If I had one wish for a park – just one – it would be to fix the landscaping around Verbolten. Really. I mean, it may be smarter to use that wish on DarKastle (sigh), but I would still use my one and only wish on Verbolten.
All I can say is that year after year, I'm continuously disappointed with the lack of greenery put in place around the ride's initial S-curve and showbuilding, as well as the launch out to the bridge. At this point, it seems an unfortunate reality that in a park otherwise so sincerely dedicated to landscaping, restoring trees post-construction, storytelling, and authentic scenery, we're expected to believe that the Black Forest lies behind a faux square stone wall residing high up on steel legs with finely manicured grass lawn around it in all directions.
This view is – frankly – embarrassing.
Just imagine if that first S-curve was densely forested and you sincerely couldn't tell where the track before you was about to turn. It should be to the extent that pedestrians watching trains dispatch see them roll down the first drop and "disappear" into the woods, just as Big Bad Wolf did.
Imagine if there were thick, dark evergreens growing in front of the stone wall and behind it (along the length of the launch tunnel) to completely disguise the fact that it's... you know... a plywood set on sticks. Not a single glimpse of the showbuilding visible from the ride.
When you launch OUT of the showbuilding, it ought to be through still more trees, surrounding you on all sides, just as isolated and dense as Wolf was.
As it is, I'm just resigned to the fact that this isn't even
low priority to the park; it simply isn't on their radar
at all. Yes, I realize the track has to be accessible for inspection and that access roads need to exist. But there's simply no excuse for Verbolten existing the way it does – as a cheap square facade balanced on metal stilts in the middle of a grassy field.
It would be one thing if trees had been planted and would take time to grow in, and we could say, "Well, I know it's rough now, but in 15 years this is going to be as grown-in as Big Bad Wolf was." But that's NOT the case. I realize Williamsburg isn't Anaheim, and SeaWorld Parks isn't Disney; they can't transplant full-grown, mature trees on a whim. But there wasn't even an
attempt. In 10, 20, 30 years, the area around Verbolten will look approximately as it does now unless the park takes steps to disguise the showbuilding, disguise the second launch, and let the forest grow around the ride.
As a tremendous fan of Verbolten, I'm embarrassed by the landscaping around it, or lack thereof. Every year, I eagerly await preview day photos, sure that this is the year that they committed and brought a dozen trees from elsewhere in the park and placed them in the very few outdoor areas of Verbolten where they're so obviously needed. 2016? Nope. Not yet.
If anyone here knows of
anyone in the park's sincerely wonderful landscaping department, can you pass these thoughts on? I would appreciate it tremendously.
