can still find it on my ancient site:
I walked around Main Street and stopped at different locations and took a photo facing in each direction.
Facing NorthFacing EastFacing SouthFacing West
In 1997, this was a ludicrous experiment – spending that much time walking to all those locations and taking four photos. And cameras were not fast back then, so you had to wait a bit between each photo while it saved.
Pity the resolution I had to use was so small (320×240) as this may be the most complete tour of Main Street from that era you will find online in 2026.
Basically, I have been hoping for a way to preserve places since I had my original digital camera.
In conclusion…
Technology has chained, and while I still prefer using my digital camera instead of my phone or VR camera, I expect to slowly start taking more and more VR photos for preservation.
Until that time, you can check out my galleries with over 250,000 digital photos, dating back to 1996.
Decisions, decisions. Should I watch a 26 minute video to get a dozen news tidbits, or glance at a website and read all that news and more in just a minute?
We are in a world where, on one hand, we have more time due to all the technology around us — washing machines, dishwashers, robot vacuums, and so on. Remember hand writing? Now we type and print a full page faster than we could have written out a post card.
Yet, theme park news has migrated to a slow, inefficient form. Video is great if you get to see moving video of something being described … but when it’s 90% on somebody’s face just talking to you, with occasional still photos popping up, some of the precious time technology has gained you has now been stolen by the same technology.
Maybe I should make a 26 minute video to rant about that…
Last month I was discussing Meow Wolf with someone here in Des Moines and they told me about a place in Kansas City called Atlas9. Some quick research confirmed that this place did indeed seem like it was a Meow Wolf-like attraction. Since Kansas City is only a three hour drive from Des Moines, I decided to drive down and check it out.
Atlas9 – Kansas City, KS
Atlas9 opened in late September 2025. By the time of my visit in June 2026, everything was still (mostly) shiny and new. Only a handful of items were out of order, and none of those prevented completing the full quest.
The full quest?
Let’s step back a moment and explain just what Atlas9 is. The official website describes it as follows:
“Atlas9 is an immersive art experience in Kansas City’s Legends District unlike anything else in the Midwest. It has quickly become one of the most unique things to do in Kansas City, inviting visitors to step into a mysterious world hidden inside a transformed 90s movie theater.
Explore at your own pace and discover immersive art, uncover hidden clues, and piece together a story unfolding around you.
Live performers appear throughout the scenes, making the world feel alive and different every time you visit.
You don’t just visit Atlas9. You become part of the story.“
I notice some websites categorize Atlas9 as a museum. Others consider it an amusement attraction and group it with places like escape rooms. I have even seen it categorized as night life, likely due to it having food, alcohol and live entertainment. And let’s not forget movie theater since it is themed to one and has special showings of retro movies from time to time.
I suppose it is “all of the above.” There really is no category for this type of place other than to say it is “like Meow Wolf.” Meow Wolf seems to be patient zero when it comes to popularizing this type of experience, most notably with all the internet buzz they generated when their weird grocery store themed Omega Mart opened in Las Vegas in 2021.
I think I can help explain what Atlas9 is by describe four ways you can experience it:
Method 1 – As a museum
While I personally am not interested in “weird art” enough to pay $40 to just walk around and look at it, those who do enjoy “weird art” might find this a wonderful experience. Walk around, look at some amazing artistic creations, and then go about the rest of your day. Unlike an actual museum, this art is immersive. Rather than looking at paintings on a wall or some odd modern art statue thing in the middle of a room, this whole place is the subject. You may find yourself in a room of crystal etchings and mirrors, floor to ceiling. Or, wander in to a room that appears to be made of giant red licorice candy, next door to a room made of giant popcorn and soda cups…
Atlas9 – popcorn room.
If you might be interested at this, but not at $40, they offer various discounts such as half price Tuesdays at $20 and special “grown ups only” nights at $30.
The art style is diverse and varied. There is an area that is like something from an animated movie. Another one is like a room from a space ship. There are even mundane areas, such as the movie theater manager’s office and break room. Think of it like walking through movie sets from various genres of films — which is pretty close to what the storyline at Atlas9 is based on — and areas that were part of some movie that escaped into our the real world. Or, “reel” world, as Atlas9 calls it.
Be sure to read “some times for exploring” below, as well.
Method 2 – As a scavenger hunt/quest
When you buy your ticket at the “box office,” you will receive a wristband that serves as your admission. You then wait until the next orientation session. About every 15 minutes one of the Atlas9 “agents” will begin explaining the storyline of the place. This includes a short video, followed by the agent getting you set up in the system. Setup involves scanning a QR code on your wristband, selecting some information on a screen, and having your photo taken.
You may see your image will later if you complete certain steps…
Atlas9 – Agent C08 begins your onboarding process.Atlas9 – a short video explains the storyline and introduces you to the F.A.C.A.D.E. organization.Atlas9 – the final step of onboarding is getting your profile set up, including a photo.
I will try to avoid real spoilers here, but the story is that this place was a movie theater. Around 1995, “something happened.” Areas from the movies they were showing at the time became real. You get to explore these areas and “become part of the story,” including finding out what happened to some theater employees who went missing…
The scavenger hunt (my term, not theirs) involves finding stations throughout the attraction and putting your wristband up against them. There are also larger stations with screens where you can scan in and see your progress. This tells you how many of the stations you have found. Sorta.
Some stations are merely checkpoints, proving that you went to a specific location. Other stations are part of a puzzle where you may have to perform certain steps (possibly in a certain order) to get credit for that location. There are even a few movie poster marquees that put you in the poster when you scan them… This explains why your photo was taken when you began.
Atlas9 checkpoint.Atlas9 puzzle element.Atlas9 movie poster.
If you get stumped, there are usually hints nearby on attached cards, or a nearby sign or poster. If you look around, the answers to most all the “puzzles” seem to be available. If you get really stumped, one of the Agents (staff) can give you hints or walk you through the needed steps. If you ask where a certain room is, they will even escort you over to it — great customer service!
Atlas9 is by no means an “escape room” experience, but it certainly has some fun elements to figure out if you choose to. You have no time limit. You don’t lose. You just have a lower count of how many things you found.
The large stations will show you your progress with a series of steps either checked off (completed) or still TO DO.
Atlas9 terminal, used for checking progress.
Those stations also basically tell you where to go for each step. If you go into a section, you will find photo clues showing you where you need to go. If you want more of a challenge, try not to look at those images 😉
I will spoil one thing: We were offered a free poster printout at the end of our visit. We got to choose which one we wanted to take home. For free. They print out on an 11″ x 17″ sheet in full color. For free. This was a very nice surprise at the end, and a reason you may want to make sure you scan all the movie posters inside the attraction even if you aren’t trying to play the game.
Beyond just having to scan in at certain places, there really where only a handful of puzzles to figure out. We completed all the tasks, but with some hints from Agents who patrol the area. If you want to play this as a challenge, just be sure to refuse their offers to help 😉 I do not consider the puzzles particularly difficult to figure out, but when you have to find a date code to enter into a computer panel, it helps to know where to start looking for that code.
Oh, and yeah, there are a few disguised doors that hide other rooms and even a hidden station you need to find to complete the game. If I recall correctly, every “hidden” room still had a normal door you could use to access it. (And yeah, there are some crawlspaces you can explore, but none were required for completing the tasks.)
Be sure to read “some times for exploring” below, as well.
Method 3 – As a mystery
There is a deeper storyline to Atlas9. To learn it, you need to dive in to paperwork you might find in an office or “log in” to computers and read e-mails. On those computers, there may be documents or image files to open, or movie files to play. They all build the story of what happened at this theater, involving their Holomax 4-D projection system.
There are also telephones throughout the attraction (and outside in the Containment Zone where you enter). These phones can be used to dial various numbers you find. Some are voice mails. Some ring other phones in the attraction. Some will fill in aspects of the story while others are just fun little things to listen to. (Be sure to try to call the pizza place if you find that number.) One could probably spend many visits just trying to locate and dial all the phone numbers and see what plays when you call them.
It does make me wonder how many numbers and recordings there are to discover. If you find a phone directory, please leave a comment…
Atlas9 telephone. One of many found throughout the attraction.
Some tips for exploring
Details are hidden everywhere! Open cabinets. Check drawers. You might even find a surprise if you try to throw something away in a trash can. What’s in the refrigerator? Is there something in that mop sink? Look around — including up and down. If you do this, you should really appreciate the amount of effort that went into this place. Even that RV you see when you first enter the building has some stuff in it too. Be sure to go inside.
Any door that is not specifically labeled as an emergency exit is worth trying. Early on, we found some private staff doors that had visible locks on them. We assumed any door with a visible lock was off limits. That is not always the case — but don’t expect everything to open. There are fake doors, and real doors that lead to conference rooms and event space which are not open to the public.
Method 4 – As a hangout
Lastly, you can just use Atlas9 as a hangout. You can even check out a bit of it for free.
While it takes a ticket to get in and buy drinks at the Speakereasy bar, or snacks and drinks at the Concession Stand, you do not need a ticket to visit Splice Bros Pizza. When you enter the building, you are in the Containment Zone outside of the attraction. You have access to their gift shop, the VERA RV vehicle, and Splice Bros Pizza without needing to buy a ticket.
Atlas9 Splice Bros Pizza, a 90s themed pizza place/bar.
The vibe in Splice Bros Pizza is very fun. The ceiling is covered in movie ticket stubs (check the dates). There are specialty drinks, appetizers, salads and, of course, pizzas. The place is also covered in “graffiti” so, if they don’t offer one to you, be sure to ask to borrow a marker so you can leave your name somewhere there. We hid ours in there and look forward to trying to find it when we return.
Even the cups are customized for this location! Remember when Disney used to do that? Today, everything at Disney seems to be generic “Disney Parks” and used at all their parks.
Atlas9 Splice Bros Pizza drink cup.
There are also specialty drinks and a full bar. The pool table and two cocktail table retro arcade machines (Dig Dug and high-speed Ms Pac Man) are on freeplay. If you are local, you should at least pop in for a quick bite and check out the aesthetics. (We both enjoyed our personal pizzas.)
BUT, if you want to hang out in the attraction, you can buy a yearly pass. For less than four visits you can get unlimited access to Atlas9. We were told that, currently, pass holders don’t need to make a reservation like you do with day tickets. And, you also get a free T-shirt available only to pass holders. If you are the type who likes to collect T-shirts, that makes this an even better deal.
Pass holders are given an identification card on a lanyard to use rather than a wristband. Those wearing these seem to get extra attention from the staff — we got a lot of “welcome back” and “nice to see you again” type greetings.
With this pass, you can pop in just to have a drink at the elite “hidden” Speakereasy bar. If you find it, and are brave, try the popcorn old fashioned…
Atlas9 “hidden” speakeasy, called Speakereasy.
Or, grab something from the Concession Stand (move theater snacks, drinks and full bar).
Atlas9 concessions.
And the best part is — you can carry your drinks around. You don’t have to just meet friends for a snack and a few beers… You can grab a drink then explore the attraction together. There are many rooms that have places to sit and hang out. I’m pretty sure if I was a local, I’d be hanging out here often.
And don’t forget the entertainment. Each hour there is a live performance that alternates between the movie theater stage and the “jazz club” stage. During my visit there was a violinist and dancers, aerial silk acrobat, and whatever this is called:
Atlas9 hoop acrobat dance thing.
The performances in the “jazz club” featured some audience participation, so if you absolutely want to avoid that, view it from the second level.
In the theater, a set of performers do a unique show where they are interacting with projected images as well as using handheld light wands that change colors and synchronize with the soundtrack. Those wands create patterns when they wave them in circles — very cool.
Atlas9 “light wand” performance.
There was another performer that used two curved “light wands” like a high-tech fire or sword dance. I generally consider myself very jaded due to seeing so much high end theme park entertainment in my lifetime (and I am OLD), but I hadn’t seen this.
The theater itself, in between shows, presents a selection of short films, including some made specifically for Atlas9 that tie into the backstory. Of course, being Atlas9 it’s not just a normal theater. The walls are made of geometric shapes and projection mapping is used on them during the films.
Atlas9 auditorium 9.
There are also typical movie theater segments where you might see some trivia or “guess the movie poster” type thing, just like at a normal theater … except here things are never quite normal. Occasionally, a version of the orientation video plays to remind you what the heck is going on here.
We really enjoyed the theater. We easily watched 45 minutes without seeing it repeat. I have no idea how long the loop is.
Oh, and there’s an arcade with most games on freeplay. A VERY unique game – actually, the first commercial video game ever created, is available to play! I have NEVER seen a Computer Space in the wild.
Atlas9 arcade features a Computer Space arcade game from the 70s!
Some tips…
Without giving away spoilers, here are some things I wish I had known:
Your ticket includes a free custom movie poster at the end of your visit. Be sure to go to the gift shop on your way out.
There is a $7 free refill cup available. They told us we could even use it from visit to visit. (Non alcoholic beverages only, of course.)
Use your phone to scan the QR code on your wristband to check your stats from your phone’s web browser. The stats are retained so you can resume your quest on your next visit.
The yearly pass also includes a t-shirt.
An elevator is available to get to the second floor.
In addition to the large restroom near the arcade, there is a small one on the second level near where the elevator comes out, and another small one at Splice Bros Pizza.
There is a water bottle refill station.
Be sure to explore the RV in the entrance area.
…and I am sure I’ll think of a few more to add to this list and revise this blog post later.
Conclusion
Yes, it is “like” a Meow Wolf, but the addition of live entertainment sets it beyond what I have experienced at Convergence Station in Denver or Omega Mart in Las Vegas. This place just feels much more “alive” thanks to the people. Though, these creepy orange haired women freak me out…
Atlas9 mysterious orange hairs.
They seem to wander aware from the stage in-between shows, typicalyl in packs of 3 or 4 from what I encountered. They were my first impression of the place when I entered, and I knew I was in for something special 🙂
Pictures of my adventure at Atlas9 will soon appear in my Other Places gallery:
In 2024, we took a dinner (and show) cruise on the Showboat Branson Belle. We had just begun visiting Silver Dollar City and had no idea — initially — that this paddleboat was owned and operated by Herschend Family Entertainment, owners of Silver Dollar City. In addition to the paddleboat, they also owned and operated the Pink Jeep Tours. We did to know that either, but since there was a pink jeep promoting the tours parked near the dock for the paddleboat, we looked it up.
Pink Jeep on display at the Showboat.
…and that led me down a rabbit hole looking up what all HFE opened and operated – such as the Harlem Globetrotters, which were an iconic part of growing up as a kid in the 1970s.
But I digress. You can find photos of that visit here:
For 2026, Silver Dollar City renamed it to Silver Dollar City’s Showboat, and completely changed the entertainment lineup. They took the in-park group, Rivertown Ramblers, and expanded it into a much longer show for the new experience.
But, there were still plenty of references to the old name:
Showboat Branson Belle Life Preserver
At first we assumed they just had not gotten around to updating them, but later we were told it was “bad luck” to rename a ship, and thus, while the attraction is now known as “Silver Dollar City’s Showboat”, the boat itself is still the Showboat Branson Belle.
Any nautical folks out there want to confirm this tradition?
To see some VR photos (in case you get motion sick watching VR video), those can be found in the Branson in VR Facebook Group:
…but now I have a dilemma.. Obviously, I put photos I take at Silver Dollar City into my Theme Parks gallery, where you can currently find over 8500 photos from that park:
…but with the attraction now having the Silver Dollar City name, should I move it? After all, I’d put all the Walt Disney World waterparks in my Disney World gallery, and I’d certainly group CityWalk into the Universal Studios galleries.
I am not sure that just “owning” something would qualify, since Pink Jeep Tours has no Silver Dollar City branding, but if the attraction says “Silver Dollar City” right on its official name, it kinda feels like it belongs in the Silver Dollar City gallery as part of the resort. Likewise, when the new hotel/resort opens net year, that probably would go there as well, rather than in a Branson Lodging area in the other gallery.
Comments if you have them — mostly, where would YOU expect to find it if you ended up in my galleries looking for photos from there?
This week when I was doing blog post on my ParkHopping.com site about how taking photos has changed between 1996 when I got my first digital camera and 2026, thirty years (!) later.
I realized … I did not have those tour photos in my gallery. They were not “photos of specific stuff” so I never added them. But, hey, preserve! A bad photo is better than no photo.
I have revised the Disneyland gallery and added these photos to the 1997 album.
2026 marks the fifth year of operation for Iowa’s Lost Island Theme Park. You can see photos of the parks growth and progress from 2022 to current in my Theme Parks gallery:
Each year the park has added something, though not always by plan. The park had intended to have more rides operating in opening year but some were delayed until following seasons (one due to a fire). In 2024 they announced they would be building a brand new roller coaster, Fire Runner, which opened during the 2025 season. For 2026, they added an enhancement to that coaster, and added new interactive targets to their Awaati Battle water ride.
Each year there have also been other updates that did not appear in park announcements. For example, new trees have been planted each season. Though not confirmed by the park, we were told there were 26 new trees added this year, and a similar amount last year. In the decades to come, the park should grow into a lush landscape of vegetation.
We also spotted new water canons that were added to the interactive Makatu Shrine in the Mura (fire) realm. Although the four of us could not get the shrine effects to trigger this trip, we did see the water canons operating (on a timer, perhaps) throughout the day.
Some changes were, perhaps, not for be better, but possibly needed due to the operational reality of low crowd levels. Over at Thirsty Voyager, the only spot in the park with adult beverages, the draft beers had been removed. Only canned drinks were available. This means the refill cups we have collected over the past four years are no longer good for a discounted beer. On a brighter side, some new offerings were available (and not even in the sales system yet as of our visit), including two Iowa-made ciders and a flavored wheat beer from a California brewery.
There was also new storage cubes added outside of the green Matugani roller coaster as well as the orange Fire Runner coaster. (We have noticed most folks refer to the coasters by their color, rather than the actual names.) Unlike other parks we have visited, these were not at the loading area or even in the queue for the rides. They were outside along the lanes. While I would never want to leave my camera equipment or cell phone unsecured like that (and we did see cubes with phones just sitting there), security told us there had not been any issues so far. They also said these were temporary with a better solution being planned.
Lost Island Matugani lockerLost Island Fire Runner locker
There were certainly more changes than these we noticed, but I will save those for a followup post later.
Until then…
Which realm do you belong to?
Similar to how Harry Potter fans can take surveys to tell them which “house” they belong to, Lost Island has a survey you can take to tell you which of their realms you belong to:
Based on my answers this time, I should be part of their air realm, Udara.
This park certainly “punches above its weight” with so many details and fun things to discover than at most large corporate parks (I’m looking at you modern Disney).
The park’s app, for example, allows you to collect badges and such just by having it running as you visit various areas or rides. There are stickers throughout the park that mark locations where you can collect such virtual items. You may even have to look up to find them 😉
We have no idea how many there, but I expect this gives locals (season passes are available) many quests to embark on during their visits throughout the year.
Do you hear what I am saying?
Probably the most interesting aspect of this park, which was not new for 2026, was the backstory of Lost Island itself. The park has its own unique characters that represent each of the five realms. In the morning, a show is presented in the entrance area that tells this story. It also ties directly in to the story of their 4-D shooter dark ride, Volkanu.
As you encounter these characters throughout the day, you will notice they greet you in a language known as Aukipi. This is the official language of Lost Island – and you will see it on signage throughout the park. For instance, the lands themselves:
Awa – water
Mura – fire
Tamariki – spirit
Udara – air
Yuta – earth
If you want to learn it, they now have the second edition of their language dictionary available. We have both editions, and were noticing how many new words have been added, as well as changes to how the number system is done.
Heck, the Aukipi Dictionary is even printed in Iowa!
There is so much to love about this park, especially if you are more of a “theme” fan than a “ride” fan. Sure, you can just go and ride all the rides (and with the low crowds, you can ride them ALOT with little to no wait), but if you want to dig deeper, there is a whole backstory to learn, and a language that will explain just what this means…
Ummi Ummi means “food.” So this food stand is literally called “Foods”.
The same worker who pointed this out also told us about this one…
Lost Island Lokolo 2026
This kiddie coaster, themed as a caterpillar, is called Lokolo – the Aukipi word for … caterpillar.
Once you start to realize this, a new layer of the park appears. But now that we know this, we are a bit surprised the restrooms don’t say wakatiki — but when you gotta go, you shouldn’t need a translating dictionary to figure out where the restrooms are 😉
Crowd levels
This was our first time visiting near the opening of the season, and during the weekend that marked the start of the parks daily operations. Crowd levels were, sadly, nonexistent. Only a handful of folks were in the park to watch the opening show, and we never encountered more than a handful of folks ahead of us at any ride. That is awesome for visitors, but not for the park.
Frankly, this is a great time to go check out Lost Island. Our friends drove two hours to get there, as did we. They visited for the first time last year and were surprised they could ride so many things during their time. They noted they could have just driven across town to their local Adventureland park but even with four extra hours they spent driving to Waterloo, they still got to do more things and have more fun at Lost Island. Plus, parking was only $10 instead of $21.
If you have a chance to see this unique park, please consider doing so soon. Either the park grows in popularity and get crowded, or not enough people show up and the park will go away. Right now you can help the park grow, and enjoy the low crowds that won’t be there in the future, one way or the other 😉
Not too many in this batch, but I did add photos of the Thunderation queue. This year (2026 for those of you reading from the future) is the final year of this coaster in the park. According to the Coasterpedia, Thunderation opened in 1993.
Thunderation sign in its final year of operation (2026).
Just as we got to the loading area, the ride went down, so timing was good to at least get photos of the queue area.
White Water water park in Branson, Missouri (part of the Silver Dollar City resort) went cashless this year. Leave you dollars and change at home, unless you plan to exchange it in a kiosk machine that will load cash onto a card.
White Water water park sign at night.
Comments in various Silver Dollar City groups have reported that these cards will deduct fees if you keep money on them, so load just what you need or you may be making a contribution to White Water 😉
Testing a 360 photo here on this blog… You should be able to click and look all around in this image. To see it full screen, click the “VR” logo on the bottom right of the image.
