Footloose Falls

Footloose Falls is the twentieth level in Donkey Kong Land III. This large waterfall, which connects the Upper and Lower Great Ape Lakes, draws its name from the friable rocks that can be found all over the place.

To reach the top of the cascade, Dixie Kong and Kiddy Kong have to keep on their toes, as the rocky platforms tend to crumble when they step on them. Near the beginning of the level, the Kongs encounter an Animal Barrel which, upon being broken, releases their friend, Ellie the Elephant. This young elephant encounters many of the dangerous foes, Buzzes, Sneeks, Bristles and Kobbles, though her strong, water-filled trunk can be used throughout the level to defeat them, making her part of the level much easier. A few Booster Barrels and Tracker Barrels can be found here as well, allowing Dixie and Kiddy to reach higher ledges. However, since the waterfall is tall and large, the Kongs often have to choose between multiple paths. Following the Banana arrows is the best way to avoid dead ends, but finding both Bonus Barrels may require some more exploration. To make things harder for the Kongs, Footloose Falls is infested with various enemies, including Buzzes, Bristles, Sneeks, Kobbles, Kopters, Re-Koils, Krumples and even a single Booty Bird.

Level Layout
The level begins with the monkeys heading down a pathway to find an Animal Barrel. This common barrel turns them into Ellie, who needs to run along the rest of the path, defeating a few Buzzes with her water-spraying trunk. After entering a Booster Barrel at the end of this path, the young elephant finds herself on a long platform. Running along the flat pathway, she meets several Sneeks and then jumps up a few ledge to find a higher area. In this area, she begins to travel east, passing a No Animal Sign. This turns her back into the Kongs, who make their way through the rest of the level, hopping along a few rock platforms to get into a Booster Barrel. This barrel carries them to the letter O and then onto a platform, where they find another Booster Barrel. The barrel pulls them a long distance up the falls, shooting them to a large area. There, they need to head west and climb around some platforms to find a Tracker Barrel. The barrel blasts them onto a rock, which they should quickly hop off of. Jumping along more rocks and moving west, the group soon makes their way to the Star Barrel.

About halfway through the level, the heroes travel along another long platform to find an abyss. They apes need to reach the platform above, but the only way to do so is by using some crumbling rock platforms. So, they need to use the platforms around the gap to find themselves in a higher area. Walking through this area, they pass under a few Kopters to find a Booster Barrel. It guides them to a long, flat platform, which they need to travel across to find a few more cloud platforms above them. Hopping along these falling platforms, they will make their way onto a small platform with an Auto Fire Barrel on it. Using the barrel, they are fired across a small gap. Landing on the other end of the gap, they need to cross a few more gaps and defeat a few enemies to find a Tracker Barrel. It helps them cross a small abyss. Farther on, the group travels past several foes to reach another area of rock platforms. The platforms help them reach a higher area, where they find another gap to cross with a long rock platform. Eventually, the apes find the letter G. After grabbing it, they need to use several more cloud platforms to reach a high area. In this area, they avoid a few Knockas and cross some gaps to find a flagpole. Touching the flagpole ends the level.

Bonus Levels

 * Shortly after the Star Barrel, the heroes find an arrow pointing to the right. Instead of following this arrow, the should travel west and hop over several small rock platforms. After hopping off of the final cloud platform, the apes make their way into a Bonus Barrel. It takes them to a Bonus Level where they need to ride up Booster Barrels and hop along rock platforms to reach small ledges with stars. Once all the stars are obtained, a Bonus Coin appears at the top of the stage.
 * Just from where the Koin is, the Kongs should find a short banana trail falling into a small gap. They need to make their way into this gap to be caught by a Bonus Barrel. It takes them to a Bonus Level where they have to ride up a Booster Barrel to land on some rock platforms. Before the platforms crunch apart, they need to hop into the next Booster Barrel, riding upwards near a platform with the Bonus Coin. If they manage to make it on the platform within twenty seconds, they are able to take the coin.

DK Coin

 * After the letter G, the heroes need to hop up a few rock platforms and cross another platform occupied by a few Bristles. Once they hop onto the following platform, they have to jump to some hidden rocks in the air. Jumping along them, the monkeys are lead to a Tracker Barrel that helps them cross a small abyss and takes them to the level's Koin and a steel keg. The Koin has the DK Coin, so the heroes need to defeat him to get it. This can be done by throwing the steel barrel into the nearest wall while standing on the Kremling's shield. While the enemy is distracted, the barrel bounces back and hits him. This knocks out the enemy, thus giving the Kongs the DK Coin.

Trivia

 * The name of the level could be a reference to the 1984 film Footloose.
 * Since the next level, Deep Reef Grief, takes place in the depths of the Lower Ape Lake, it can be surprising to notice that the Kongs actually have to reach the top of the waterfall in order to proceed further.