Describe your memories of River Country to those who never visited

[Walt Disney1955]

I never saw it. I went to WDW when it was open, but was a teenager and we always went to Water Mania instead for that stuff. Does anyone remember Water Mania? Similar to Wet N' Wild. I loved it, too bad that's gone too (can't remember what replaced it). But anyway, River Country closed in 2001 and for a brief time there were three water parks on WDW property. I always thought it looked neat. Most of what I have seen of it is retro pictures with different haircuts over the years since it opened in 1976. I see the tubing down the slides and I can't help but wonder, was that actually rock or cement that people were going down on the tube or was it just themed that way and made to look like it?

I thought it looked neat, very quaint, and it is a shame it has been left to rot. It is very un-Disney like for this to happen. I know part of the problems was the water being contaminated and such and I don't know all of the details but is it not possible to fix this problem at all? From the videos I have seen the place is still standing but with trees and weeds growing around it, sort of sad really. The place must be a haven for gators and snakes now so I wouldn't want to trespass in the place even if I were allowed to. But share your memories and take a guess at what you think they may do with this land.

 

[Bullseye1967]

We used to stay at Fort Wilderness when I was a kid. We were over joyed when River Country opened. Back then we only went to the Magic Kingdom every second or third day. It reminded me of playing in the lake at summer camp on steroids! The slides and swings were great! Looking back it was no comparison to the water parks of today, but compared to the pool, it was spectacular. I was sad to see it close. It did not close because of contamination or any of the other rumors. The lake water and the water park water never mixed. River Country ran on a filtered closed system. It closed because the new water parks had much better capacity and ability to make a greater profit. They were competing with themselves.

 

[Bullseye1967]

I missed your last question. It is becoming a deluxe resort.

 

[Surfin' Tuna]

They are already (I believe) tearing it down. It was so totally different from the water parks today, and I miss that about it. It was quaint, fun, and more intimate. That being said, if it were still open it would be way too crowded for its own good.

 

[BoarderPhreak]

Naegleria fowleri, colloquially known as the "brain-eating amoeba", is a species of the genus Naegleria, belonging to the phylum Percolozoa. It is a free-living, bacteria-eating amoeba that can be pathogenic, causing a fulminant (sudden and severe) brain infection called naegleriasis, also known as primary amoebic meningoencephalitis (PAM). This microorganism is typically found in bodies of warm freshwater, such as ponds, lakes, rivers, and hot springs. It is also found in the soil near warm-water discharges of industrial plants, and in unchlorinated or minimally-chlorinated swimming pools. It can be seen in either an amoeboid or temporary flagellate stage.

 

[NYwdwfan]

I remember the t-bar zipline type activity over the lake and the slides at the pool were so steep it felt like calling off the edge and banging your butt on the bottom before falling into the pool. The water was always freezing when we went. Fun place.

 

["El Gran Magnifico"]

RC was at about the time Wet N Wild was announced and built. While WNW was more "thrill" based RC did it the Disney way. The slides were "fast enough" the rapids were "wild enough". RC was immersion - The 'Ol Fashioned Swimming Hole.

For me RC was the first day activity, followed by a bit of an awkward routine where we'd change from swimming trunks into jeans and head straight over to Pioneer Hall for Hoop De Doo (with wet hair and a couple of bags full of wet clothes).

 

[The Empress Lilly]

What pictures and video can't really convey:

-The main pool was sand! Not the skin-your-knees-alive sandpaper of Typhoon Lagoon, but the softest, finest tropical sand to ever caress your feet
-The two slides in the small pool were mean! They weren't that high, but they slammed you in this weird way from about five or six feet into the water, at an angle. Awesome!
-That tube ride is still the funnest tube ride ever. Almost a mix between a slide and lazy river, that I just never see anywhere else.
-RC was part of the actual WDW, not a themed area distinct from it. You are swimming in a southern old fashioned swimming hole. You enjoy the actual views of WDW, of Discovery Island, Bay Lake, the forest, the Contemporary, the boats and rafts. Back then all of WDW was a magical kingdom, as an entiriety. Not a collection of highways and buses and development and high rises containing a few themed areas in it.

 

[LaughingGravy]

I almost drowned, but for my dad going down right before me and being there, knowing I wasn't the best swimmer on the large slide.
Scary, but I still remember it very well. At the time, the only other option close was Wet N Wild, but that was off site. Back in the good 'old days when a week long stay at the Contemporary did not break the bank. Of course, that was when people heard about vacations through travel agent brochures, word of mouth, magazine ads and the occasional TV commercial among only the seven TV channels 2,4,5,7,9,11 and 13.

 

[Weather_Lady]

I was 9 and my sister was 7 when we spent a single day at River Country in the mid-80s. The only photo I have from that day is a blurry picture I took with my designed-for-kids rubber Kodak camera, of my sister sitting on the rocks at the edge of the pool with the slides barely visible in the distance, leaning sideways to look at her butt after she sat on something. (Not taking photos of anything else was a missed opportunity, but I had no idea then that I'd never get a chance to come back before it closed.)

What I remember about it was the giant pool into which the waterslides emptied -- I think we spent most of the day there -- and that the waterslides themselves were tremendous fun. At least of them had a sizeable drop through mid-air (must be one of the ones @The Empress Lilly describes), as it ended far above the water, and more than a few girls in 2-piece swimsuits had to make "adjustments" once they hit the water, before they could emerge with their modesty intact. As big fans of Fort Wilderness, we loved the theme, and the old-timey music (probably Bluegrass, although I wouldn't have known what to call it at the time) that played throughout River Country.

 

[Kingoglow]

My memories of River Country have really faded with time. I remember that my young self had so much fun with the variety of things to do. All the slides, the rafting and inner-tubes, the kiddie pool/play area, I remember a waterfall of sorts, the zip lines.

I recall having to swim out to all of the far-away actives, like the zip lines. I could be wrong though. That sort of thing was fine for everyone back in the 80's; we thought nothing of it. Today's kids can't handle stuff like that.

 

[Cmdr_Crimson]

I almost drowned, but for my dad going down right before me and being there, knowing I wasn't the best swimmer on the large slide.
Scary, but I still remember it very well. At the time, the only other option close was Wet N Wild, but that was off site. Back in the good 'old days when a week long stay at the Contemporary did not break the bank. Of course, that was when people heard about vacations through travel agent brochures, word of mouth, magazine ads and the occasional TV commercial among only the seven TV channels 2,4,5,7,9,11 and 13.

Same here! I rode the water slide since I was used to the one's in my Hometown pool and thought "Okay I can do this"...Man was I wrong the undertow pushed me and I had to grab onto one the barrier ropes when a Lifeguard told me to "Let go!" And yelled at him that "I almost drowned!"

 

[MaryJaneP]

Loved, loved, loved RC. About 1977. We took boat from Contemporary to Fort Wilderness. Relatively short walk (11 of us) to buy tickets to get into RC. Saw peacocks wandering around. Feeling was somewhat tropical jungle. Walked to lounge chairs and immediately split up into multiple groups. We rode stone/cement slides into swimming pool. Then wandered over to swimming hole and rope trapeze and floating "crates" that were really rubber/plastic coated floats that were anchored to sandy area in swimming hole. Then went onto tubes and raft slide. Both, IIRC, were plexiglass half-tubes that had water and riders in them. Rode both. Both were relatively mild but none-the-less entertaining. Enjoyed burgers and fries from a QS type place in RC. Spent pretty much the whole day there. We had fun. IMHO, much better than either TL or BB.

 

[Heppenheimer]

I last visited when I was 7, so I only have vague memories. The water slides were about average. I had never seen a drop-off slide before, so that was kind of cool. The above-mentioned zip-line was fun because it was impossible to hold on when it reached the end. You would fall into the water below no matter how hard you held on to the T-bar. There was a small kiddie area that was similar to the one they now have in Typhoon Lagoon. The overall themeing was probably not as extensive as Typhoon Lagoon or Blizzard Beach, but far more than any other water park at the time.

I have fond memories of River Country, but the current water parks in Disney World are clearly superior.

 

[Hockey89]

Same here! I rode the water slide since I was used to the one's in my Hometown pool and thought "Okay I can do this"...Man was I wrong the undertow pushed me and I had to grab onto one the barrier ropes when a Lifeguard told me to "Let go!" And yelled at him that "I almost drowned!"

Add me to the list. My young parents were just putting our stuff down and me being 5 or 6 ran off... Went down the slide and ended up in the logs where the lifeguard had to jump in to get me...

 

[RobotWolf]

Back then all of WDW was a magical kingdom, as an entiriety. Not a collection of highways and buses and development and high rises containing a few themed areas in it.

There was an unspoken cohesion to the resort. Though, to be fair, I don't see any way they could have grown as they've needed to and maintain that "little big world" feeling. It was huge, yet intimate. Now it's just huge.

And, yes, the sand was amazing.

 

[Bairstow]

 

[Bullseye1967]

Naegleria fowleri, colloquially known as the "brain-eating amoeba", is a species of the genus Naegleria, belonging to the phylum Percolozoa. It is a free-living, bacteria-eating amoeba that can be pathogenic, causing a fulminant (sudden and severe) brain infection called naegleriasis, also known as primary amoebic meningoencephalitis (PAM). This microorganism is typically found in bodies of warm freshwater, such as ponds, lakes, rivers, and hot springs. It is also found in the soil near warm-water discharges of industrial plants, and in unchlorinated or minimally-chlorinated swimming pools. It can be seen in either an amoeboid or temporary flagellate stage.

View attachment 360649

In August of 1980, a young boy passed away from amoebic meningoencephalitis. Which is a free-living amoeba, that attacks the nervous system and brain. That much is true. River Country switched to a closed water system in 1986. That was a long time before it closed in 2001. One didn't have anything to do with the other.

 

[BoarderPhreak]

In August of 1980, a young boy passed away from amoebic meningoencephalitis. Which is a free-living amoeba, that attacks the nervous system and brain. That much is true. River Country switched to a closed water system in 1986. That was a long time before it closed in 2001. One didn't have anything to do with the other.

No, that's not why it closed. Just what I remember of it, having gone there in the early 80s before the switchover.

 

[tonymu]

River Country was awesome! While there were some water parks around those days there were really not any themed water parks. The main pool was large and the two slides at the end of the pool were short, but high. When I was younger I would not do them because they were too high for my taste. Later years I learned to love them. While there would be a lot of people in the River Country it never seemed too crowded. You never had to wait too long in a line for a slide, unlike the current water parks. The main water area that the slides dumped you into were cool because they had a lot of smaller "water hole" activities. There were rope swings, a lot of balance features. The best part of it was that it did not seem like a giant concrete water park. It felt very natural, like you were at a local watering hole. I think one of the biggest issues that made it close was the fact that most of the River Country guests had to park at the front of Fort Wilderness and then wait for a bus to drive you back to River Country. There was not any parking near it, only at the front of Fort Wilderness. It was a great little water park. I always think of it as the first themed water park, much like Disney creating the first real themed park. I always hoped they would reopen it, even if it was just the "themed pool" for Fort Wilderness.