2019 SoCal Trip: Part IV - Knott's Berry Farm and Belmont Park

On Thursday we drove up to Knott's Berry Farm in Buena Park. It's a bit of a drive (up to 90 minutes each way), so we spent as much of the day there as the kids could handle. I was very impressed with Knotts. They have a lot of great thrill rides and roller coasters, but they also have plenty of family and kids' rides. We got lucky too that it was a day with very few crowds. We planned it for Thursday since the forecast said the weather would be decent in Buena Park but horrible in Carlsbad and San Diego. We actually got a text alert from our resort that morning telling us that Sea World would be closed all day. It did rain a little bit around 2pm in Buena Park, but it was very light and it cleared up quickly.

Once we got in we walked to the back of the park figuring it would be the least busy. Mom and dad took the kids on the Calico Mine Ride while Oscar and I rode two awesome roller coasters - HangTime and Xcellerator. After doing the Scrambler and Surfside Gliders with the kids and the Coast Rider with Tyler, mom and I rode the Supreme Scream while everyone else went up to get great views of the park and the city from the Sky Cabin.

With very few lines we were able to do all the coasters we wanted to pretty quickly so we hit up the family rides too. The Calico Mining ride was really neat! I'd say it's comparable to Disney.

While Oscar and I rode the Silver Bullet and the Pony Express coasters, the rest of the family ate cotton candy and waited for the Butterfield Stagecoach only to be turned away when one of the horses threw its shoe. They joined us for a Native American show and we were all able to ride the stagecoach after the show. They'd reopened up just as we were passing by on our way to get lunch.

Lunch was overpriced and unfortunately not very good. The meat was really dry. It's really my only complaint about the park. Since you can't bring in outside food, you don't have a lot of choice. Next time I would leave the park and eat at one of the nearby restaurants.

Mom, dad, and Oscar were still eating so I took the kids over to Camp Snoopy where they met Snoopy and rode a few kids' rides. Neither of them knows who Snoopy is yet they both ran up happily to hug him and take pictures with him.

The kids' coaster, the Timberline Twister, was actually really fun. I love dips on roller coasters way more than curves, and this had several little dips. The kids liked it so much we stayed on and rode it again. There's also enough room in the seat that I could sit and ride with both kids (though there is a height limit of 70 inches, so Oscar and dad couldn't have done this one). Mom, dad, and Oscar caught up with us there and were able to get a video of us going around our 2nd time.

From there mom and dad took the kids on some kids' rides while Oscar and I finished up our remaining coasters. Mom then took Allison on the ferris wheel while we took Tyler on the Sierra Sidewinder. We finished up just as thunder and rain began, which was lucky since they start shutting down rides when that happens.

The storm was short lived and we were able to ride a few more rides before heading home. Allison pumped herself around on the Huff and Puff while Tyler and Oscar rode the Linus Launcher. Wild Waves has a ride exactly like the Linus Launcher, but they require 48 inches while this one is only 42 with an adult. I'm glad he got to do it there since I don't expect him to grow two more inches by this summer.

Tyler saw Allison finishing up the Huff and Puff and wanted to do it himself before riding the Kite Flyer and the Merry Go Round with me and Allison. It was 4pm by then and we were getting pretty worn out. We started our long drive back to the hotel expecting Allison to fall asleep in the car, but she was way too overstimulated for that. Both kids were wired and crazy so we gave in and handed them their tablets. We put them both to bed super early that night, Allison around 6:45pm and Tyler just after she fell asleep around 7:00pm. So far it is the only day Allison has ever completely missed her nap. She is a glutton for sleep.

Back at the hotel Oscar finished up a puzzle he'd been working on, Tyler and I made candy sushi, and Oscar got some lovely views on his run.

On Friday we started off the morning at Legoland then Oscar and I had a date night at Belmont Park that evening. It's a boardwalk amusement park included on the Go Card with some rides and attractions including a ropes course, mini-golf, and battling aliens in a 7D theater. We only did a couple of rides since what they had paled in comparison to everything we'd just done at Knotts, but the extra attactions were definitely fun, and it was great to spend some kid free time with each other. The Roller Coaster was a bit too jolting for me, but the view of the beach from the top of the first climb was fantastic! They really need a sky ride or something so you can just enjoy the view.

We went out to the beach to see a lovely sunset.

Then we came back in to do a little rock climbing. For the first time ever I climbed all the way to the top! I'd struggled on an "easy" course in Oregon that was far harder than this was. I only made it up a few feet there. This proved to me that I'm a better climber than I thought I was!