Clara Lara FunPark is an outdoor

adventure An adventure is an exciting experience or undertaking that is typically bold, sometimes risky. Adventures may be activities with danger such as traveling, exploring, skydiving, mountain climbing, scuba diving, river rafting, or other extreme spo ...

and

water Water (chemical formula ) is an inorganic, transparent, tasteless, odorless, and nearly colorless chemical substance, which is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known living organisms (in which it acts as a ...

park in

County Wicklow County Wicklow ( ; ga, Contae Chill Mhantáin ) is a county in Ireland. The last of the traditional 32 counties, having been formed as late as 1606, it is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and the province of Leinster. It is bordered by t ...

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

History

The park was opened by Peter Morphew in 1983, under the name "Clara-Lara

Trout Trout are species of freshwater fish belonging to the genera '' Oncorhynchus'', ''Salmo'' and ''Salvelinus'', all of the subfamily Salmoninae of the family Salmonidae. The word ''trout'' is also used as part of the name of some non-salmoni ...

Farm and Funpark". It is located in the Vale of Clara; it takes its name from that and from the nearby village of Laragh. It only covered at that time. The founder said that he wanted "it to be as far removed from

Disneyland Disneyland is a amusement park, theme park in Anaheim, California. Opened in 1955, it was the first theme park opened by The Walt Disney Company and the only one designed and constructed under the direct supervision of Walt Disney. Disney in ...

as possible ��absolutely rural and as rustic, without any concrete at all." In 1995, a 14-year-old girl received a facial scar in an accident at Clara Lara; she was awarded

IR£ The pound (Irish: ) was the currency of the Republic of Ireland until 2002. Its ISO 4217 code was IEP, and the symbol was £ (or IR£ for distinction). The Irish pound was replaced by the euro on 1 January 1999. Euro currency did not begin cir ...

10,000 but never received it because the park had no

insurance Insurance is a means of protection from financial loss in which, in exchange for a fee, a party agrees to compensate another party in the event of a certain loss, damage, or injury. It is a form of risk management, primarily used to hedge ...

at the time. In 2003, the founder, Peter Morphew, was convicted of possession of

child pornography Child pornography (also called CP, child sexual abuse material, CSAM, child porn, or kiddie porn) is pornography that unlawfully exploits children for sexual stimulation. It may be produced with the direct involvement or sexual assault of a chi ...

as a result of the

Operation Amethyst Operation Amethyst was a Garda Síochána (police) operation targeting child pornography in the Republic of Ireland. Involving simultaneous searches on May 27, 2002 of over 100 individuals suspected of downloading child pornography, it was one of ...

investigation, and received a six-month sentence. He resigned as a director of Clara Lara Ltd as a result. In a 2006 review, ''

The Irish Times ''The Irish Times'' is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper and online digital publication. It launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Ruadhán Mac Cormaic. It is published every day except Sundays. ''The Irish Times'' is considered a newspaper ...

'' awarded Clara Lara four stars out of five, praising the water slide and rowboats, but pointing out the park's dependence on good weather.

Description

The park opens on weekends in May and every day in June–August. It occupies about on the west bank of the Avonmore River. Attractions include obstacle courses, zipline, kayaking, water slides, a "pirate ship," tree houses, "Tarzan" swings, rope bridges, rowing boats,

Amphicats The Amphicat is a six-wheel-drive, skid steer amphibious all-terrain vehicle invented in Spain by José Artés de Arcos, manufactured in the late 1960s through the early 1970s by Mobility Unlimited Inc. of Auburn Hills, Michigan. The product lin ...

, rafting, go-karts and crazy golf.

References

{{Reflist

External links

Official site
Amusement parks in Ireland Tourist attractions in the Republic of Ireland Tourist attractions in County Wicklow 1983 establishments in Ireland Water parks in Ireland