larrygator

Bushkill Park opened in 1902 and operated continuously through 2004 on the banks of Bushkill Creek. Throughout its first 100 years, Bushkill Park was flooded on numerous occasions by never to the degree caused by the fury of Hurricane Ivan. As the park was continuing to dig out from the severe 2004 damage, additional flooding occurred in 2005 only to be followed by Bushkill Creek breaching its banks again in 2006. After the successive years of flooding and vandalism, some structures fell into a state of instability. Some appendages had to be amputated and vital organs that had ceased to operate were sold off to cover overhead costs. The park was written off as dead. To many on the outside, Bushkill Park did not appear to be breathing, it did not have a pulse. However, the park was in a coma. Outside of the mainstream eye, clean-up efforts continued over the years trying to stay ahead of Mother Nature and Father Time. Bushkill Creek continued to spill over, but not to the degree of 2004-2006. Every so often word would come out about a small team still working hard to re-open Bushkill Park. Finally in January 2017, the Skating Rink opened to the public. It sounded like a good start, but the pictures from outsiders showing the inside of the rest of Bushkill Park for the first time in years didn't tell a great story. The park might be out of its coma but it was still on life support with a touch and go future. A small dedicated crew continued to chug along and on June 9th, 2017, Bushkill Park opened for one day to celebrate its 115th birthday party. 3,000 enthusiast friends and extended family were allowed to visit the patient for the first time in years and show their love for their old friend. The park now has one owner in Sammy Baurkot. Sammy has been a pillar of the business community for decades and he just wants the park open again and he wants it to occur regularly in 2019. He remembers the joy Bushkill Park brought to the community and himself. His community has gone too long without and he wants to fix it immediately. Now as sole owner he can better set timelines, control the budget and seek information from the most knowledgeable sources. His team is developing short term and long term goals with an eye on financial accountability. In talking with Sammy and others involved, the patient is ready to get out of ICU and rise up again. Baby steps at first, but the team is ready to make it happen. I witnessed Park historian Kelly Feathers sharing old pictures of the park with Sammy and his face lit up like a child. He was especially excited when seeing pictures of the old fun house facade which has had more makeovers and augmentations than any Hollywood personality. Kelly has spent an estimated 800 hours at the park volunteering since 2004. She is contracted by Arcadia Publishing to write a history of Bushkill Park. She knows practically everything about the park. Another key member of the team I met with was John Cory. John Cory is a long time employee at the park and while he did not give me an official title, he is a man of many skills, a jack of all trades. His main job moving forward is to get the mechanical rides operational. His main distraction is property maintenance that frequently takes him away from his goal. In discussing the work that went into making their kiddie ferris wheel and roller coaster operational, it is clear that he has the knowledge to accomplished his task with the rides. The newest member of the team and the one who alerted me of the happenings at Bushkill Park is a man I have been following for years, Chuck Burnham. His knowledge of dark rides and fun houses is unparalleled. His immense efforts at Wild Bill's were thwarted through no fault of his own, but now he has returned with a vengeance. His disappointment at his previous locale has only left him more focused and impassioned. He was recommended to the park by a knowledgeable State Inspector who knows what the park needs and what Chuck can do. Bushkill Park is "grandfathered" in for certain old school amusement tricks that might not be possible elsewhere in the US today and that has Chuck's brain spinning in motion. I don't want to overburden everyone with too much reading in one post, and I'll post more info shortly. All questions are welcome and I'll refer them to the park on future visits. The park does not currently have a communications team and does not want to over promise. So while I might ask every question, I might not be able to respond immediately. I am going to use this thread to keep everyone up to speed with updates from Bushkill Park. I'll also review some of the history of Bushkill Park when appropriate. The park, Chuck and I know there will be some haters and non-believers but please be respectful and here them out. The next installment will be dedicated to fun house and it will be photo heavy. This is certainly the heart of the park. The one major remaining structure from the parks hey day, that can be restored in its original building. An attraction that brings back memories for all who rode it. John Cory, Kelly Feathers, Sammy Baurkot, Chuck Burnham Hope to see you all here in 2019

With SEA struggling it is nice to see them allowing the passes to be valid even for those living outside of Texas. It they denied people it would cause them more bad PR since it is not explicitly stated on the website. It will be interesting to see if they allow out of state residents to continue to purchase the Texas Platinum pass at the discounted price (as they allowed 7-8 years ago) or if they change the verbiage on their website. As I mentioned in the SWO thread a few weeks ago, I inquired in August about buying a 2019 pass/membership and Guest Relations informed me the low price was online for in-state residents.

Ok Bert, your Google Fu skills are strong, as there are not even any online references of a "Hilarity Hall" being at Bushkill Park. I will be visiting Bushkill Park on Saturday morning to tour the work being done for the 2019 funhouse opening. Also, I'll be learning more about another classic that should be operating at the park in 2019. If anyone has any serious questions you want me to ask, please post them here or send me a PM.

An old friend sent me this picture tonight. It is an old historic building that he is renovating within an amusement park. I'm doing a little investigative research and will have more to report shortly. Apparently Hilarity Hall was a popular name used at many parks back in the day.

They're pretty great for everything except the safari, which is closed for the season. Bonus weekends almost feel like locals only/passholder exclusive days. The extra days in November are now BAFF or BAF for $9.99. I don't know if that was the case last year, but BAFF days special usually bring out the crowds.

I've been waiting for confirmation of their return. Best flat ride in the park.

I actually feel Conneaut Lake looks better off in comparison to what was shown in this report. It's not surprising that the park was so empty given how it looked. Nice to hear that Big Dipper is running as well as it is though, despite the lap bar issue. Being there the last two hours of the days probably affected the crowds. I've visited the park on 3 occasions over ten years during the middle of summer (last time being in 2017). While the park was never been packed the parking lot was never empty and there were always a few hundred people in the park. With at least half the people at the kiddie rides. Camden Park is never going to appeal to the out of town visitor. But if you look at PTRs from years ago you will notice they have improved overall. The only things in worse shape than my first visit are the Big Dipper and the bathrooms. The West Virginia Grill was redone a few years ago. It has strong air conditioning and the burgers were cheap, fresh and juicy last summer. It was probably near closing time at the time of the pictures. I remember on my first visit there was nothing working near the log flume outside of the Tilt-a-Whirl. The mini golf course was over run with weed and closed, the petting zoo did not exist and the sky ride was down and and there was a SBNO Sky Diver. They got all that fixed (except the SkyDiver) and replaced 4 old rides with newer ones: Flying Scooters, Slingshot, Camden Princess and Rattler). The Haunted House was repainted with props restored 7 years ago (it's a shame some props are no longer working properly again).

Unfortunately, rumors are that Tropical Storm will be removed over the winter, but the rumor also says that it will be replaced by another first Technical Park ride in a US park - Aerobat. Hopefully, we hear at IAAPA in less than a month

NICE! Thanks for posting the link.

Another small park is closing. The land has been sold to a landscaping company and the previous owners are expected to sell the parks assets over the next 12 months. https://www.star-telegram.com/news/local/community/dallas/article220218585.html This popular DFW amusement park is closing for good after 50 years By Stephen English senglish@star-telegram.com October 18, 2018 10:56 AM Sandy Lake Amusement Park, a popular Dallas-Fort Worth attraction for nearly 50 years and home of the annual FunFest music competition, announced yesterday that it is closing for good. The announcement, made on the park’s Facebook page, said that the owners have sold the property “after 48 successful years.” The post didn’t go into details about the sale, but owners said the park was bought by a nearby landscaping company, Southwest Wholesale Nursery, for an undisclosed sum. “We’ve had 48 successful years,” said former co-owner Frank Rush. “Things change. Nolan Ryan quit pitching baseball at one time. And we’re going out on top,” he said. He said he and the other owners were glad to sell to Southwest, which won’t bulldoze the land and build on it, like previous potential buyers had proposed. Rush, like the other co-owners, lives on the property and says Southwest is allowing them to continue living there for another year as they sell off rides, picnic tables and other property of the park. The former owners noted on Facebook that while the park’s history dates to the 1930s as a swimming attraction, it wasn’t until 1971 that Sandy Lake blossomed into a true amusement park featuring rides, miniature golf, an arcade, paddle boats and annual events. One such annual event was the FunFest competition for school bands. The park reported that more than 65,000 students were entertained at this year’s competition. “At this time I do not have any plans to continue Funfest,” another former co-owner, Suzy Self, said via email. “However, you never know what the future holds in store.” Self said it makes her smile to know so many kids had the experience of competing at FunFest, which she organized. “We felt like we gave thousands of students the opportunity to display their musical talents,” she said. “For years, I would wear my Sandy Lake hat into a restaurant and a waiter would tell me, ‘I was at that music thing,’” Rush said. The park, which operated seasonally and charged $2 for general admission until the day it closed, said it also hosted thousands of company picnics, reunions and birthday parties over the years, along with giving thousands of teenagers their first jobs. “If the park’s legacy is leaving most people with golden memories or pleasant thoughts, then the park has done its job,” the post reads.

In the US, yes? I believe there is still one at Bakken, but that may be it. Movie Park Germany has one too. https://www.movieparkgermany.de/en/in-the-park/attractions/pier-patrol-jet-ski Thanks, I forgot about that one. I know I have seen more I just can't remember where I saw them.

Thanks, I was going to swing by in August just to get pictures of the new ride signs (and Top Spin) but I was too tired to make the side trip from Kings Island.

Many people forget to zipper the pockets on their shorts. Not going to lie. I've done that once or twice and was thankful that nothing fell out. I only mention it because I've done it too and have ridden with many people who have gotten off a ride and realized the same.

Wait? Is this the "only positive comments allowed SeaWorld Sand Diego Discussion Thread"? Or is this the one where we're allowed to give our opinion that the park could've skipped this attraction and done a lot better? Because I think the park deserves better. Do you think Tidal Twister is a better addition than Submarine Quest? As others have said complaining is fine, but if I was a local I would be a lot happier with this and last year's Electric Eel than 2017's Submarine Quest.

I know you didn't doctor it, but I knew it couldn't be true having been at the park a week ago when the park had the same size crowds and Anaconda was 60-90 minutes it just didn't make sense. Anaconda still draws a line, people love their loop de loops.

In the US, yes? I believe there is still one at Bakken, but that may be it.

What's worse than waiting on line for 4 hours for Anaconda? Sitting at home commenting about it. I'm was pretty sure the 240 minutes was a mistake when I saw it posted by boldikus. I went to queue times when I saw his post (maybe an hour after he posted it) and the Anaconda wait was 45 minutes, while all the other wait times were about the same time. Due diligence people.

Many people forget to zipper the pockets on their shorts.

Good to know Boulder Dash is still running well at night. I really wish I had the time to make it up there as October is the only time entering the park is worth the admission price as you get Boulder Dash at night and Haunted Graveyard.

Well I'm glad the changed their policy, as it is a good way to spread money across the chain. Do you have to activate the pass in San Antonio and does it have to be done within a certain time frame?

Or a new ride somewhere else. These classic Heart Flip rides are great, awesome to look at and fun for the whole family. Also, super rare. Nothing like a restored classic [attachment=0]heart.jpg[/attachment][attachment=1]5718930311_e097cf42ac.jpg[/attachment] Speaking of new rides, I have a feeling we all have our long wish lists. Skyride, Schwarzkopf-esque looper or speed racer (classic trains for both, please), Large-scale train ride, whole park mini-train, family friendly haunted house, classic and large scale ferris wheel. Dreaming is free Watkins made some fun rides, but the aesthetics are very carny. Are these rides even made anyone, who owns the rights to the old Watkins rides? The manufacturer was at different times named Hi Lite Watkins Venture Rides. I tried to look up it online quickly but couldn't find the answer on the first two pages of my search.

Close your eyes and wear sunglasses, problem solved.

Based on those wait times, if I was forced to be at the park today for three hours, I think I might spend all 3 hours riding and re-riding Zumanjaro.

I know, myself and many others were shocked when Nick Universe at MOA added Spongebob.

I really don't know how much free space there will be as rent is going to be exorbitant. I hopefully, but not expecting it. If you have a clever design team, space will never be an issue. What will make or break the potential for expansion is how much leeway they give themselves in regard to the behind-the-scenes stuff - good spots for future structural foundations, an electrical system that can handle much more than they will be using when the park opens, and the like. I wouldn't disagree with you, but being in a enclosed area will make expansion much more difficult if the room for expansion is not already set aside. Leaving empty floor space in such a high rent mall will initially hurt margins and they need to take in money from the beginning.