Cardiff International Pool - Saturday 9 January 2016

Date: Saturday 9 January 2016
Venue: Cardiff International Pool
Who Went: Just me

Rationale for Trip

For the sixth year running I wanted to start the year with a visit to Cardiff International Pool to enjoy the fun pool and water slides. During Christmas 2015 I set my mind firmly on going to Cardiff International Pool on Saturday 9 January 2016.

Getting to Cardiff

I got to Bath Spa station around 08:40, and must have just missed one direct train to Cardiff Central by a few minutes. Fortunately I was able to catch the 08:47 train from Bath Spa to Bristol Temple Meads followed by the 09:21 train from Bristol Temple Meads to Cardiff Central. Having finally reached Cardiff Central at 10:16 I had a much needed takeaway regular Americano from Greggs Bakers before catching a bus from Westgate Street to the Sports Village.

Cardiff International Pool

Cardiff International Pool is located at the Sports Village. I finally got there a few minutes after 11:00. When I walked up the path to the entrance, there was a longish queue outside as the leisure pool wasn't due open until 11:00. Being as it was now after 11:00 they must have either been running a few minutes late, or it was taking several minutes to admit everyone waiting. Being my seventh visit to-date, the place was already familiar to me.

The leisure pool area has the following features:

Red flume

Starts by taking sliders around a bend to the left, into a clockwise spiral. This is followed by an anticlockwise
spiral, and you land in catch tray. Slow.

Orange flume

This begins with an anticlockwise spiral, followed by a clockwise u-bend, to land in a catch tray. Faster.

Yellow flume

Starts with a bend to the right, into an anticlockwise spiral, and finally a straight drop (fairly steep but not vertical), landing in catch tray. Faster still.

The above three flumes are closed tubes all the way down. They don't have names, unlike the flumes at Splashdown Poole.

Space Bowl (blue)

A short flume takes you round an anticlockwise loop into space bowl. After whirling around, you fall into a 2.5 metre deep landing pool, which you must swim out of as quickly as possible. For that reason you must be able to swim to be allowed on this.

Children's Play Structure

A multi-level play structure. This includes a short green water slide (closed tube), but that slide is for children only, just like the rest of the play structure.

Leisure Pool

This includes a river run.

There's no roller coaster water slide (as in the Master Blaster at certain other water parks I've visited), but then again, you can't have everything I suppose.

The slides were made by Aqua Leisure International, and commissioned in December 2007. Labels on the catch trays of the red, orange and yellow flumes show the following information:
Red flume: 850 Series Ride A
Orange flume: 850 Series Ride B
Yellow flume: 850 Series Ride C

Session Overview

Having changed I entered the leisure pool around 11:20 and headed straight for the water slides. Unfortunately the queues for the red, orange and yellow flumes, plus the space bowl were longer than I would have liked. Due to my desire to have as many goes on those as possible, I spent my entire time queuing for, and sliding them, and didn't go in the leisure pool or river run at all. Anyway I began by sliding the red flume, followed by the orange and yellow flumes once each. After that I wanted to go on the space bowl. Just like all my previous visits there, the lifeguard asked me if I can swim before my first go on the space bowl. I told the lifeguard I can swim, and had been on this particular space bowl on previous visits, as well as space bowls elsewhere, so I was allowed to go down it. During my remaining time in the pool area, I enjoyed sliding the red flume, orange flume, yellow flume and space bowl another six times over. I finally left the leisure pool around 15:30, and the building about 15 minutes after that.

Summary of my sliding in actual order:

Red flume, Orange flume, Yellow flume and Space bowl in sequence 7 times over.

Cumulative summary of slides:

Slide	Total
Red flume	7
Orange flume	7
Yellow flume	7
Space bowl	7
TOTAL	28

Mid Afternoon Snack

Having left Cardiff International Pool, I walked to nearby Morrisons, though due to the building work in the immediate vicinity of the new Ice Arena Wales it took me longer than I'd have liked to get there. Around 16:00 I finally reached Morrisons Café where I enjoyed a much needed pack of four Chicken Caesar sandwiches, which included a free packet of ready salted crisps. I also had a cup of coffee.

Remaining Time in Cardiff

Having left Morrisons, I caught the next bus to Cardiff city centre. Back in the city centre I went to Krispy Kreme in St David's Centre, where I enjoyed a lemon meringue doughnut plus a small Americano coffee. Afterwards I took the opportunity to walk around St David's Centre including some shops.

Journey Home

Just after 18:30 I got back to Cardiff Central station and annoyingly the 18:26 Portsmouth Harbour train had gone. I considered catching the 18:55 Taunton train in the hope of getting a connecting train at Bristol, but just before 19:00 it still hadn't left, so I eventually decided not to catch that after all. Instead I left the station and went for a walk around part of the city, including past the Castle. I returned to Cardiff Central around 19:15, caught the 19:26 train to Bath Spa, and reached Bath at 20:38.

Outro

Highlights

Sliding the red flume, orange flume, yellow flume and space bowl at Cardiff International Pool again.
Doughnut and coffee at Krispy Kreme, St David's Centre, Cardiff.

Lowlights

Slide queues longer than I would have liked throughout my visit.
Overall slide count lower than I'd have liked as a result of the long queues.

Summing Up

Altogether a great day out, my first time of going water sliding anywhere for 2016. It's a pity the queues for the water slides at Cardiff International Pool were longer than I'd have liked, and consequently I only achieved seven goes on each slide in just over four hours, but I enjoyed each of my goes very much. Apart from that I was appallingly ill-timed with catching trains on this occasion. Missing a train by just a few minutes can delay me considerably in reaching my destination.

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