24 February 2024 , 15:59
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Walkers in Sheffield have been given an unexpected thrill after an Alton Towers log flume mysteriously washed up in a woodland.
Its appearance whole 37 miles from the visitor attraction has sparked amused and puzzled reactions from local people, with many left wondering how exactly it ended up beside the River Sheaf.
Photos from the scene near Dore and Totley railway station show the worse-for-wear plastic carriage sitting idly on the riverbank in front of a row of trees.
Responding on social media, one tickled local resident remarked "what a ride", while another said: "bet that’s a good pub story how it got there". Another person quipped: "I never got that option when going on the Log Flume at Alton Towers. A ride and a lift home all in one."
After the snaps garnered attention online, the owner of the log flume has now come forward - and it turns out it's not actually the theme park themselves.
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The owner of the plastic carriage has now come forward (Oli Constable/BBC)Local man Mick Foster said he had bought the piece of Alton Tower memorabilia for for £350 a while ago "after a few drinks", and had left sitting proudly sitting in his garden in Sheffield, which backs onto the river. That was until a flood in October saw the river lift the log flume and sweep it into action once again, eventually depositing it about half a mile downstream.
The Alton Towers log flume ride closed in 2015He said he had been sagely advised by a friend to tie it up with rope when river levels began to rise in heavy rain, but decided to take a more relaxed approach because the flume was "so heavy". He's now been left with the unenviable task of retrieving the log flume and taking it back home - and said he will be bringing in a group of arm wrestlers from Derbyshire to help him out once weather conditions improve.
He told BBC: "Luckily, I've got a good friend who's an ex-power lifter. He said his lads at the arm-wrestling club in Chesterfield, they're going to get together and give me a hand. We just need the weather to get better. I'll certainly tie it up this time."
Once a memorable feature of a day out at the Staffordshire theme park, the log flume ride at Alton Towers closed in 2015 after 34 years. It has since been replaced by the Wicker Man rollercoaster.