Lake Dolores Waterpark
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Lake Dolores Waterpark is an
abandoned Abandon, abandoned, or abandonment may refer to: Common uses * Abandonment (emotional), a subjective emotional state in which people feel undesired, left behind, insecure, or discarded * Abandonment (legal), a legal term regarding property ** Chi ...
waterpark A water park (or waterpark, water world) is an amusement park that features water play areas such as swimming pools, water slides, splash pads, water playgrounds, and lazy rivers, as well as areas for floating, bathing, swimming, and other baref ...
off
Interstate 15 Interstate 15 (I-15) is a major Interstate Highway System, Interstate Highway in the western United States, running through Southern California and the Intermountain West. I-15 begins near the Mexico–United States border, Mexican border i ...
in the
Mojave Desert The Mojave Desert ( ; mov, Hayikwiir Mat'aar; es, Desierto de Mojave) is a desert in the rain shadow of the Sierra Nevada mountains in the Southwestern United States. It is named for the indigenous Mojave people. It is located primarily in ...
in the community of
Newberry Springs, California Newberry Springs is an unincorporated community in the western Mojave Desert of Southern California, located at the foot of the Newberry Mountains in San Bernardino County, California, United States. Newberry Spring is a spring that in the 19t ...
, United States. The waterpark had operated under numerous names in the past, including Lake Dolores, Rock–A–Hoola Waterpark, and Discovery Waterpark.


History


Beginnings (1950s–90s)

The park was originally designed and built by local businessman Bob Byers for use by his extended family. Lake Dolores was named after Byers' wife. The initial phases of conception, planning and construction took place in the late 1950s and early 1960s. An expanse of arid land on the eastern edge of the Mojave Desert from
Interstate 15 Interstate 15 (I-15) is a major Interstate Highway System, Interstate Highway in the western United States, running through Southern California and the Intermountain West. I-15 begins near the Mexico–United States border, Mexican border i ...
was chosen for the project. The area contains underground springs fed by the Mojave Aquifer. Lake Dolores, the body of water, is a
man-made lake A reservoir (; from French ''réservoir'' ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam. Such a dam may be either artificial, built to store fresh water or it may be a natural formation. Reservoirs can be created in a number of ways, including control ...
fed by
underground spring A spring is a point of exit at which groundwater from an aquifer flows out on top of Earth's crust (pedosphere) and becomes surface water. It is a component of the hydrosphere. Springs have long been important for humans as a source of fresh w ...
s. In May 1962 a basic campground adjacent to the small lake was opened to the public. Enthusiasts of
motocross Motocross is a form of off-road motorcycle racing held on enclosed off-road circuits. The sport evolved from motorcycle trials competitions held in the United Kingdom. History Motocross first evolved in Britain from motorcycle trials competi ...
and people traveling on Interstate 15 between
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and
Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...
gave the campground some business. Over the next 25 years, rides and attractions were added, and the site evolved into a waterpark, which was advertised on television with the slogan "The Fun Spot of The Desert!" The park featured eight identical sixty–degree–angle steel waterslides mounted side by side on a man–made hill. Riders rode on small plastic "floaties" which skimmed across the lagoon when they hit the water at the slide's end. Nearby were two V–shaped waterslides, also roughly long, which were ridden standing up. The slides ended about above the water, shooting the standing rider out of the end like a
human cannonball The human cannonball act is a performance in which a person who acts as the "cannonball" is ejected from a specially designed cannon. The human cannonball lands on a horizontal net or inflated bag placed at the landing point, as predicted by phys ...
. On the "Zip–Cord" ride, riders hung from a hand–held device attached to a guide wire for approximately at a 30–degree downward angle. At the end of this wire the hand–grip would slam into a blocking mechanism and come to a stop about above the water, with the momentum thrusting the hanging rider forward into the lagoon. In the middle of a smaller adjacent lake were three high diving boards, and three trapeze-like swings hanging from an A–frame structure mounted on a high platform. Riders launched themselves from these swings into the lake. The park saw its peak attendance between the early 1970s and the mid-1980s. After a downturn in popularity in the late 1980s, the park closed.


Later development (1990–2004)


Rock–A–Hoola Waterpark

Byers sold the defunct park in August 1990 to Lake Dolores Group LLC, a three–member investment group led by
Oxnard, California Oxnard () is a city in Ventura County, California, United States. On California's South Coast, it is the most populous city in Ventura County and the 22nd-most-populous city in California. Incorporated in 1903, Oxnard lies approximately west ...
businessman Terry Christensen, who envisioned a more polished park with a 1950s theme. In 1995, the original water slides were removed and replaced with more modern fiberglass water slides built by WhiteWater West and were painted red, white and blue in reference to the United States flag. One of the slides was "The Big Bopper" advertised as the world's largest family raft ride, and promotion was contracted to Beachport Entertainment Corporation, and the park reopened under a new name, "Rock–A–Hoola", on July 4, 1998. The new park featured the constant playing of 1950s and 1960s
rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from Africa ...
music throughout the park along with some compatible graphics. In its "Rock–A–Hoola" incarnation, the park included a river ride on inflated tubes. An on–premises
RV park A recreational vehicle park (RV park) or caravan park is a place where people with recreational vehicles can stay overnight, or longer, in allotted spaces known as "sites" or "campsites". They are also referred to as campgrounds, though a true ...
had been planned but its opening was delayed. In its three seasons the park amassed three million dollars in debt, one of the three investors experienced financial problems, and an employee paralyzed in a 1999 accident was awarded $4.4 million in damages. That award was affirmed by the California Fourth District Court of Appeal in 2004. The park filed for
Chapter 11 bankruptcy Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code (Title 11 of the United States Code) permits reorganization under the bankruptcy laws of the United States. Such reorganization, known as Chapter 11 bankruptcy, is available to every business, whe ...
in February 2000. The court–appointed trustee failed to find a buyer, and in August 2000 the bankruptcy filing was changed to Chapter 7 liquidation. The bankruptcy judge overseeing the case returned the property to Dolores Byers (husband Bob Byers died in 1996) with most debts
discharged Discharge may refer to Expel or let go * Discharge, the act of firing a gun * Discharge, or termination of employment, the end of an employee's duration with an employer * Military discharge, the release of a member of the armed forces from serv ...
. Dolores Byers sold the property in September 2001 to S.L. Investment Group LLC of the
City of Industry, California City of Industry is a city in the San Gabriel Valley, in eastern Los Angeles County, California, United States. The city is almost entirely industrial, containing over 3,000 businesses employing 67,000 people, with only 264 residents as of th ...
. She died a month later.


Discovery Waterpark

After a $400,000 renovation the waterpark reopened in May 2002 under a new name: Discovery Waterpark. In 2002 and 2003, the park was open on weekends. During the last season of operation in the summer of 2004, the park operated intermittently. The park has been closed since the summer of 2004.


After final closing

Some of the park installations were sold off in 2009. The Big Bopper and Thunder Road water slides were sold and dismantled and shipped to Cultus Lake Water Park in British Columbia Canada, where they were painted light blue and renamed "Colossal Canyon" and "Zero-60" and installed. Repeatedly vandalized, the park fell into ruins. Much of the park was torn apart by people who salvaged metal and wires from the buildings. Urban explorers frequently visited the waterpark, ignoring the "no trespassing” signs.


Redevelopment proposals

In 2003, Olympic Gold Medalist and former professional football player
Ron Brown Ronald Harmon Brown (August 1, 1941 – April 3, 1996) was an American politician. He served as the United States Secretary of Commerce during the first term of President of the United States, President Bill Clinton. Prior to this he was chairm ...
and the Pro Players Network, a group of former and current professional athletes, formulated a proposal to purchase the park and turn it into a camp for disadvantaged youths, but this effort failed. The Oasis Themepark group announced a project in 2011 to renovate and reopen the park, but this effort failed. The park was purchased in 2013 by G&GF Enterprises, LLC. In 2019, the company sought approval from the
San Bernardino County San Bernardino County (), officially the County of San Bernardino, is a county located in the southern portion of the U.S. state of California, and is located within the Inland Empire area. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, the population was 2,181, ...
Board of Supervisors to redevelop the water park. The proposal was a five phase plan set for construction to begin in 2020, with an anticipated full park opening in 2026. Project approval was given in March 2020. The project fell through, however, and the property was listed for sale in 2021 for $11 million.


Other uses

The park was used in the 1998 film
Desert Blue ''Desert Blue'' is a 1998 American comedy-drama film written and directed by Morgan J. Freeman, starring Brendan Sexton III, Kate Hudson, Christina Ricci, Casey Affleck, Sara Gilbert and John Heard. Plot A rising Hollywood starlet become ...
, where a rising
Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood, ...
starlet becomes "
marooned Marooned may refer to: * Marooning, the intentional act of abandoning someone in an uninhabited area Film and television * ''Marooned'' (1933 film), a British drama film * ''Marooned'' (1969 film), an American science-fiction film * ''Marooned ...
" in a small
desert A desert is a barren area of landscape where little precipitation occurs and, consequently, living conditions are hostile for plant and animal life. The lack of vegetation exposes the unprotected surface of the ground to denudation. About on ...
town while on a roadtrip with her father. There, she gets to know the town's rather
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residents, including one whose
hobby A hobby is considered to be a regular activity that is done for enjoyment, typically during one's leisure time. Hobbies include collecting themed items and objects, engaging in creative and artistic pursuits, playing Sport, sports, or pursu ...
is
pipe bombs A pipe bomb is an improvised explosive device which uses a tightly sealed section of pipe filled with an explosive material. The containment provided by the pipe means that simple low explosives can be used to produce a relatively huge explo ...
and another who is trying to carry out his father's dream of building a
waterpark A water park (or waterpark, water world) is an amusement park that features water play areas such as swimming pools, water slides, splash pads, water playgrounds, and lazy rivers, as well as areas for floating, bathing, swimming, and other baref ...
in the desert. The park appeared in a March 2008 episode of the
reality show Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring unfamiliar people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 19 ...
''
Rob & Big ''Rob & Big'' is an American reality television series following the lives of professional skateboarder, actor, and producer Rob Dyrdek and his best friend and bodyguard Christopher "Big Black" Boykin. It premiered on November 4, 2006, and conc ...
'' on
MTV MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...
. Professional skateboarder
Rob Dyrdek Robert Stanley Dyrdek (born June 28, 1974) is an American entrepreneur, actor, producer, reality TV personality, and former professional skateboarder. He is best known for his roles in the MTV reality and variety shows ''Rob & Big'', ''Rob Dyrd ...
and friends used the waterpark and its slides to perform skateboard stunts for the show. In June 2012, another skate film ''Kilian Martin: Altered Route'' directed by
Brett Novak Brett Novak is an American filmmaker and director, best known for his short skateboard related films; particularly his collaborations with Spanish professional skateboarder Kilian Martin. Biography Early life Novak was born in the western Ch ...
and sponsored in part by
Mercedes-Benz Mercedes-Benz (), commonly referred to as Mercedes and sometimes as Benz, is a German luxury and commercial vehicle automotive brand established in 1926. Mercedes-Benz AG (a Mercedes-Benz Group subsidiary established in 2019) is headquartere ...
showed the park in its current state while reflecting on its past appearance.
TrustoCorp TrustoCorp is an artist or a group of artists based in New York City that produce humorous street signs and product labels, which can be found in New York City, San Francisco, San Diego, and Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, kno ...
, a group of artists from New York City, transformed the park in 2013 to a "TrustoLand" as an artistic statement, by repainting many signs and buildings with unusual images and messages. On May 27, 2013,
Boards of Canada Boards of Canada are a Scottish electronic music duo consisting of brothers Michael Sandison and Marcus Eoin, formed initially as a group in 1986 before becoming a duo in the 1990s.Hoffmann, Heiko.Pitchfork: Interviews: Boards of Canada (Septemb ...
publicly debuted their album
Tomorrow's Harvest ''Tomorrow's Harvest'' is the fourth studio album by Scottish electronic music duo Boards of Canada, released on 10 June 2013 by Warp. The duo began composing and recording the album following the release of ''The Campfire Headphase'' in 2005 and ...
by playing it first at Lake Dolores Waterpark. They had previously hinted that it would be played there by tweeting satellite images and uploading a video to
YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...
featuring a distorted advertisement for the park titled Look Sad Reel, an anagram of Lake Dolores. ''
Top Gear America ''Top Gear America'' is a motoring television series for BBC America hosted by William Fichtner, Tom Ford and Antron Brown. Based on the UK version, the new program was announced in April 2017. The eight-episode first season premiered on July 3 ...
'' used the water park in September 2014 as an obstacle course in Season 5 Episode 7 "What Can It Take". In November 2014, the water park was used as the site of an Operation Lion Claws airsoft event, 'War of Angels'. The park was a setting for a 2015
Mini Cooper Mini Cooper may refer to: *Cars of the original Mini series called the "Mini Cooper", made by the British Motor Corporation and its successors 1961–1971, and 1990–2000 *Cars of the Mini (marque), including a number of different models produced ...
television commercial featuring
Tony Hawk Anthony Frank Hawk (born May 12, 1968), nicknamed Birdman, is an American professional skateboarder, entrepreneur, and the owner of the skateboard company Birdhouse. A pioneer of modern vertical skateboarding, Hawk completed the first documen ...
. Lake Dolores appeared on an October 2016 episode of ''Abandoned'', which airs on
Viceland Viceland (stylized in all caps), and Vice TV in the United States, are brands used for television channels owned and programmed by Vice Media. Viceland launched on February 29, 2016, with two branded cable channels; the American version (rebra ...
network. In October 2018, the abandoned park was the victim of arson, and many of the remaining buildings, including the Lazy River Cafe and Arcade, were burned to the ground. After this, security officers were engaged to protect the property. In February 2020, the park appeared in the music video for American singer
Kesha Kesha Rose Sebert (; born March 1, 1987), formerly stylized as Ke$ha, is an American singer and songwriter. In 2005, at age 18, Kesha was signed to Kemosabe Records. Her first major success came in early 2009 after she was featured on America ...
's music video for her song "
High Road High Road or The High Road may refer to: Film and television * ''High Road'' (film), a 2012 comedy by Matt Walsh * The Lady of Scandal, a 1930 American pre-Code film, also known as The High Road * The High Road (1915 film), a lost silent film ...
". In April 2022, pop supergroup
BTS BTS (), also known as the Bangtan Boys, is a South Korean boy band formed in 2010 and debuting in 2013 under Big Hit Entertainment. The septet—consisting of members Jin, Suga, J-Hope, RM, Jimin, V, and Jungkook—co-writes and co-produ ...
filmed a mini concert called “Proof Live” on the old waterpark grounds. It aired on YouTube on the 9th anniversary of BTS’s debut, June 13, in celebration of the release of their new anthology album
Proof Proof most often refers to: * Proof (truth), argument or sufficient evidence for the truth of a proposition * Alcohol proof, a measure of an alcoholic drink's strength Proof may also refer to: Mathematics and formal logic * Formal proof, a con ...
. They performed 3 songs from “Proof” including “Born Singer”, “For Youth”, and their single “
Yet to Come (The Most Beautiful Moment) "Yet to Come (The Most Beautiful Moment)" is a song by South Korean boy band BTS, released on June 10, 2022, through Big Hit Music and Universal Music Group, as the lead single from their first anthology album '' Proof''. It is the band's first o ...
”, which featured surprise guest
Anderson .Paak Brandon Paak Anderson (born February 8, 1986), better known by his stage name Anderson .Paak (), is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, and drummer. He released his debut mixtape, ''O.B.E. Vol. 1,'' in 2012 and went on to rel ...
on the drums.


See also

*
List of water parks The following is a list of notable water parks in the world sorted by region. A water park or waterpark is an amusement park that features water play areas, such as water slides, splash pads, spraygrounds (water playgrounds), lazy rivers, wave ...


References


External links


Text links


Rock-A-Hoola Waterpark at Modern Day Ruins

Rock-A-Hoola Waterpark at Lost America

a history of Rock-A-Hoola Waterpark at Raise The Stakes Editions


Photo links


Photos of trapeze strings and stand-up slides in action, at Flickr

2009 photos of defunct installations, at Flickr

Satellite Photo of Rock-A-Hoola / Lake Dolores Waterpark
on
Google Maps Google Maps is a web mapping platform and consumer application offered by Google. It offers satellite imagery, aerial photography, street maps, 360° interactive panoramic views of streets ( Street View), real-time traffic conditions, and rou ...
{{Defunct Amusement Parks in California 1962 establishments in California 2004 disestablishments in California Defunct amusement parks in California Water parks in California Companies that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2000 Buildings and structures in San Bernardino County, California History of San Bernardino County, California Companies that have filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy Amusement parks opened in 1962 Amusement parks closed in 2004