The Mysterious Stuff of Alton Towers

[barryzola]

Yes, that is the video that i made (which was posted on the last page). It can be seen in a larger screen on youtube which stores my old AT vids linked from my own site here:

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I can remember queuing the full length of the queue line in 94 and later for hours in glorious sunshine. That was a bloody long queue! There was a ridiculous amount of graffiti on the wooden fencing too due to the amount of people going through there and waiting ages. Still some of it up there if i remember correctly! It was interesting to go back up there after years.

May be a good idea for a walk up there on any future behind the scenes tours : )

[Mick]

[quote=""Dorsia""]The Fastrack merge point is just before the steps that take you back up to the level of the station.[/quote]

Cheers!

[quote=""Dorsia""]I don't know what the old queue used to be exactly, but I remember that you used to be able to walk around in the area around the ride before the Fastrack entrance was put in.[/quote]

You still can - I think. Last month I was there, and spent some time taking pictures from below the ride. If you go to the left of the exit, past the SRQ steps, you're then directly over the tunnel where the track shoots through into the last corkscrew. If you walk a bit further on, you're under a metal grate where the track comes down from the famous first helix, shooting up over you as it enters the zero-g roll. And you can then walk all the way over, under the first corkscrew, before going up some steps and emerging with the main queueline entrance to your right.

[quote=""Vik""]Also, next time you are about to enter the Nemesis queueline, just take a look to the left of the entrance, on the other side of the access gate... ...was last used as the Dynamo queueline [/quote]

I'm missing something here. Isn't that the bit that goes up the hill behind the top of the lift hill, or have I got your directions wrong?



Do you mean behind the Alton Towers employee in this picture? Or do you mean on the other side of that little roadway that's there to the left?

Finally - the bit behind the lift hill and the bit behind the stall turn - do they join up? Someone's said the lift hill bit goes up behind the loop, so it's not much further to the stall turn...

[Vik]

Just to the left of the main entrance to nemesis is a vehicle/staff access gate,to the left of that is part of the old queue line. Sorry my original point of reference wasn't to great.

Street View Link

The old queueline is the fencing to the left of the access gate

If memory serves me right, the old queueline would of of been:- From the entrance, go left, then would take a left again, across the access pathway (similar to Duel, when staff need access, guests would of been held back, and the queueline fences also served as a gate), then queue under the monorail, back across the access road, left, then continue as you would now on a very busy day heading up towards the lift hill, under the lift hill past the top of the loop, then back around under the lift hill again, eventually passing the entrance to the queueline. From hear, as you would now head down towards where the merge point now is. From here, if you though you only had 10 minutes to wait, you would of been very much mistaken, as you would of gone up the steps, then continued on upwards towards the stall turn,(This is the area that is long since closed off and looking rather unloved) then heading back on yourself and eventually in to the station area.

A nice full queueline would of seen you waiting around 2.5- 3 hours.

[mattbailey]

Does all of Air's queueline still get used? I remember trekking miles around it in 2002!

[BSwiss]

We did a big(ish) trek around Airs queue last year, through the little covered part back round then left towards the car park where you can't tell how long it is as it slopes downwards.

[XIIIDom]

I remember trekking around the air queue in its entirety, down the slope, past the car park, through the weird covered sections... its long, but not nemesis long! I wish that the walk-around bit at the base of the ride (nemesis) near the fast track queue was more advertised, they should stick a small shop (does nemesis even have a shop?) or at least a few vendors just to entice people down there. Loads of places to sit, I can imagine a small amphitheatre type thing where the story of nemesis is told by mad=max style survivors - nothing elaborate, just a couple of actors who help to build the mood like the guards on oblivion...

Wishful thinking I know - but it would work wonders for the theme, pulling it in line with some of the american parks in terms of detail.

[Mick]

^Cheers Vik - don't know why but I'm very intrigued by this kind of information

[Anthony]

Yeah, I couldn't work out how the queue used to go but it makes sense that it would continue up to the stall turn where now you turn back and are at the station.

I had seen that closed off section, but never thought how it was accessed, I had just assumed you got to it by the other side for some reason...

Thanks!

[Vik]

A photograph, courtesy of ATA, showing the part of the internal Black Hole queue line that was closed off some years before the ride finally closed for good.



At one time, when you entered the indoor section, you would of gone down the stairs then continued through this section of queue line. When it was sealed off, you would of gone down the stairs and straight in to the station.

[John]

I don't remember that, good thing they got rid of it, looks as bad as (if not worse than) the queue for Space Invader at PBB.

I've never been round the full Air queue, I've once been into the (1st) section that leads off to the left near the top of the hill, but on that day the bit leading down towards the car park was closed. I've never quite made sense of the rest of the queue that leads off from the top of the hill.

[DiogoJ42]

That old BH queue has a wonderful 80's charm to it! Reminds me of The Fifth Dimension.

[[Archive]]

I was thinking the same thing. Though it does look very claustrophobic and would never pass today's health and safety standards. I have a vague memory of queueing for the Black Hole. I went around the entrance (possibly through a portion of the outdoor queue, probably not) and in through the big entrance. There was a small tunnel-like indoor queue like the one in the photo, with portholes on the walls and high sides. It was very tight if I remember correctly but built up atmosphere well. The station was the best, though. I loved the whole 'look' of the metalwork and stars above.

[NF2]

I reckon that queue would have probably closed when they refurbed the ride in 1997, as Diogo is right, its much more 80's than the rest of the ride that was left over. Fifth Dimension was what I too instantly thought about upon seeing that image, and after the 1997 refurb (I first rode about 99' 2000' ish) I don't recall seeing anything that screamed 80's like that on the ride. Am I right in thinking a large majority of the ride was refurbished when they created X Sector to make it fit in better? I always found Black Hole to feel reasonably contemporary.

Also was the actual station theming created when the ride opened, or was it added at a later date? I always thought it seemed very ambitious and well themed for 80's standards, and totally different when compared to the likes of Corky and the beast which had zero theming whatsoever. Was it a Tussuads jobby or something?

Also Bill, this is the queue section you are describing:

[DiogoJ42]

I always thought the BH theme seemed like a poor man's Space Mountain (Paris).

[NF2]

That's basically what it was, hence why it also believes me to think the station was themed later. Whilst impressive for its time, I also thought the Jules Verne style theming and lift hill soundtrack were quite blatantly inspired by Space Mountain. Did you know which came first? I now BH opened 1984 and SM 1995, so was he theming added later?

[Vik]

The old part of the Black Hole queue line was still used well in to the 90's, though I can't be certain of the exact year it was last used, I remember walking through it in '95

[DiogoJ42]

Logic would say it was changed for the X Sector makeover in '98 (My first visit was that year, and it seemed pretty new to me at the time)

[shawnoc]

I remember the station being themed like that on my first visit to Alton back in 97. I was quite impressed when I saw the staion as I was not expecting it to look like that, bearing in mind the tent was yello and green at the time.

I also remember the huge queue for Nemesis when I went in 97. It seemed to take forever to get to the station. It didnt help that it was chucking it down.

[seanyboyuk]

Did the old BH indoor queue entrance begin at the bottom of the hill near to where the later orp area was added?

I must admit i used to enjoy waiting in the BH queue due to the fact it had MTV Europe on the tvs. It a shame this isnt done anymore as it does help rather than listening to a looping soundtrack but i guess im old school as it would spoil a rides theme.

The BH ride did used to have lift hill music which suited it very well and sometimes sound effects were played just before the 1st drop. Anyway enough of BH...

[verfum]

[quote=""joshc807""]oooo... I love these things , how about the queue line for the Black Hole, i love this because everytime i pass it, it looks as if it is still used because the t.vs are still there...[/quote]

Having seen your post I felt compelled to sneak through a bush and snap part of the queue :P

Couldn't see any TVs. Would there have been one attached beneath the canopy in this photo?



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[quote=""DiogoJ42""]There's always the old Aqualand sign near the rapids queueline.[/quote]

I was intrigued by this and looked out for the sign on my last visit 14th June 10. I told everyone in my party to look out for it and my mate spotted it

I assume this is the one?