By Charly SHELTON

As we enter the last leg of the summer, it’s time to plan those last few theme park reservations before school starts up again. If you haven’t been down to Knott’s Berry Farm yet this summer, it is celebrating its 100^th anniversary with a special look to the history that made them. And part of that history is reviving a fan favorite, a classic attraction, in a whole new way. “Knott’s Bear-y Tales: Return to the Fair” takes guests on a fun trip down memory lane heading to the county fair to sell some boysenberry pies.

In 1975, Knott’s opened a dark ride in the Roaring ’20s area of the park (now the Boardwalk area) designed by legendary designer and Disney Imagineer Rolly Crump. Knott’s Bear-y Tales was a cute ride-through with animated figures and beautiful sets done in the sketchbook/sideshow attraction style that Crump was famous for. Guests travelled with Boysen Bear and Girlsen Bear as they headed to the pie contest at the county fair. They traversed the various lands of Thunder Cave, Frog Forest and more, all the while their pies were constantly under threat of being stolen by Crafty Coyote. The ride quickly became a cult favorite and has attained near mythic status in the theme park fan community today. The ride was closed in 1986 to make way for another dark ride, Kingdom of the Dinosaurs, which in turn was closed in 2004 before sitting abandoned for 10 years. The space was then gutted and completely remade into an interactive 4D ride with spinning vehicles, projected 3D screens and VR guns to shoot at digital sea creatures in “Voyage to the Iron Reef.” This ride was not particularly well-received and was closed just four years after it opened, which brings this story full circle as the space welcomed back “Knott’s Bear-y Tales: Return to the Fair” at its original location with vastly improved technology.

The ride now is very similar to what it was – Boysen and Girlsen, now grown up with families of their own, are still fighting Crafty Coyote and his family of pie thieves as they try to make it to the fair. But this time guests in the ride vehicles can help out. Armed with the Boysenberry Blaster (a jar of boysenberry preserves with a handle and a pull-string trigger), guests can shoot virtual jam globs at the pie thieves on the projected screens to rescue the pies and stop those coyotes in their tracks.

This is a super fun ride that is a perfect way to honor the history of the attraction while elevating it for a modern audience. Those who went on the original ride will notice that the digital set pieces closely recreate the former ride, with the same scenes in the same places, while first-time guests can enjoy the ride for what it is – a great, Knott’s-themed ride set in a berry pie factory that holds up to today’s flash and glamour of new rides.

For those who haven’t been down to Knott’s Berry Farm yet this summer, get set to relive some favorite memories for the first time or the hundredth time.

“Knott’s Bear-y Tales: Return to the Fair” is open now.