The Flume (Alton Towers)
| The Flume | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Alton Towers | |
| Area | Mutiny Bay |
| Coordinates | 52°59′20″N 1°53′20″W / 52.988995°N 1.888847°W |
| Status | Removed |
| Opening date | 1981 |
| Closing date | 10 October 2015 |
| Replaced by | SW8 |
| General statistics | |
| Type | Log flume |
| Manufacturer | Mack Rides |
| Height | 27 m (89 ft) |
| Drop | 26 m (85 ft) |
| Length | 886 m (2,907 ft) |
| Speed | 45 km/h (28 mph) |
| Capacity | 1,400 riders per hour |
| Duration | 6 minutes |
| Vehicle type | Boat/Bath Tub |
| Height restriction | 100 cm (3 ft 3 in) |
| Site area | 5 1/2 acres |
 Must transfer from wheelchair |
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The Flume was a Log Flume at Alton Towers in Staffordshire. It opened in 1981 and was rethemed in 2004 coinciding with its sponsorship by Imperial Leather. The ride was a bath time themed log flume with three drops. It was the longest log flume attraction in the world at the time of opening. The attraction closed in 2016 and was removed a year later for the area's redevelopment into the SW8 rollercoaster.
The ride was about 6 minutes long and starts by loading in the circular station. Once the 'bath' had dispatched from the station it went round a few turns and up to the first lift hill. The car then dropped down a small drop and turned around the woodland until it came to the second lift hill which was enclosed in a building and then a drop which was in the dark. At the bottom there was a giant rubber duck that you go past. The ride then wound around the woodland again and then went 27m up a lift hill and then dropped 26m down a drop into some brakes. Finally the 'bath' went through two showers and back into the station.
In 1980, Alton Towers opened the ride Corkscrew along with a few other amusement attractions. When these opened Alton Towers gained popularity so for the 1981 season they decided to open a log flume. Construction started in late 1980 to open the ride for the 1981 season.
In 1981 the Log Flume opened to the public as the world's longest log flume themed around the Canadian Falls; for the next 23 years the ride operated as such. In 2004, however the ride was re-themed to The Flume and was given new boats- themed around baths to replace the logs, new lining, maintenance, a refurbished station and other bath time theming. In 2008, the area in which the ride operated was re-themed to Mutiny Bay, however the ride retained its bath time theme.
Weeks before the beginning of the 2016 season, Alton Towers announced that the ride was to be closed permanently. On March 16, 2016, the park posted a photo through their Towers Loving Care Twitter page of a sign on the perimeter of the former area of the attraction that reads "SW8. Ground breaking new ride development", marking the construction site for the resort's next large investment SW8.
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Wikipedia