Lake Winnie is actually the park that's closest to me, even though I don't count it as my home park. I'm really happy you made this review, as I never see anyone in the coaster community talk about it. Cannon Ball is a fun classic woodie, the boat ride is nice, and the dark ride used to be a really fun haunted house before they rethemed it.
Omg this is my home park and Taylor pointed out almost all of my complaints. This is the only amusement park remotely close to me but I prefer Six Flags over Georgia more even though it’s like 2 hours away.
I moved to Chattanooga in 2002 and have been once. Only because I was given tickets. But I’m a DW season pass holder since 2011 and Six Flags for 3 years. Can’t tell how many times I’ve been.
Last time I checked charging for water out of tap is actually illegal since it is a legal human right, but I mean I guess whatever? I’ll be fine with heat exhaustion and dehydration.
Ah, it's a nice little park to take your kids to on a Saturday or Sunday (when you live in that area).. Instead of doing the big park madness, it's really nice to have a park like this to take your kids to for a fun afternoon. I think it was perfect to take my son to it when he was growing up. The price is much better than the several hundred you are going to pay for you and your kids at the big parks. Easy to get in and out of, nice laid back atmosphere. We have lots of great memories at Lake Winnie.
@mountaingal homemaker I have lived in this area my whole life ( 61years) I am not looking to continue argument with u but I promise u no part of that area is Hamilton County its Catoosa County and as Lakeview Drive ends ur in Walker County. I live and work in the area as do alot of my friends.
North Georgian here! (Dalton) I’m honored that you reviewed this park. It’s been a staple for me since my childhood and it makes me so happy to see my favorite RU-vid channel visited. I think that if you do visit visit for the Cannonball! It really is a decent coaster. BTW Chattanooga is in TN x) Lake Winnie is in Rossville which is very close to Chattanooga.
I’ve been going here since I was like 4 (some years I haven’t gone for various reasons) and always had fun when I went. It’s not to far away from where I live and since there’s not very much of a crowd you can get on all the rides fairly quickly. I remember this one time I went there was like no one there and the only line we had to wait for was cannonball. Overall for me I’ve always enjoyed this park.
I feel like ur lying I went here and they had good service great rides and the water park is wonderful. That’s my family and I favorite little place to go to. I recommend going there again and check and change all of that.
Man, apathetic and rude ride ops are a major pet peeve of mine. When I last went on Wicked Cyclone, the ops were mostly just meandering instead of moving things along. In this case, though, it ventures past annoying and into the realm of dangerous (not to clickbait :P). Polar opposite of the ride ops who used to run Jungleland Express, formerly at Six Flags Great Adventure.
InvisiblePlumber Listless ride ops can easily turn what should be a walk-on into a 30-minute-plus wait, and they can make it happen in less than an hour. It’s so frustrating when you see it.
3:20 They did that to me at a carnival once. I was a little kid so I couldn't really do anything about it and just slid around in the seat yelling for the operator to stop the ride. He didn't.
I took a field trip here when I was in 5th grade. The only roller coaster I had ridden before was the Cyclone at Six Flags GA, which was miserable and gave me a bad expiernece for roller coasters. One of my friends mom's (the chaperone for my group) convinced me to ride The Cannonball, and that completely changed my mind on coasters. So I still look back on this park with nostalgia and I remember riding the Swings and Tilt-A-Whirl forever waiting for the group to ride the rides I didn't want to since there were zero queue lines. It rained that day and I was stuck on the far side of the lake with the pedal boat. This was around 2008 or so.
I went there as a result of Hurricane Florence evacuations. Did Dollywood the day before. Stayed for 2 or 3 hours. Rode each coaster once. Cannon Ball was surprisingly good. Wild Lightnin' was extremely aggressive, but in a good way. The Wacky Worm is just kinda a Wacky Worm. They offered a 15 ticket package which is absolutely worthwhile if you're doing the 3 coasters. The park is very small. There's a lot of fun flat rides. I don't have much to say about the prices, as I didn't buy anything, but there were no water fountains, which seemed odd. I've heard the employees are often rude, and I found it not to be terrible. There were some apathetic employees, but some rides had great staffs, particularly Cannon Ball. Wacky Factory is the worst dark ride I've ever ridden, but I still recommend it just for its sheer awfulness. The Wave Swinger didn't feel well maintained. It squeaked all over the place. I feel similarly towards the park. Go if you're there. Don't make it a destination. I only went because I had time to kill, and it fills that purpose. If you make a point to go there, you will be disappointed. If it's part of a larger trip, it's a nice little stop on the way.
I’m going there someday, I wanna ride that boat chute ride, not a lot of those around. Plus it’s a historic old school park, which I tend to prefer to big theme parks.
This was my home park as a child...so I do look at it with some nostalgia. I will agree though they need to do some serious work with the employees. The only reason to come here is Cannonball and the historic boat shoot.
Free water? As a European guy that sounded quite strange to me. I mean, you could theoretically get some in Europe, but I'd rather pay for it instead of getting some tap water and with people looking weird at me.
Filipolis Tap water in most of the U.S. (not everywhere, but in regions with strong environmental histories) is good tasting and very clean and trustworthy. Drinking fountains are in every amusement park and most states make it legally required to provide guests with cups of water if they request it. It’s treated as a public health issue.
In America, it is a law that all places that serve drinks (bars, restaurants, amusement parks, etc.) have to give out free water and usually ice as well. It's not actually tap water, but the filtered water that comes out of the soda machines.
You did a 6-minute review on Lake Winnie and didn't even show their landmark ride, the Cannon Ball. To each his own, but Lake Winnie is one of my favorite parks in the world.
Ok! I went to today! There are two water fountains in the park. One is at the bathrooms behind the Tilt-o-Whirl, and the other is at the food station on the side of the park close to the Cannonball.
Being from this area though, my advice is the same as yours. It is ok to visit if you cannot go anywhere else, however if possible, I strongly suggest that you visit DollyWood instead. You will be so glad you did. Lake Winnie is okay, however I have not been in quite a few years and I am okay with that. I am perfectly happy having my DollyWood Season Pass this year 😀❗️
I’ve been here before and had a good time. Cannon Ball is a good wooden coaster but, don’t sit in the back! It’s very rough! Sit in the front car,it’s a lot smoother. Every time they dispatched the train on Cannon Ball everyone was clapping and the ride Ops would give everyone high-fives as the train left. I had a good day. (My only nitpick was that many of the rides were closed like the wild mouse, the pirate ship,and a few flat rides)
I can understand why the Boat Chute had no lapbars (it's an old old ride almost built from scratch), but everything you just said makes me think this park will get into big trouble with lawsuits. No lapbars needed? No free water despite the heat? C'mon man, you're asking for it.
Another great review Taylor. I'd do Lake Winnie just so say I've did it. Soon I will be moving to Florida so first on the agenda is the parks in Orlando.
Yes, it is classic. Built in the 1960s. The reviewer is a flake who whines about free water at an amusement park yet, fails to show the classic wooden coaster?
The park is definitely not going to be a Golden Ticket winner for best park in the world, but it does have some charm from the lake side setting, and the train ride offers some great insight into the past of the park and the land it sits on with the on board narration. Cannon Ball is also a great example of a classic style out-and-back wooden coaster that seemed better maintained than some newer wooden coasters I've ridden in the past. Can't speak to the food prices as I didn't get any since I was there for a shorter stop as I had a flight out of Atlanta that evening and had plans to meet a friend before that flight, but in the grand scheme of things, I enjoyed my time at the park. This certainly wouldn't be a park to base a whole trip around for the average visitor, but those who may be making an extended stay in the Chattanooga area for other attractions and sites there (Lookout Mountain, Rock City Gardens, etc...) may enjoy adding it as a secondary stop for their visit to the area. For theme park and coaster enthusiasts, if they are combining Dollywood and Six Flags Over Georgia, it could make for a nice short break on the drive up or down depending on how you plan it. -Gary
I think the reason for the employees acting the way they did is because Lake Winnie needs to SERIOUSLY raise their wages. Noone wants to stand out in that heat and humidity all summer long for $7.50 an hour when all the other businesses are moving up to $15. It's been a major problem the 2021 season because they can't get staff and many rides are shut down. Also, everything is severely run down and neglected and they run out of food and drinks.. Overall, it looks like the owners are running it into the ground. The carousel needs some serious refurbishment because the horses are so neglected. I try not to blame the workers because they are busting their butts in that heat for min wage when the owners could do way better. It is incredibly sad to see. It's not an excuse, I know, yall shouldn't have been mocked. But that's what happens when you don't attract good workers with decent wages.
Agreed and they wondered why I quit once I got pregnant years ago when I worked there. It's hot. They barely do any training for the people working the rides or in the food places. They pick their favorite employees Nd that is who gets away with everything. The owner is extremely sweet I love her but she doesn't pay attention to the crap that goes on.
A few years ago I stopped at Lake Winnepesaukah they were closing and 1 hour and they would not let me in. I just wanted to ride the two coasters and leave which is more than enough time.
DollyWood is my favorite home park, but I actually live closer to this park. I still love the CannonBall 😀❤️❗️And the Boat Chute has always been the most unique water ride I have ever ridden. Can You parody the CannonBall? Or the Wild Mouse Coaster?
If the only thing you live to go to parks for are coasters then probably not. But if your looking for something more than big corporation cookie cutter parks, looking for some charm in a park, then maybe yes.
As a resident of Chattanooga, I totally disagree with you. Lake Winnie is a staple of my city. It's quaint and full of fun. You didn't even mention that we have a water park. And you don't enter the park for free. Check the website. We have specials for each day of the week during the summer. I love Lake Winnie ❤️❤️❤️❤️
This amusement park is only 15 minutes away from me, I’d rather go to Dollywood, and six flags over ga, witch is 2 hours away, but I wish they Would Improve it, maybe add a RMC? Or B&M?
Honestly. I think that you should have included that this park is very kid oriented. They have so many kids rides. Me as an adult will only go and take my children. I wouldn't plan a trip for just me, but kids ages 1 and up can ride rides. My kids were able to ride almost everything. Some rides even start as 36 inches. This park also includes a waterpark which is definitely worth the money you pay. The park also offers some kind of discount for every day of the week except the weekends. My family of 5 got into the park for around $130. That was for the water park and theme park. I think that this is the best place for kids. We love six flags. We have memberships, but my youngest 2 children are too short to ride much of anything. I also believe that the food and gifts were fair price. The refillable cups are only 10$, but you do have to pay for refills and you cant use a debit card for less than $5. I didnt take cash with me so I was bummed, they do offer picnic tables if you want to have a picnic. Also my daughter was unable to ride the swings because she wore flip flops. They would not allow her to take them off, but she rode another ride while there and they allowed her to leave her shoes on the platform, but other than that. This place is great for families.
No you pay when you go in and they stamp your hand I’m going with my church in July I don’t know if it’s july 10 or july 31. I need my heart checked out though and I go tk the cardiologist on july 23rd. I can ride most of the rides I just won’t get any big roller coasters the wacky worm roller coaster I can do because it’s not that fast. If we go on july 10.
I appreciate that your reviews are honest and don’t praise everything so much that it feels as if you’re hoping for insider perks. But just as you reviewed this before, you make no mention of Cannon Ball. Did you not get to ride it?
Now I’m vaguely remembering - I think - that last time you said you didn’t get a chance to ride it. If so, that’s quite a bummer. That would be the number one reason I’d visit that park.
