Disney ’ s Blizzard Beach opened on April Fool ’ s Day ( April 1 ) in 1995 , a fitting first day given that the theme of Disney ’ s third water park involves a snowstorm in Central Florida , something you won ’ t often see at Walt Disney World .
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WALT DISNEY WORLD [ SKI ] RESORT According to the backstory of Blizzard Beach , Imaginationskyway . com a rare winter storm once created mountains of snow in Central Florida . Out of this snowstorm , Florida ’ s first ski resort was born , a 66-acre wonderland filled with chairlifts , toboggan runs , bobsleds , ski jumps , and a lovable mascot named Ice Gator .
Naturally , the conditions didn ’ t last long , given Central Florida ’ s tropical climate , so the snow soon began to melt . The owners considered shutting down the resort , but that all changed when they found Ice Gator sliding down the mountain ’ s melting snow , which inspired a new idea : Convert the melting ski resort into a family water park .
FUN IN THE SNOW Disney ’ s Imagineers got rather playful when it came to the design of this water park . In converting an imaginary ski resort into a real water park , they created three sections to the park ’ s attractions — Red Slopes , Purple Slopes , and Green Slopes — much like a real ski resort might be organized . ( At true ski resorts , colors signify the difficulty of various slopes .)
You ’ ll find perhaps the most notable attraction in the entire park , Summit Plummet , in the Green Slopes section atop Mount
Gushmore . This 120-foot-tall waterslide sends guests down the attraction ’ s tallest peak at 55 miles per hour ; Imagineers cleverly designed it to appear as a waterslide repurposed from the resort ’ s original ski jump . To enhance the ski resort theme , Imagineers created an attraction called
Chairlift ; just like the name implies , this chairlift literally takes guests on a slow-moving journey from the main level of the park up to the summit of Mount Gushmore .
A blizzard in Central Florida ? Don ’ t knock it ‘ til you slide it !