Jr. Gemini
1979-2013

Jr. Gemini was a roller coaster designed for kids. 

In 1979 Cedar Point opened Gemini Children's Area. It was added to the Gemini Midway.  The area featured a new roller coaster called Jr. Gemini. Rock, Spin & Turn, and Space Age were relocated to the new kids area to give kids more rides.

Gemini's Children's Area was located directly across from the Gemini roller coaster. 

Jr. Gemini was designed especially for little kids. If adults wanted to ride they had to have a child with them.

Jr. Gemini was the first roller coaster in the world that was built by Intamin. Jr. Gemini was also the first project that Cedar Point would ever work with Intamin on. 

Cedar Point and Intamin would also go on to build some of the best attractions in the world together including: Demon Drop (1983-2009), Avalanche Run (1985-1989), Thunder Canyon (1986), Disaster Transport (1990-2012), Millennium Force (2000), Wicked Twister (2002-2021, Top Thrill Dragster (2003-2021), Maverick (2007), and Shoot the Rapids (2010-2015). 

During this time period, Intamin would work with tons of other parks. In 2005 they built Kingda Ka, the current world's tallest roller coaster. 

Jr. Gemini would be the first roller coaster for millions of kids that would visit Cedar Point. 

After adding Jr. Gemini in 1979 Cedar Point would continue to add more attractions that would balance out what it had to offer. It would add: Oceania (1980-1997), Ocean Motion (1981), White Water Landing (1982-2005), Kid Arthur's Court (1982-1999), Demon Drop (1983-2009), Avalanche Run (1985-1989), Thunder Canyon (1986), Iron Dragon (1987), Soak City Water park (1988-2016), Magnum XL-200 (1989), Disaster Transport (1990-2012), Mean Streak (1991-2016), Berenstain Bear Country (1992-1998), Snake River Falls (1993), Raptor (1994), Cedar Point's 125th Anniversary Celebration (1995), Mantis (1996-2014), Power Tower (1998), Camp Snoopy (1999), Millennium Force (2000), Wicked Twister (2003-2021), Top Thrill Dragster (2003-2021), maXair (2005), Skyhawk (2006), Maverick (2007), Planet Snoopy (2008), Shoot the Rapids (2010-2015), WindSeeker (2011), Dinosaur's Alive on Adventure Island (2012-2018), and GateKeeper (2013). 

All of theses additions were great to Cedar Point, and they each gave park guests an experience they didn't have before. 

Kids love riding Jr. Gemini. It was a great experience for riders. 

Even tho Jr. Gemini was a really popular ride it was really starting to show its age during the 2010's.  The ride was about to receive some major changes. 

On August 27, 2013 cedar Point announced it was going to remodel the Gemini Midway for the 2014 season. Gemini's Children's Area was going to be replaced with Pipe Scream and Lake Erie Eagles. ​

Jr. Gemini's entrance was going to be moved to Camp Snoopy. The ride was renamed Wilderness Run and it was repainted to fit in with Camp Snoopy. 

Jr. Gemini closed on Sunday, October 27, 2013. The ride would be transformed during the winter. 

Wilderness Run
2014

Wilderness Run is a kid's coaster that is located in Camp Snoopy. 

Wilderness Run opened to guests on Saturday, May 10, 2014. 

The track had been painted green and the supports were painted brown. The ride would blend in really well with the trees. There were also new tress planted around the ride. 

Wilderness also received a new entrance plaza. It is very open and flows really well. 

Transforming Jr. Gemini into Wilderness was a great move for Cedar Point. The ride will be able to continue to thrill kids for decades to come. 

Wilderness Run is located in Camp Snoopy. The ride is in front of Linus' Beetle Bugs and across from Red Baron and Camp Bus. 

Wilderness Run is Cedar Point's smallest roller coaster. It gives kids their first experience of what it's like to ride a roller coaster. 

Wilderness Run Ride Facts:
Built: 1979
Opened:
    1979 as Jr. Gemini 
​    May 10, 2014 as Wilderness Run
Manufacturer: Intamin
​Type: Children's Coaster
Hills: 1
Height: 19 feet
Length: 443 feet
Speed: 6 MPH

Wilderness Run was the first roller coaster in the world that was built by Intamin. 
​

Intamin has built at least 4 of these roller coasters. Today there are only 2 of these in operation. The other one is Woodstock Express at California's Great America. 

Ride Experience 

The Wilderness Run ride experience begins with guests entering the ride plaza for Wilderness Run. 

Riders wait on average 10-30 minutes to ride this ride. It does go around twice, so it can have slower wait times. 

Riders are loaded into small cars. Each car has a seatbelt and a lap bar. 

Wilderness Run takes its riders up a 19-foot tall hill. It takes about 20 seconds for the train to make it to the top of the lift hill. 

Once the train reaches the top of the lift hill it starts turning to the left. 

While the train is turning it is slowly dropping. Riders reach speeds of 6 MPH during the drop. 

Wilderness Run then takes its riders over an airtime hill! While riders go over this hill their picture is taken!

Riders experience really good airtime as they go over this hill. 

Wilderness Run then makes a turn into the station. 

Wilderness Run keeps a pretty good pace through its layout. 

Once the train comes to a complete stop riders are asked if they want to go again. The ride crew then checks to make sure all the riders are still properly in their seat, and then they send the ride around a second time. 

Wilderness Run is a great starting ride for kids. It is really fun, and exciting. 

A Great Fit for Cedar Point 

Wilderness Run is a great ride for Cedar Point.  Cedar Point is known around the world as " The Roller Coaster Capital of the World. Wilderness Run is a great ride for kids to get their start into riding roller coasters. 

Wilderness Run is not a thrill roller coaster, that is what makes it good for kids. 

Kids love Wilderness Run. It is really fun, and it truly is a classic ride at Cedar Point. 

Wilderness Run is a very reliable ride. It is almost always open. 

Wilderness Run is a great starting roller coaster. Riders often start at Wilderness Run and then move on to Woodstock Express. 

Wilderness Run has a great theme, and it fits in really well with Camp Snoopy. 

The New Gemini Midway was a great addition when it opened in 2014 at Cedar Point. After adding the New Gemini Midway Cedar Point would open: Rougarou (2015), Valravn (2016), Cedar Point Shores Water Park (2017), Steel Vengeance (2018), Forbidden Frontier on Adventure Island (2019-2022), Cedar Point 's 150th Anniversary Celebration (2021), The Boardwalk (2023), and Top Thrill 2 (2024). All of these additions have helped round out Cedar Point's collection of attractions. 

Wilderness Run is a great ride. It will continue to thrill riders for decades to come. 

Riders must be 36 inches tall to ride. Guests over 54 inches tall must have a child to ride. 

Last Updated: 05/01/2024

Photos by: Andrew Borgen, Cedar Point, and Jake Hamons