Silverwood has finally announced details for their big expansion plans for Boulder Beach. In 2024, the nearly 4 acre Emerald Forest will debut with a dueling water coaster, kids area, cabanas, and a new food pavilion. In this post, we’ll share the official park announcement, photo and video concept art, as well as our thoughts and commentary.
We’ll start off with the press release from the park: Park officials announced today that they are developing 3.86 acres that will consist of the first dueling water coaster on the west
coast, a large food pavilion, kid slides with a splash pad, and another restroom in 2024.
“The decision to expand Boulder Beach was driven by a deep understanding of the importance of creating unforgettable experiences for our valued guests. We wanted to create a space that not only offered thrilling attractions but also immersed our visitors in a world of natural wonder and enchantment,” Stephanie, the Public Relations Manager at Silverwood said.
This new section in Boulder Beach, officially named Emerald Forest, will have the Salmon Run splash pad area that will feature 8 different slides for kids to choose from. These slides range from 36’ to 82’ long and 6’ to 9’ tall. Eagle Hunt will not only be the first dueling water coaster on the west coast, but it will be able to put through 720 riders per hour. This will not only be the longest water slide in all of Boulder Beach, but it will be the longest water slide in the nation. Another feature that will make it unique to the property itself will be it’s eagle theme and race against the
clock capabilities.
Silverwood has plans to improve efficiency with their new food pavilion, officially named Rapids Grill. This grab and go location can theoretically output 1200 guests per hour
which will help with food wait times and the overall guest experience. “I think that the best part of all of this is that we really have included everyone in this thought process. When planning this expansion, we listened to the feedback of our guests and by adding the food pavilion, a kid slide area, more cabanas, and another slide, we are getting everyone’s needs taken care of,” Jordan Carter, the Director of Marketing and Entertainment said.
Let’s take a look at a few more concept art photos of the various new attractions. Here are some shots of Salmon Run, the new kids area:
And here’s a few more of Eagle Hunt:
Lastly, here’s a full POV video of Eagle Hunt from start to finish:
We’ll admit, we weren’t expecting to be quite this spot on with our earlier prediction, but we’re certainly very happy with that result! In short, this all looks to be a perfect addition to Boulder Beach. As we mentioned before, water coasters are an absolute blast, even if their capacity can tend to feel a bit low. The dueling feature here will help alleviate that, as well as adding a fun racing element to the attraction. We already know how enjoyable Riptide Racer is; Eagle Hunt will no doubt be just as much of a crowd pleaser.
Based on the video and concept art, it appears each side will feature four water-jet propelled uphill sections. These are surprisingly fun, and usually end with a short burst of airtime at the top of each hill. Each side will also feature three open-air funnel turns. Tubes will race side by side during the first uphill section, will pass by each other in opposite directions in the middle, and will race side by side once more at the end to the finish line. This looks and sounds great to us!
We’re also pleasantly surprised with the additions that we overlooked in our prediction – the new kiddie area, and the additional cabanas. Polliwog Park and Toddler Springs are good kids offerings, with Polliwog Park easily drawing the bigger crowds. Salmon Run will be a massively welcome addition to this lineup. For those guests with kiddos under 42 inches, there aren’t a lot of slides that they can enjoy at the moment. Adding 8 more slides will definitely help thin out some of the crowds that currently overwhelm Polliwog Park on those extra busy days.
More cabanas will also be a big win for the park. Cabana Island, currently situated between the two wave pools, is already incredibly popular, often selling out weeks if not months in advance. Not only will these new cabanas help with that capacity issue, but it will be nice to have some cabanas in a different area of the water park. Particularly, nearer to some of the kids areas.
Suffice to say, we could not be more thrilled with this announcement. Boulder Beach is already a world-class water park, and the Emerald Forest expansion will only add to the stellar line-up of slides, pools, and attractions. Here’s to a great summer in 2024!
Planning a trip to Silverwood this year? Be sure to check out our Silverwood Trip Planning Guide to get some great ideas on how to plan your trip. Also, our Silverwood Rides and Attractions Guide and Boulder Beach Attractions Guide have even more details on which rides, slides, and shows to hit up while you're there!
What are your thoughts on the Emerald Forest expansion? Anything else you would have liked to see? Are you looking forward to checking out this expansion next year? Be sure to let us know what you think in the comments - we love hearing from all of you!
The official Silverwood Theme Park website can be found at: www.silverwoodthemepark.com. All business-related questions should be directed to this site.
