Idlewild - 8/16/2025
Today Shawn, Brian and I made a visit to Idlewild. This small park near Ligonier, Pennsylvania, about 50 miles east of
Pittsburgh on the banks of Loyalhanna Creek is one of the oldest amusement parks in the United States. The park is heavily
shaded with multiple trees and feels as if it is a family rum park despite being owned by the large Herschend company which also
owns Kennywood.
We checked our tickets at what appeared to be toll booths for the parking lot which actually aren't toll booths, because parking
is free. We found a place to park in one of the tree lined and crowded parking lots and walked past the shelterhouses and
picnic grove towards the main park. I was looking for the park's main entrance when I realized that there isn't an actual
grand entrance and we were sort of inside the park already.
Our first few rides were on Howler, Paratrooper and Skooters. We had made our way to what seemed to be the center of the
park where we rode their two roller coasters, Rollo Coaster and Wild Mouse.
Rollo Coaster. This bumpy and jerky wooden coaster opened in 1938 is a classic out-and-back family coaster using the
park's topography.
Wild Mouse. This is the only wild mouse roller coaster built by Vekoma and opened at Idlewild in 1993. For some odd
reason it features a tilted lift.
These brought my total roller coaster count up to 283.
We crossed over Loyalhanna Creek, walked through the children's areas Raccoon Lagoon and Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood.
Once back across the creek we rode Tilt-A-Whirl and headed to ride the Loyalhanna Limited Railroad.
Next was the unique attraction, Confusion Hill, a 10 to 15 minute walking tour with seemingly gravity-defying optical
illusions. Our final ride of the day was Paul Bunyan's Loggin' Toboggan, a classic log flume.
We had spent about four hours exploring this charming and friendly park in the beautiful Laurel Highlands. It was another
great day of amusement park fun with my friends Brian and Shawn.
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