Here are some more and un-watermarked, rare photos of River Country in 2004. The earliest photos I could find of the park in its abandoned state. twitter.com/BrightSunFilms/status/1269304336926027778?s=20
Same. I was at Disney World when it was open and I remember kind of wanting to go there. Never did though. Went to Typhoon Lagoon instead to swim with sharks. But seeing the pictures and videos of it puts me right back to being 10 years old.
the fact that even now in 2023 the site is technically still abandoned is just crazy. construction started on the reflections but completely halted due to covid and there is no word from Disney about it. there are even rumors that the project is cancelled.
Yeah but their Amoeba's are thriving in their Natural habitat. Seaworld Could learn a thing or two. Not to mention the excitement of Amoeba Splash Zones! Don't forget to plug that nose Matty!
That new hotel they’re building is such a misstep. People don’t go to Disney for the modern, sleek architecture. Everything classic Disney is also EXTREMELY kitschy, and that’s what’s so great about it. Adventureland, Tomorrowland, Frontierland and Main Street are all places that would never be built today because they’re *so* aggressively themed and not trying to play into modern design. By making hotels that never fit when a current aesthetic they become timeless, while that modern hotel will look as dated as 70s style design looks to us now since it dated itself by being “2010s”
Reflections has been pretty much cancelled anyway. It was supposed to open in 2019 but demolition of River Country pushed it back to 2020. They shelved it for Covid but have cancelled it due to America's ongoing health issues. They've not officially cancelled it but they've sold off the building permits so...yeah.
I wish they could've gone with something like buffalo junction instead! It would've been so cool, it's so disappointing they went with something so unimaginative instead.
Since Reflections appeared to be the brainchild of Chapek, I can’t imagine that Iger would ever move forward without major changes. It was just another example of how out of touch Disney executives were. I really hope they also stop their de-theming trend with the other resorts.
I remember swimming there with my best friend as a kid circa '95-'96. Then as an adult, taking the ferry around the lake with my kids, it was creepy to see that the old water park was still there but over grown and barely recognizable. Gave me chills.
My wife and I stumbled on this park a couple years ago while camping at Fort Wilderness. We explored until getting kicked out by security. We didn't even know it existed until then. Great video.
I'm fascinated by River Country even though I never got to go there. I get that it became dated, but the woodland theme was so charming. I wish they would have invested the money to keep River Country alive. Thanks for this excellent addition to the ever captivating River Country story!
Disney: we are green and eco friendly and focused on the environment snd leaving as small of a footprint as possible Also disney: yeah we are just going to leave all the shit we have build abondoned all over the place
If you've never been to that part of Florida, an abandoned park is seriously the least troubling thing you'll find in the swamp. There are dozens if not hundreds of sunken boats nobody bothered to remove that have been leaking fuel and other chemicals for decades.
River Country was always my family's favorite water park. No lines at any of the slides, a lot quieter than the rest of the park, less rules/less strict, very affordable and a lot of fun! I remember walking to some parts of the park and being the only person there. Never had an issue with capacity as we went in the later years when Typhoon/Blizzard Beach were open. That never happens at Disney. Would you rather ride a great slide like Summit Plummet at Blizzard Beach 1-2x a day or a slightly less fun water slide nearly 10x in a day? As a kid thats a no brainer. So many memories...what I would do to go back!
The park was very busy during the summers before typhoon lagoon and blizzard beach opened. I can remember standing in line for 20 minutes plus to go down the flume slides when the park was jamming. After the big water parks opened up though, the attendance of river country dropped dramatically. I still remember the “hooting & hollering water hole” is what I think they called the flume and tube ride area.
I as a preteen stayed with my family at the Fort Wilderness campground in the late 70s. Our camp site was located on Wagon Wheel Way and I remember having spent many days at River Country. On certain evenings, the kids in the campground attended the Marshmallow Marsh singing songs by the campfire. Great memories!
We went three time to Fort Wilderness. 1976, 1978 and for three weeks in 1983. Fort Wilderness is a cherished part of my childhood as is River Country. 💙
@@dreamtripp Wow, you went to Fort Wilderness three times twice in the late '70's and once early 80's, good fun simple times man. How did you like the three week stay in '83.
I’m 46 and was there when I was 13 (so in 1987 ish) I still remember that slide “that could only exist in the 70’s.” You couldn’t see the bottom when at the top. It was quite an experience.
@@Vxllain Super fun. Honestly, the 80's and the 90's weren't much different than today. The main difference being everyone didn't have cellphones on them, and social media wasn't a thing. Arguebly a better time. Besides cellphones and social media, we had the same stuff.
I was 12 when my family visited in 1994. We stayed in Ft. Wilderness, and River Country was the only thing I vividly remember from the whole trip. Mostly because it stormed one day we were there, and everyone left the park but my family. We basically had the entire water park to ourselves. It was magical, especially for a 12 yr old.
“I feel like you already made a video about the abandoned river country.” **after watching the first minute** “Oh, you DID make one already. Never mind.”
Great recap! I worked there in the late 80s and enjoyed every shift. Thanks for explaning the filtered water too. Not many people knew it. During breaks on crowded days or when we closed, we'd snorkel under the swings and find lots of 'treasures'. I was hoping they'd refurbish/reopen because Disney doesn't need a new hotel.
River Country was my first water park. It has a big place in my heart and is a huge source of childhood nostalgia for me. I remember hearing that it was closed years ago and feeling a pang of sadness. I went to it in the early 80's as a kid with my Grandmother and sister. I was totally enchanted and thought it was the coolest thing I had ever seen/experienced. It sort of ruined other, more basic water parks for me. The lagoon was just so cool. I went down the rapids what feels like a hundred times because it was unbelievable to my innocent childhood eyes. And, I remember the short, half-slide into the pool being very exciting. Thanks for your video. You did a lot of good research!
Went as a kid with my family in 1991, 1992, and 1993. I think we went in 1994 too but there were more restrictions in place. Best waterpark they ever had hands down. Real swimming in the lake, awesome water jungle gyms to play around on, most fun tube ride, drop slides. You name it - this park had it all. Part of the awesomeness was there were less lifeguards bossing everyone around so you could just have real fun and time your own tube rides etc. with the new friends you made that day. Some of my favourite childhood memories were made here. Thanks for the nostalgia injection. I sure miss the Disney World I knew in the 90’s. Been back to Disney many times since river country closed and as a grown up and have always wished to go back to those simpler times. Wanna swim and not get sued? Sounds fantastic!
This video hurts me to watch. I was a lifeguard at River Country for 4 years in the 90’s. So many memories were made there. And so many friends were made there as well. A good number of us still keep in touch. River Country was for people that wanted a quaint family water park without all the commercialism of Typhoon and Blizzard. I remember when those opened and they asked some of us to go to work at them. Thankfully, i got to stay at River Country. I really wish i would have gotten a piece of it before the demolished it.
The very first video you did on River Country was the first video of yours I ever watched. This has come full circle! Thank you for doing what you do Jake!
When I was a kid and we went to Disney, I didn’t even care if we went to Magic Kingdom, I ONLY wanted to go to River Country. Was my favorite place because it was the only water park where my eyes didn’t sting after a day of play. I was JUST saying this the other day. I miss it even as a late 40’s adult!! I found your original video a couple years ago after intentionally searching “River Country.” 😊
"And THATS where things get interesting" YOU MEAN THE LIGHTS AND SPEAKERS THAT DIDN'T BURN OUT IN FLORIDA HEAT AND HUMIDITY WEREN'T THE INTERESTING PART???
DylPickle I don’t think there’s technically been deaths on property. The most recent monorail one was not that long ago though and I’m pretty sure it was a cast member that died
I got that vibe from disney as a whole the last few times I went. They are trying to make it seem all luxurious and fancy then make all these financing deals for people who can't afford it to go anyway. Big money scam. Doesn't feel magic anymore. They used to spend money to make stuff immersive, now they spend it to make stuff have perceived luxury
@@Mimi-bx8zm yeah, the original fastpass was fine but the one that comes from the app is bogus. They use it to perfectly disperse the guests so it's impossible to find something that isn't packed. Also, they pawn off less popular rides on guests who have no prior knowledge of the park to maximize throughput
*sees this video in my recommendation* Me: oh, I remember that video. *sees it was uploaded 13 minutes ago* Me: Of course he would make another video about.
This was one of my favorite parts of Disney in the 70's. I'm a Floridian and we had so many great times at this park. Newer parks have much bigger slides, but for me the themes of this made it my favorite park.
That Buffalo Junction hotel sounded really neat and charming with the whole old west town theme and revitalizing River Country into River park, shame the idea got scrapped and now they're just gonna build another soulless looking modern hotel for the wealthy.
Jake said it’d be the most comprehensive look at River Country, and he delivered! Also, there’s a glaring omission of urbex footage from a certain source. 🧐 Kudos
Ahhhh river country, where I first learnt how to swim, built sand castles with mr smee, rode my first water slide and became mayor of the day for the 25th anniversary and got ride a banana boat around the lagoon with goofy and open the park and walk the parade. Good times
Bruh you older people have memories from River Country, while I was born in the early 2000’s having no idea what the place was like and having your dad tell you some old memories of when he went there when he was young. I wish I got to expirence the place like most of you guys have
I’ve been watching your abandoned videos for years and I love how far you’ve come. Your editing skills were always great, but it’s nice to see all the subscribers who have found you along the way and appreciate your work as well. Keep it up, your work only keeps getting better 👍
Thanks so much for this video. I have great memories of doing the waterslides and zipline as a kid in the late '80s. It's frankly sad and depressing to see how the site has just been left to decay.
The pictures are deceiving. I personally was there many times through out the parks history, and never once did the water appear dirty, green or brown. It always had a distinctive smell that was clean, like when you came off of Splash Mountain, and not a dirty, swampy, lake or beach smell. Even the sand seemed clean and fresh. One thing that I know didn't get mentioned was the problems Disney had with wildlife. The park got delayed openings MANY times as the local animals, including alligators, bears, dear, birds, and others like to enter the park after closing and forage for treats, and sometimes needed persuasion to leave in the morning.
Public pools in general contain a lot of urine and fecal matter. Even Michael Phelps (olympic swimmer) admitted to peeing in pools during workouts. Just gross human soup.
Disney: "hey so this water park isn't really good anymore so we're gonna close it and just abandon it so we can save money" conspiracy theorists and creepypasta writers: "THE BRAIN EATING BACTERIA CAUSED THE CLOSURE REEEEE"
@bigevilworldwide1 It seems kinda boring by today's standards. Few slides, some swings... and just pools? Lots of local pools with smaller admission fee would have few slides... people now want crazy curved slides, bowl slides and all that jazz.
looking like there will be an updated Abandoned video in the future on Reflections- A Disney Lakeside Lodge. In 2020 Bright Sun thought the funding was a done deal and there was no holding back. all press at the time described it as 'full steam ahead'. it had a completion date of 2022. but covid put a pause to it, disney wiped everything related to it with no mention and now we are nearing 2024. probably in the midst of a pretty major recession and nothing has been done with the site and its not looking like anything will be done for the foreseeable future. maybe around 2027-2030 we get some new updated and extravagant plan.
i'm so sad that they demolished it. i work for disney, at the waterparks previously lol, and we went on a cast brunch/outing just before we closed due to covid, and while on one of boats, we drove past what used to be river country. the only thing left is a tree with cast members shoes hanging from it, just before the park closed. it made me sad lol
Jake, this was absolutely beautiful, Sir! Bittersweet for me, as your coverage of the demise of River Country is what led me to follow your channel to begin with, and this seems like a summary of all your work in that era. Nobody else goes through the fact finding and the work of putting together the vintage footage the way you do. As always, I'm a fan. I can't wait to see Closed For Storm!!!!
I’ve been watching your videos for about 4-5 years now. It’s amazing how much you’ve improved. I’ve always enjoyed your content, but these are now so well-put together in every way imaginable. Great job, as always.
I remember going there as a kid, and it was mind blowing fun! I went off those pool slides a bunch of times. It's surreal to see the footage of it decaying and comparing it to what I remember.
I think there is one word which roughly sums up river country. Quaint. To be honest ive never been to river country all my information is from this well made video. It's interesting to see how such a popular attraction slowly was left in time as global population grew. I wasn't alive when this disney world attraction was a thing so when I saw the images of it I was surprised to see how little it actually was. The swimming pool was about the average size of an Olympic pool (maybe idk) and had 2 small water slides going into it. Literally 2 slides into a swimming pool for thousands of people going. Obviously this is pretty cool but for a Theme park with millions of visitors a year, the relevance of it could easily be questioned. Its honestly pretty cool to see how the world evolves and changes over time in these small ways. Thank you for listening to my tldr ted talk.
I remember in 2005 when my parents and I went for the first time since 1989 and remember seeing River Country signs but it was closed off. My parents went a few times (they had been going since the park opened). I don't remember going to River Country as I was 7 in 1989 but my parents said they did. We have slides of it (even official Disney Slides), hell we have a huge amount of pictures from the early 80s of Fort Wilderness and River Country so I know we did go to it at one time.
I too am fascinated with River Country. I’m sad it was demolished, I kinda loved how creepy and sad it was just sitting there in plain sight on Disney Property. I was also lucky enough to visit this water park when it was opened. I don’t remember much, as I was only 2 years old. But I’m thankful I can say “I’ve been there!”
This popped up in my recommended (never seen this channel before) and I'm so glad it did! I loved it and learned new things about River Country's history. Thank you so much for the quality content, really well done! Gotta check out more videos now :D
Been camping to Fort Wilderness a dozen times and only briefly caught glimpses like that at 19:12 when taking the ferry boat to Magic Kingdom. Had no clue it was an abandoned water park until a few years ago, and had no idea you could walk up to see it abandoned! Very cool, thank you for sharing!
Another banger Jake! As a Florida resident I know all too well about the Disney Parks. It’s a shame how many Abandoned parks Disney left for dead. Feels like my youth gets demolished literally as I watch your Disney videos. Keep it up, very interesting info.
Another part of my youth gone forever. My friends and I went to River Country quite frequently from its opening through the mid 80's. Thanks for triggering some great memories of times gone by.
I love when TH-cam messes up and accidentally puts something awesome in my feed lol. I’m a new subscriber here and I just wanted to let you know how much I enjoyed this video. Very informative and interesting, you’re a thorough researcher and it’s obvious you take a lot of pride in your work. I look forward to binge watching your videos and getting to know your community better! *Blessings* and *peace* to all! 🦚😷🦋
@bigevilworldwide1 what does me calling it infamous have to do with it being closed because it was expensive to run? My point was it’s a well known closed park.
Had to come rewatch since i read an article saying the luxury lodge plan has been abandoned now as well. All construction vehicles have been removed and all mentions of it scrubbed.
Neat to see such an in-depth update on something so fascinating and influential on the channel's history. Too bad River Country is being replaced by something so overly posh yet so generically Disney, especially where it is next to Fort Wilderness. Great job on this episode, your work looks very professional now.
I grew up in River Country’s heyday, and always refused to go there with my parents, because they could never explain to me how they were able to keep alligators out of this park when it was attached to the giant Bay lake. That’s why it’s still astonishes me to this day that the people who had their little boy killed by the alligator a few years back did not realize there were alligators in that lake.
I went there in April 1990 and really loved it. The main swimming hole was cool because it was like a lake but cleaner. I thought it was just clear enough to not gross you out but still make you feel like it was kind of natural. It was definitely more popular than the pool judging by the amount of people who chose it over the pool. Great memories and I always enjoyed all your videos about River Country.
I do miss this waterpark, whenever my family and I went there we'd almost always go there. We wouldn't do a whole day there, usually we reserved going there for one of the hottest days during the trip, and go to one of the parks (Kingdom, Epcot, etc...) in the morning, leave for lunch, go here afterwards for a few hours, and then we'd either go take a quick nap (1-2 hrs) and go back to the park, or just go right back to the park (my siblings and I as we got older usually went right back to the park after changing into dry clothes while my parents and younger siblings would take a rest for a bit). As we were usually staying on the grounds (Fort Widlerness itself while I was growing up) it was quite easy to do this, and we all had a great time. You can't really do that with Typhoon Lagoon or Blizzard Beach as those are more all day waterparks comparitively. Last year we did this was 1999 I think, so many fun memories of that place, and WDW as well.
As a kid everytime I was in a pool I would imagine how cool it would be if there was an artificial pool that was designed and themed like a lake or ocean. I had no idea river country existed but I'm sure the younger me would have probably considered that one of my favourite parks
Not just that either, admittance prices are outrageous too, so it either takes a long time to save up for the trips or they find another place or they simply don’t go, it’s simple economics.
I just discovered your Abandoned videos today (June 11, 2020). I watched a handful, then decided to just start at Episode 1. I realize now I'm about to be up all night, lol. Thanks for that, and for these videos.
I would have loved a Wild West themed resort :( We probably aren't getting any new resorts other than the ones that were already starting construction for probably a decade at least as a result of the pandemic.
now they have completely gotten rid of the ruins of river country to build a dvc hotel, we used to walk by and see the old water park and how its changing every time we visited but now its gone :(
There was this water park in Singapore I used to go to when I was a kid. (Technically, it was on Sentosa, which is the small island off the mainland.) It was called Fantasy Island, and it had a really long lazy river and fun slides. The slides kept shutting down one by one because of money difficulties (I assume), declining attendance, and poor safety regulations resulting in injuries. I remember the lifeguards/slide attendants on duty being extremely chill, but like, to the point of inattention. The nail in the coffin was probably the two drownings in 1998 and 2000. That being said, that lazy river was pretty great.
I broke in there at 3 AM with my friend. Went through the fence behind a shed, and crawled up the big rock, to the very top. And down to where the slide was. It was cool to see but it was dark and creepy as hell. I saw a big ass snake and decided to turn around and I left quick lol. But overall it was a cool experience.
Thank you for posting this. I have often wondered what happened to River Country. I rememeber visiting there in the summer of 1979 as a young teen, and enjoying it very much. (I think I still have home movies of the trip.) Sad that it's gone and they couldn't keep it going with updates and refurbishments. Oh well... onto bigger and hopefully better things...
Thanks for this video. It’s dumb I suppose but I feel like I got closure. I’ve been complaining about them letting River Country rot so I’m glad they’re finally giving that space a purpose again. Now if they’d just fix Discovery Island. I loved that place as a child.
I don’t remember if it was this or Discovery Island that I watched from you first, but your Disney stuff (and parks in general) is always interesting. It’s what brought me here, and while I like all the new stuff these sorts of videos just brighten my day.
You are very thorough, very well presented and I love it!! I love the journey you take me on, showing the different stages in history and why things happened. Keep up the amazing work!!
I think River Country’s success was a surprise for Disney. It really would have been cool for the Buffalo hotel to have been built and River Country be part of it.
Ive watched so many videos on this and other abandoned disney places and it always just facinates me how with all the money they have they just leave places to rot and decay. great video btw!
Here are some more and un-watermarked, rare photos of River Country in 2004. The earliest photos I could find of the park in its abandoned state.
twitter.com/BrightSunFilms/status/1269304336926027778?s=20
Jake, do the Mickyard already!
Deleted previous comment as I was confused.
And why does Disney level the lights on
@@peterfus9543 uh obviously so the ghosts can see. Pssh. First timer guys. [Just kidding..I have 0 clue]
You should do why total drama was cancelled next Ik it’s not about abandoned attractions but do one.
i'm always finding myself getting nostalgic for places i've never personally experienced.. this is one of them.... great video
Bring Back Disney’s River Country to it former Glory , make it a little bigger.
Same. Never been to a lot of these places (I don't live in America), and yet it seems to bring up memories of my own childhood haunts.
Same. I was at Disney World when it was open and I remember kind of wanting to go there. Never did though. Went to Typhoon Lagoon instead to swim with sharks. But seeing the pictures and videos of it puts me right back to being 10 years old.
Same and I've never been to Florida.
Me too
the fact that even now in 2023 the site is technically still abandoned is just crazy. construction started on the reflections but completely halted due to covid and there is no word from Disney about it. there are even rumors that the project is cancelled.
Yeah but their Amoeba's are thriving in their Natural habitat. Seaworld Could learn a thing or two. Not to mention the excitement of Amoeba Splash Zones! Don't forget to plug that nose Matty!
It deserves to be cancelled. It had zero disney flavour
Honestly looks like the new Fort Wilderness DVC cabins might be the replacement - they look very similar to some of the Reflections concept art.
It is cancelled to make room for Villas for DVC
As of about a week ago they’re moving forward with it
I visited in 1978 and my cherished memory was the worst sunburn of my life.
I feel sorry for your pain
Lol
All over or patchy?
Wtf you’re older than my parents
@@Draftspike I'm older than most people's parents 🤙
Disney in 2008 "were gonna build a western style resort for all families"
Disney in 2019 "were gonna build a hotel for rich people"
*doesn’t do either and it sits there forever*
Rich people have money to spend. They're rich.
I don't think so...
@serryn walt had a plan like that but was unrealised
@@Nzg41 don’t they have Golden Oak ?
That new hotel they’re building is such a misstep. People don’t go to Disney for the modern, sleek architecture. Everything classic Disney is also EXTREMELY kitschy, and that’s what’s so great about it. Adventureland, Tomorrowland, Frontierland and Main Street are all places that would never be built today because they’re *so* aggressively themed and not trying to play into modern design. By making hotels that never fit when a current aesthetic they become timeless, while that modern hotel will look as dated as 70s style design looks to us now since it dated itself by being “2010s”
Main Street is my FAVORITE part of Disney. Especially the president attraction. Disney’s brother put real love into that area.
Reflections has been pretty much cancelled anyway. It was supposed to open in 2019 but demolition of River Country pushed it back to 2020. They shelved it for Covid but have cancelled it due to America's ongoing health issues. They've not officially cancelled it but they've sold off the building permits so...yeah.
I wish they could've gone with something like buffalo junction instead! It would've been so cool, it's so disappointing they went with something so unimaginative instead.
They've removed everything mentioning the hotel since the pandemic. I think they have pulled the plug on it
Since Reflections appeared to be the brainchild of Chapek, I can’t imagine that Iger would ever move forward without major changes.
It was just another example of how out of touch Disney executives were. I really hope they also stop their de-theming trend with the other resorts.
The music playing in an abandoned River Country is still terrifying.
@ MrMario2011: maybe it's haunted.
I like it lol
Bro the abandoned park ITSELF is terrifying
@@qubethebox9192 That is because there might be Alligators living there
@@richardturner6981 closes creepy pasta page "like that's ever gonna happen"
"It's like Whole Foods as a hotel." Ha!
Ok
Whole Foods as a hotel sounds amazing, I would pay to have a room there.
If I’m gonna pay that much for a hotel at Disney I’ll stay at someplace much cooler than a “Whole Foods Hotel.”
Lame.
Sounds like soulless hipster puke.
This guy is the KING of abandoned places!
No cap he’s the best
Facts
The sad thing about being the king of an abandonded places. Is there is no one to rule over.
Andre Oppong Agyare Agreed!
I love the idea of being the king of places that nobody wants
I remember swimming there with my best friend as a kid circa '95-'96.
Then as an adult, taking the ferry around the lake with my kids, it was creepy to see that the old water park was still there
but over grown and barely recognizable.
Gave me chills.
My wife and I stumbled on this park a couple years ago while camping at Fort Wilderness. We explored until getting kicked out by security. We didn't even know it existed until then. Great video.
@Bernie lomaxs Mustache that would make her bi, nothing wrong with that.
@@bob5466 wtf you saying. He didn't say anything about gender
@@sypheraspect338 obviously the comment I was referring to was deleted, open your eyes bro
@@bob5466 what did the person say before they deleted it?
@@chrizeeey if it was deleted, it was probably screwed up and abrasive
Holy crap, how sad it is to know that had Buffalo Junction gone through, River Country would (probably) still be open today.
That’s what I’m saying!!
Honestly I wish we got it just to bring back the FWRR
Now what could be saved was tagged and sent to the Disney Archive. Members of D23 can look at them.
@@JeffreyPiatt Bring Back Disney’s River Country to it former Glory , make it a little bigger.
Its so sad because Buffalo Junction actually looked a lot more interesting than the Reflections Hotel that they are building instead.
Man, I went to river country in ‘98. Loved that park, like swimming in a lake. Very relaxing.
Yes. Much better than orgimal Typhon Lagoon. It's completely different now.
I went in March 2000, just 1.5 years before it's closing 😭
Did I kid not sadly pass away from bacteria found in the very same lake you saw in?
must’ve been nice to be born before 02
Ustedes tuvieron la oportunidad de estar en river country?
Why am I so nostalgic for a place I've never been?
fomo
Me Too🙁, it feels like I was born in the wrong era
Google the definition HIRAETH
@@MSB.Systems no you’re not this could be the best era you could be in regarding amusement parks
@@robbennett332 that's sad. But at least you have good memories! And you didn't get a flesh eating bacteria! Win win all around. ;)
I'm fascinated by River Country even though I never got to go there. I get that it became dated, but the woodland theme was so charming. I wish they would have invested the money to keep River Country alive. Thanks for this excellent addition to the ever captivating River Country story!
Oh I thought a few kids died there
It was absolutely amazing
It closed before I was born
@@talkingforanimals4011 an 11 year old boy died from brain eating amoeba
@@sovietcomrade365 wtf???
Disney: we are green and eco friendly and focused on the environment snd leaving as small of a footprint as possible
Also disney: yeah we are just going to leave all the shit we have build abondoned all over the place
That’s what i was thinking. They just leave it there.
In all fairness it is Florida after all. So even a creepy abandoned theme park is a welcomed upgrade.
What happen in river county
If you've never been to that part of Florida, an abandoned park is seriously the least troubling thing you'll find in the swamp.
There are dozens if not hundreds of sunken boats nobody bothered to remove that have been leaking fuel and other chemicals for decades.
River Country was always my family's favorite water park. No lines at any of the slides, a lot quieter than the rest of the park, less rules/less strict, very affordable and a lot of fun! I remember walking to some parts of the park and being the only person there. Never had an issue with capacity as we went in the later years when Typhoon/Blizzard Beach were open. That never happens at Disney. Would you rather ride a great slide like Summit Plummet at Blizzard Beach 1-2x a day or a slightly less fun water slide nearly 10x in a day? As a kid thats a no brainer. So many memories...what I would do to go back!
The park was very busy during the summers before typhoon lagoon and blizzard beach opened. I can remember standing in line for 20 minutes plus to go down the flume slides when the park was jamming. After the big water parks opened up though, the attendance of river country dropped dramatically. I still remember the “hooting & hollering water hole” is what I think they called the flume and tube ride area.
"No brainer"
The brain eating amoeba in the water was the issue
of course it's a no brainer if you dont have a brain anymore :P
I as a preteen stayed with my family at the Fort Wilderness campground in the late 70s. Our camp site was located on Wagon Wheel Way and I remember having spent many days at River Country. On certain evenings, the kids in the campground attended the Marshmallow Marsh singing songs by the campfire. Great memories!
I never got to experience this, but your story makes me so nostalgic for some reason. Simpler times.
We went three time to Fort Wilderness. 1976, 1978 and for three weeks in 1983. Fort Wilderness is a cherished part of my childhood as is River Country. 💙
@@dreamtripp Wow, you went to Fort Wilderness three times twice in the late '70's and once early 80's, good fun simple times man. How did you like the three week stay in '83.
Didn’t they also show movies at night at fort wilderness?? Was there I believe in 77
I’m 46 and was there when I was 13 (so in 1987 ish) I still remember that slide “that could only exist in the 70’s.” You couldn’t see the bottom when at the top. It was quite an experience.
@@frankrizzo4460 People aren’t offended by a water slide. They’re just more cautious today and with good reason.
Honestly the 80’s sounds fun
@@Vxllain Super fun. Honestly, the 80's and the 90's weren't much different than today. The main difference being everyone didn't have cellphones on them, and social media wasn't a thing. Arguebly a better time. Besides cellphones and social media, we had the same stuff.
@@placeholdername3206 Yeah my mom grew up in the 80s and 90s and said people were generally happier back then
@@placeholdername3206 oh its very much different now.
I went to River Country a few times as young kid and man it really had that “old swimmin” hole” feel. Great memories there with my family.
I was 12 when my family visited in 1994. We stayed in Ft. Wilderness, and River Country was the only thing I vividly remember from the whole trip. Mostly because it stormed one day we were there, and everyone left the park but my family. We basically had the entire water park to ourselves. It was magical, especially for a 12 yr old.
“I feel like you already made a video about the abandoned river country.”
**after watching the first minute** “Oh, you DID make one already. Never mind.”
Great recap! I worked there in the late 80s and enjoyed every shift. Thanks for explaning the filtered water too. Not many people knew it. During breaks on crowded days or when we closed, we'd snorkel under the swings and find lots of 'treasures'. I was hoping they'd refurbish/reopen because Disney doesn't need a new hotel.
Did u find anything?
Like people shitting in the water or something?
River Country was my first water park. It has a big place in my heart and is a huge source of childhood nostalgia for me. I remember hearing that it was closed years ago and feeling a pang of sadness. I went to it in the early 80's as a kid with my Grandmother and sister. I was totally enchanted and thought it was the coolest thing I had ever seen/experienced. It sort of ruined other, more basic water parks for me. The lagoon was just so cool. I went down the rapids what feels like a hundred times because it was unbelievable to my innocent childhood eyes. And, I remember the short, half-slide into the pool being very exciting. Thanks for your video. You did a lot of good research!
Went as a kid with my family in 1991, 1992, and 1993. I think we went in 1994 too but there were more restrictions in place. Best waterpark they ever had hands down. Real swimming in the lake, awesome water jungle gyms to play around on, most fun tube ride, drop slides. You name it - this park had it all. Part of the awesomeness was there were less lifeguards bossing everyone around so you could just have real fun and time your own tube rides etc. with the new friends you made that day. Some of my favourite childhood memories were made here. Thanks for the nostalgia injection. I sure miss the Disney World I knew in the 90’s. Been back to Disney many times since river country closed and as a grown up and have always wished to go back to those simpler times. Wanna swim and not get sued? Sounds fantastic!
This video hurts me to watch. I was a lifeguard at River Country for 4 years in the 90’s. So many memories were made there. And so many friends were made there as well. A good number of us still keep in touch.
River Country was for people that wanted a quaint family water park without all the commercialism of Typhoon and Blizzard.
I remember when those opened and they asked some of us to go to work at them. Thankfully, i got to stay at River Country.
I really wish i would have gotten a piece of it before the demolished it.
The very first video you did on River Country was the first video of yours I ever watched. This has come full circle!
Thank you for doing what you do Jake!
Thank you for watching!
@@BrightSunFilms Thank YOU for finally 'solving the mystery' of this wonderful, yet sadly abandoned place, and bringing it full circle.
“To me, it looks like a Whole Foods as a hotel”
Spot on.
Or a high-end rehab facility. Christ, the name screams rehab.
@@coreyjunk4392 lmao
@@coreyjunk4392 well that would appropriate for florida lol, everyone goes there for rehab
Disney: Pool's Closed.
Security guard: "Mouse out front shoulda told ya!"
Pools closed due to brain eating bacteria and sting rays
Pool's Closed due to AIDS
Lol
Until we are opened
When I was a kid and we went to Disney, I didn’t even care if we went to Magic Kingdom, I ONLY wanted to go to River Country. Was my favorite place because it was the only water park where my eyes didn’t sting after a day of play. I was JUST saying this the other day. I miss it even as a late 40’s adult!! I found your original video a couple years ago after intentionally searching “River Country.” 😊
@Bernie lomaxs Mustache rude much 🙄🙄🙄
@Bernie lomaxs Mustache I care, that's who
"And THATS where things get interesting"
YOU MEAN THE LIGHTS AND SPEAKERS THAT DIDN'T BURN OUT IN FLORIDA HEAT AND HUMIDITY WEREN'T THE INTERESTING PART???
WOW! Verlis?! I didn’t know you knew about this!
@@binkzgcn4812 hi guys!
I live in Florida. But i never thought about that
Ew get out of here furry boy
You’re disgusting
If Disney closed down attractions every time someone died there would be no Thunder Mountain, Mission Space... MONORAIL
More like: PeopleMover, because people be acting stupid.
transtremm honestly I feel like I’ve heard the most incidents from the monorail
IsThat ATesla people died on all of those?
DylPickle I don’t think there’s technically been deaths on property. The most recent monorail one was not that long ago though and I’m pretty sure it was a cast member that died
Scratch that, there’s been a few deaths on property. Most of the ones I’d heard they died in the hospital
Reflections Resort looks pretentious AF. It holds zero appeal for me.
HAHA yeah I’d have to agree
I got that vibe from disney as a whole the last few times I went. They are trying to make it seem all luxurious and fancy then make all these financing deals for people who can't afford it to go anyway. Big money scam. Doesn't feel magic anymore. They used to spend money to make stuff immersive, now they spend it to make stuff have perceived luxury
@@RickBaconsAdventures For me, I think the FastPass killed it. You can no longer be spontaneous, and everything has to be planned down to the minute.
@@Mimi-bx8zm yeah, the original fastpass was fine but the one that comes from the app is bogus. They use it to perfectly disperse the guests so it's impossible to find something that isn't packed. Also, they pawn off less popular rides on guests who have no prior knowledge of the park to maximize throughput
Honestly. I would rather them open a memorial, upgraded, 2022, better filtered version.
*sees this video in my recommendation*
Me: oh, I remember that video.
*sees it was uploaded 13 minutes ago*
Me: Of course he would make another video about.
BUT more
mood man
Dude I was like...wait I could have swore I watched this awhile ago lol
Glad I'm not the only one.
This was one of my favorite parts of Disney in the 70's. I'm a Floridian and we had so many great times at this park. Newer parks have much bigger slides, but for me the themes of this made it my favorite park.
Agreed.
That Buffalo Junction hotel sounded really neat and charming with the whole old west town theme and revitalizing River Country into River park, shame the idea got scrapped and now they're just gonna build another soulless looking modern hotel for the wealthy.
Jake said it’d be the most comprehensive look at River Country, and he delivered!
Also, there’s a glaring omission of urbex footage from a certain source. 🧐 Kudos
What source was left out and why? I’m out of the loop
Yee McGee I’m wondering too
He went there himself and filmed lots of content of it.
Ahhhh river country, where I first learnt how to swim, built sand castles with mr smee, rode my first water slide and became mayor of the day for the 25th anniversary and got ride a banana boat around the lagoon with goofy and open the park and walk the parade. Good times
Mayor of the Day? Post more info!
Bruh you older people have memories from River Country, while I was born in the early 2000’s having no idea what the place was like and having your dad tell you some old memories of when he went there when he was young. I wish I got to expirence the place like most of you guys have
Too bad I wasn’t born to go to river country it sounds so fun😣
I wonder how many gators are swimming around in River Country now.
MisterDarkButSometimesALittleGray well none because it got demolished
They are just walking around since water areas got demolished. My guess 8 gators
12 gators
6:18
And snakes.
I’ve been watching your abandoned videos for years and I love how far you’ve come. Your editing skills were always great, but it’s nice to see all the subscribers who have found you along the way and appreciate your work as well. Keep it up, your work only keeps getting better 👍
Thanks so much for this video. I have great memories of doing the waterslides and zipline as a kid in the late '80s. It's frankly sad and depressing to see how the site has just been left to decay.
The Kiddie Pool Was Brown In that old photo.
Honestly not a surprise.
The park was fed with lake water.
The pictures are deceiving. I personally was there many times through out the parks history, and never once did the water appear dirty, green or brown. It always had a distinctive smell that was clean, like when you came off of Splash Mountain, and not a dirty, swampy, lake or beach smell. Even the sand seemed clean and fresh. One thing that I know didn't get mentioned was the problems Disney had with wildlife. The park got delayed openings MANY times as the local animals, including alligators, bears, dear, birds, and others like to enter the park after closing and forage for treats, and sometimes needed persuasion to leave in the morning.
Public pools in general contain a lot of urine and fecal matter. Even Michael Phelps (olympic swimmer) admitted to peeing in pools during workouts. Just gross human soup.
Jeff J he admitted to defecating in pools too
@@xxxXXBiGDANXXxxx
I was there in the 70s the actual park was IN A LAKE the water was definitely brown.
i feel like once this whole corona mess clears up there's going to be a lot more abandoned places around here...
Emery Girling if they aren’t burnt down beforehand...
@@matthewwilliamsracing -oop
@@christianmoro7968 Bring Back Disney’s River Country to it former Glory , make it a little bigger.
Bring Back Disney’s River Country to it former Glory , make it a little bigger.
@@matthewwilliamsracing Bring Back Disney’s River Country to it former Glory , make it a little bigger.
Disney: "hey so this water park isn't really good anymore so we're gonna close it and just abandon it so we can save money"
conspiracy theorists and creepypasta writers: "THE BRAIN EATING BACTERIA CAUSED THE CLOSURE REEEEE"
@bigevilworldwide1 It seems kinda boring by today's standards. Few slides, some swings... and just pools? Lots of local pools with smaller admission fee would have few slides... people now want crazy curved slides, bowl slides and all that jazz.
People like you ruin everything
@MrDogeYT how they’re just vibing lol
@@soniquecat4745 The theming is miles better than Blizzard Beach, not enough immersive "woodland" themed water parks exist.
@@Clay3613 because woodland shit sucks xD you can see that shit in fly over country why build something people see everyday
looking like there will be an updated Abandoned video in the future on Reflections- A Disney Lakeside Lodge. In 2020 Bright Sun thought the funding was a done deal and there was no holding back. all press at the time described it as 'full steam ahead'. it had a completion date of 2022. but covid put a pause to it, disney wiped everything related to it with no mention and now we are nearing 2024. probably in the midst of a pretty major recession and nothing has been done with the site and its not looking like anything will be done for the foreseeable future. maybe around 2027-2030 we get some new updated and extravagant plan.
i'm so sad that they demolished it. i work for disney, at the waterparks previously lol, and we went on a cast brunch/outing just before we closed due to covid, and while on one of boats, we drove past what used to be river country. the only thing left is a tree with cast members shoes hanging from it, just before the park closed. it made me sad lol
Jake, this was absolutely beautiful, Sir! Bittersweet for me, as your coverage of the demise of River Country is what led me to follow your channel to begin with, and this seems like a summary of all your work in that era. Nobody else goes through the fact finding and the work of putting together the vintage footage the way you do. As always, I'm a fan. I can't wait to see Closed For Storm!!!!
Seriously can’t believe it’s been 5 years since seeing the original video, where has the time gone
I’ve been watching your videos for about 4-5 years now. It’s amazing how much you’ve improved. I’ve always enjoyed your content, but these are now so well-put together in every way imaginable. Great job, as always.
I remember going there as a kid, and it was mind blowing fun! I went off those pool slides a bunch of times. It's surreal to see the footage of it decaying and comparing it to what I remember.
I think there is one word which roughly sums up river country. Quaint. To be honest ive never been to river country all my information is from this well made video. It's interesting to see how such a popular attraction slowly was left in time as global population grew. I wasn't alive when this disney world attraction was a thing so when I saw the images of it I was surprised to see how little it actually was. The swimming pool was about the average size of an Olympic pool (maybe idk) and had 2 small water slides going into it. Literally 2 slides into a swimming pool for thousands of people going. Obviously this is pretty cool but for a Theme park with millions of visitors a year, the relevance of it could easily be questioned. Its honestly pretty cool to see how the world evolves and changes over time in these small ways. Thank you for listening to my tldr ted talk.
I remember in 2005 when my parents and I went for the first time since 1989 and remember seeing River Country signs but it was closed off. My parents went a few times (they had been going since the park opened). I don't remember going to River Country as I was 7 in 1989 but my parents said they did. We have slides of it (even official Disney Slides), hell we have a huge amount of pictures from the early 80s of Fort Wilderness and River Country so I know we did go to it at one time.
Bring Back Disney’s River Country to it former Glory , make it a little bigger.
@@danielsausaman9767 If they bring back Disney's River Country, should they make it a little bigger?
I too am fascinated with River Country. I’m sad it was demolished, I kinda loved how creepy and sad it was just sitting there in plain sight on Disney Property. I was also lucky enough to visit this water park when it was opened. I don’t remember much, as I was only 2 years old. But I’m thankful I can say “I’ve been there!”
When you planned on visiting the River Country area after the pandemic but didn’t know that it was already gone 😳
Bruh how it’s been closed for like 19 years hahahaha
Ronahldino’s Soccer he means visiting the abandoned site. People do that
Ty Dune oooohhhh that makes a lot of sense, sorry I’m retarded lol
@@tavintru please don't use slurs
is 😐
This popped up in my recommended (never seen this channel before) and I'm so glad it did! I loved it and learned new things about River Country's history. Thank you so much for the quality content, really well done! Gotta check out more videos now :D
Thank you for checking it out, I’m glad you like it!
Been camping to Fort Wilderness a dozen times and only briefly caught glimpses like that at 19:12 when taking the ferry boat to Magic Kingdom. Had no clue it was an abandoned water park until a few years ago, and had no idea you could walk up to see it abandoned! Very cool, thank you for sharing!
Another banger Jake! As a Florida resident I know all too well about the Disney Parks. It’s a shame how many Abandoned parks Disney left for dead. Feels like my youth gets demolished literally as I watch your Disney videos. Keep it up, very interesting info.
"Whole Foods as a hotel", succinctly said!
Another part of my youth gone forever. My friends and I went to River Country quite frequently from its opening through the mid 80's. Thanks for triggering some great memories of times gone by.
Oh man, memories of 70's River Country. Wish I still had the pics!
I love this channel, this channel is perfect
I kinda agree lol
I love when TH-cam messes up and accidentally puts something awesome in my feed lol. I’m a new subscriber here and I just wanted to let you know how much I enjoyed this video. Very informative and interesting, you’re a thorough researcher and it’s obvious you take a lot of pride in your work. I look forward to binge watching your videos and getting to know your community better! *Blessings* and *peace* to all! 🦚😷🦋
Thank you!
I’ve always wanted a full Abandoned episode on River Country. It’s such an infamous closed park and this is my favorite series on abandoned places!
@bigevilworldwide1 what does me calling it infamous have to do with it being closed because it was expensive to run? My point was it’s a well known closed park.
Had to come rewatch since i read an article saying the luxury lodge plan has been abandoned now as well. All construction vehicles have been removed and all mentions of it scrubbed.
Made a whole video about it too! th-cam.com/video/ArwsD97pT-U/w-d-xo.htmlsi=TEFJxXDBdWpXbkYs
@@BrightSunFilmsdang bro💀 river country cant catch a break
Neat to see such an in-depth update on something so fascinating and influential on the channel's history. Too bad River Country is being replaced by something so overly posh yet so generically Disney, especially where it is next to Fort Wilderness. Great job on this episode, your work looks very professional now.
When will closed for the storm be ready to watch. I’m excited for this
Stay turned for updates hopefully by next month
@@BrightSunFilms Which way?
it’s so awesome getting to see these videos early, great job jake! amazing video :D
How is it 4 hour ago when this was made only 30 min ago
Reverse Card patreon members see it early
Really fun to watch these videos.
Finally.....,something good on TH-cam, you don't see that very often.
I grew up in River Country’s heyday, and always refused to go there with my parents, because they could never explain to me how they were able to keep alligators out of this park when it was attached to the giant Bay lake. That’s why it’s still astonishes me to this day that the people who had their little boy killed by the alligator a few years back did not realize there were alligators in that lake.
I went there in April 1990 and really loved it. The main swimming hole was cool because it was like a lake but cleaner. I thought it was just clear enough to not gross you out but still make you feel like it was kind of natural. It was definitely more popular than the pool judging by the amount of people who chose it over the pool. Great memories and I always enjoyed all your videos about River Country.
Literally one of my favorite Chanels right here
I do miss this waterpark, whenever my family and I went there we'd almost always go there. We wouldn't do a whole day there, usually we reserved going there for one of the hottest days during the trip, and go to one of the parks (Kingdom, Epcot, etc...) in the morning, leave for lunch, go here afterwards for a few hours, and then we'd either go take a quick nap (1-2 hrs) and go back to the park, or just go right back to the park (my siblings and I as we got older usually went right back to the park after changing into dry clothes while my parents and younger siblings would take a rest for a bit). As we were usually staying on the grounds (Fort Widlerness itself while I was growing up) it was quite easy to do this, and we all had a great time. You can't really do that with Typhoon Lagoon or Blizzard Beach as those are more all day waterparks comparitively. Last year we did this was 1999 I think, so many fun memories of that place, and WDW as well.
We need to get this Channel to 1 million before the end of 2020. Also great vid
Didn’t happen
They should have made River Country exclusive to Resort guests.. Would have been a perfect perk to stay at the hotels.
As a kid everytime I was in a pool I would imagine how cool it would be if there was an artificial pool that was designed and themed like a lake or ocean. I had no idea river country existed but I'm sure the younger me would have probably considered that one of my favourite parks
I think it’s a win win since we’re sacrificing this abandoned park for a Tiana themed restaurant
Thanks bob
Thanks bob
Thanks bob
Thanks bob
Thanks bob
A more professional version than the 2015 version!
I would say so haha
We can all agree our childhood places are disappearing...
This is so sad.
It may have to do with people not earning enough to spend on expensive destinations.
@@Vickvineager You're exactly right. If people aren't paid properly, people can't spend money.
Not just that either, admittance prices are outrageous too, so it either takes a long time to save up for the trips or they find another place or they simply don’t go, it’s simple economics.
What’s with the ... that’s as bad as saying *sigh*
I just discovered your Abandoned videos today (June 11, 2020). I watched a handful, then decided to just start at Episode 1. I realize now I'm about to be up all night, lol. Thanks for that, and for these videos.
Thank you for watching!
“There’s no turning back now.”
Apparently there is, Reflections was cancelled in 2022.
I think they did that as an excuse, and it was because of urban explorers to prevent them.
I would have loved a Wild West themed resort :( We probably aren't getting any new resorts other than the ones that were already starting construction for probably a decade at least as a result of the pandemic.
now they have completely gotten rid of the ruins of river country to build a dvc hotel, we used to walk by and see the old water park and how its changing every time we visited but now its gone :(
Pandemic has slowed down my pussy rate
There's an actual Wild West themed resort in Disneyland Paris, The Hotel Cheyenne Resort.
This is really well done!
Thanks man! Great footage!
There was this water park in Singapore I used to go to when I was a kid. (Technically, it was on Sentosa, which is the small island off the mainland.) It was called Fantasy Island, and it had a really long lazy river and fun slides. The slides kept shutting down one by one because of money difficulties (I assume), declining attendance, and poor safety regulations resulting in injuries. I remember the lifeguards/slide attendants on duty being extremely chill, but like, to the point of inattention. The nail in the coffin was probably the two drownings in 1998 and 2000. That being said, that lazy river was pretty great.
I broke in there at 3 AM with my friend. Went through the fence behind a shed, and crawled up the big rock, to the very top. And down to where the slide was. It was cool to see but it was dark and creepy as hell. I saw a big ass snake and decided to turn around and I left quick lol. But overall it was a cool experience.
Thank you for posting this. I have often wondered what happened to River Country. I rememeber visiting there in the summer of 1979 as a young teen, and enjoying it very much. (I think I still have home movies of the trip.) Sad that it's gone and they couldn't keep it going with updates and refurbishments. Oh well... onto bigger and hopefully better things...
The reason there was a oil crises in America is because the oil was going to the kiddie pool at 3:33
That's just what happens when you put kids in unchlorinated and unfiltered water. They create an oil pond!
Fill the pool with oil
You don't even know how quickly I pressed this.
Always so well done. You are in a class of your own, Jake! This was great, I love the old footage.
Thanks for this video. It’s dumb I suppose but I feel like I got closure. I’ve been complaining about them letting River Country rot so I’m glad they’re finally giving that space a purpose again. Now if they’d just fix Discovery Island. I loved that place as a child.
I don’t remember if it was this or Discovery Island that I watched from you first, but your Disney stuff (and parks in general) is always interesting. It’s what brought me here, and while I like all the new stuff these sorts of videos just brighten my day.
I remember visiting here in 1985. Eight-year-old me loved every second of the time our family spent there.
You are very thorough, very well presented and I love it!! I love the journey you take me on, showing the different stages in history and why things happened. Keep up the amazing work!!
Marathoning all the abandoned episodes at 2:30 am, I'm getting shivers man and I like it 😅
Can someone give this guy a reward? Please?! He is an amazing person that makes amazing documentaries!!!!!!
I remember going to River County in the 70s. It was the best water park I've ever been to. Thank you for bringing back the memories.
I think River Country’s success was a surprise for Disney. It really would have been cool for the Buffalo hotel to have been built and River Country be part of it.
This was interesting. I think I visited River Country on a weekend. Nostalgia ... Thank you much for your work, and for sharing!
When you want fall as sleep but a new abandoned video coming out (i’m from italy, its 01:08 am)
Buona notte!
IsThat ATesla grazie😘
Ciao
Ive watched so many videos on this and other abandoned disney places and it always just facinates me how with all the money they have they just leave places to rot and decay. great video btw!
The fact that the resort planned for this spot was also cancelled is crazy. Even after all this time, some of River Country is just sitting there.