New Braunfels, TX (USA)

I still had some leave to burn before I leave my job, so I took some this week. One thing I've been wanting to do since we moved to Texas was to visit the Schlitterbahn water park. We did drive by there before (see OCT 2010) but it was off-season. Woke up early (0630) and got on the road by 0745. We drove through Fort Worth - it took some time, but after we made it through the city, there was very little traffic. It's always fun to be with the kids on an adventure! About two hours into the trip, I looked down to adjust the temperature and Brenna said "Daddy, watch out" (in a quiet tone) - I looked up and saw a fertilizer spreader bouncing down the highway in front of us. Fortunately, I wasn't too close to the truck that had dropped it - and we were able to dodge it. Whew! The rest of the trip was uneventful. As it turned out, we timed the traffic almost perfectly - and we made it to New Braunfels by 1030. Stopped for a quick bite at Wendy's and then drove over to the Resort. We pre-checked in around 1100 and got our water-park wrist bands (included with a night's stay - similar to the Great Wolf Lodge). We were just about to get started with park rides when I got a call from the company who interviewed me last week. I sent the kids off to explore nearby while I chatted with the recruiter - what great news! Jazzed up after learning about a job offer, I joined the girls inside the park. The best thing about the place is that the rides are scattered across three zones (including Blastenhoff, Surfenburg and the original park). We explored the original for most of the day. There are some great things about the place: they let you bring in coolers and food, there is lots of space to sit and relax (including tables and chairs everywhere) and people were polite and friendly. It took quite awhile for us to figure out how to navigate the park - there was LOTS of walking - but we eventually learned that there was a walkway along the Comal River that connected to all the lines for the tube-chutes. We rode on rides called Congo River Expedition (reminded me of the Jungle Cruise at Disneyland), Whitewater, Cliffhanger and Raging River. We also played in the Lagoon. The water, piped in from the river, was very pleasant and cool. It almost made me forget how hot it was... Around 1500, I went to check into our room. While walking to the lobby, I saw a deer and her twin fawns... A short time later, I met up with the girls, who started talking about being hungry. So that we could wait for a nice dinner, I told them we'd go out for ice cream. That turned out to be harder than I expected - and we ended up having to drive almost to I-35 to find a place (Sonic). It perked the kids up, though. On the way back to the water park, we saw lots of poeple floating on the Comal River in tubes - it looked fun. We ended up at Surfenburg next. We watched kids showing off on boogie boards at "Boogie Bahn" and then floated in the Krystal River for awhile. I was getting tired from the walking, so I took a break while the girls played in Squirt 'n Sliden. A little later, we walked over to Blastenhoff (passing "The Falls", the next component of the park - opens soon). We enjoyed Blastenhoff Beach and The Torrent (a "wavy river"). After a few hours, we went back to the Resort at the Bahn. I had to take care of some work emails (quickly) and the girls raced around, trying to fit in as many rides as they could. When I joined the kids again, they told me we needed float in the Comal River, which had just opened (late in the day, since some of the employees are students). We had a great time, riding Cliffhanger multiple times. Suddenly it was 1830. We'd had a blast! Drove back to our room and changed for dinner. Brenna wanted to check out Gruene again (see OCT 2010). The evening was very pleasant and we wanted to eat dinner on the river - this time we chose the Gruene River Grill. There were far fewer people there than at the Gristmill - food was very good! The appetizer was grilled shrimp submerged in a spicy cajun juice, the kids' entrees were fish tacos and Mexican meatloaf. I had Filet Gargonzola. After a few hours, we walked along the river and listened to music coming from Gruene Hall. Around 2130, we drove back to the resort. Mollie and I walked around the park in the dark (and spotted a raccoon!). Back in the room, got ready for bed: very tired, but excited for tomorrow!