It was clean, very clean. The park is almost completed shaded. As Gillette tells it, Wood the creator of StoryTown USA, the former theme park where The Great Escape now stands was protesting the sale of any items from the sale prior to a proper auction. This was very nastalgic for us because the rides here were bought from different parks over the years and brought to this one. WebStatues from Magic Forest in Lake George are up for sale. We were there 4 years ago. Explore the unknown as you traverse the Dino Nest and uncover the world sleeping beneath our feet as you excavate colossal dinosaurs in the Fossil Dig Site. Get expert advice, handpicked recommendations, and tips for your family all year round! It opened in 2019, and incorporates the Magic Forest, which opened in 1963, along with a new attraction entitled Dino Roar Valley. These are rides that we as children went on growing up and rides we brought our children to go on when they were little but at different amusement parks. The 38-foot-tall Uncle Sam has been returned to its original location in Danbury, Connecticut. WebMagic Forest Address: 1912 U.S. 9, Lake George, NY 12845, USA, United States Magic Forest Contact Number: +1-5186682448 Try the best online travel planner to plan your travel itinerary! In addition to Danbury Fair and Carson City, other items come from places like Lake Georges own Gaslight Village; Charles R. Woods Story Town; as well as amusement parks with names like Animal Land, Hoffmans Play Land and Land of Make Believe. Also guarding the minivans and SUVs is a large Santa Claus, reportedly the most popular statue on the property. Enjoy free WiFi, free parking, and a 24-hour front desk. Embark on a ride that will take you sky high or take the scenic route through the forest on our park train. I have no place to store it, he said. The only thing that I was disappointed in is the fact that the dinosaur are on a section that you have to walk done a steep section and up again therefore my sister and I couldn't go down. Fun for the kids and nostalgic for us babyboomers! Old, sad, dingy, dirty. The Magic Forest, a storybook amusement park located in Lake George, New York, looked abandoned for years before it officially closed. The former Magic Forest amusement park, located at the corner of Route 9 and Bloody Pond Road, has since shed the towering fiberglass giants that once loomed over its parking lot. Enjoy the Snowy Weekend in the Lake George Area! They were nice. Staff is great rides are safe & fun for any child or adult. WebMagic Forest (Gone) Lake George, New York The theme park reopened in 2019 with a new owner and a new name: Lake George Expedition Park. Although they eventually paid the ultimate price, maybe the lesson is that we should celebrate the parks existence and persistenceand not ignore the consequences of resolutely resisting change. For just $12,000, you can literally be the old lady who lived in a (20-foot-tall) shoeold lady and five fiberglass children included. When they heard about the sale they purchased that teddy bear and it meant the world to them, Baker says. Ellsworth plans to reopen the space as Lake George Expedition Park with all-new attractions, including dinosaurs. Receive emails and newsletters to keep in touch with I LOVE NY. On-route maps, 1,000s of photos, special research targets! WebMagic Forest Address: 1912 U.S. 9, Lake George, NY 12845, USA, United States Magic Forest Contact Number: +1-5186682448 Try the best online travel planner to plan your travel itinerary! Since putting those larger fiberglass statues up for sale in 2019, Gillette says hes been impressed over and over by the kindness and care of the interested buyers hes met along the way. Then there are the fairy tale worlds blessed with good fortune, as if every child who ever visited used up a secret wish on its behalf. Again the kids enjoyed itand that is the most important part. Putting prices on the items and getting them ready to go was a bit bittersweet for Gillette, but overall he says he would rather see the statues and decor go to people who can continue to get some enjoyment and use out of them. There were buttons to push to tell us their stories but the recordings didn't work so they sounded like Charlie Brown's teacher. The Spider Man is a creepy top-hatted arachnid, maybe not so scary in a world of chest-bursting aliens and zombies. The information in this post is a record of the parks previous incarnation. It opened in 2019, and incorporates the Magic Forest, which opened in 1963, along with a new attraction entitled Dino Roar Valley. Along the shaded trails, attractions feature fairy tale characters like Hansel and Gretel and Paul Bunyan. Statues from Magic Forest in Lake George are up for sale. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews. There is a area with several picnic table just outside a small snack bar. People normally club together Water Slide World and Lumberjack Pass Miniature Golf while planning their visit to Magic Forest. He was tasked with finding buyers for all of the pieces in the Magic Forests diverse collection. [2], The other part of the park is Dino Roar Valley, which opened in 2019 and featuring animatronic dinosaurs.[3]. 51. I am very grateful to the Magic Forest for essentially saving all this original fiberglass all these years, and also for calling us rather than an auction house who could care less about anything other than the money, says Baker. Before Chuck E. Cheese, video games, Six Flags, or Disney World, parks like the Magic Forest used to be the place to take your kids. In fact, we were in love with the idea that we could actually achieve time-travel for less than $30 per person. Hours and dates subject to change. More, Roadside Presidents app for iPhone, iPad. 7.1/10 Get in Touch Things to Know Before Visiting Magic Forest How popular is Magic Forest? In the 1950s, his uncle took that carnival to the Danbury Fair, where it played through the fairs final years. He kept my kids entertained the whole show and that is a true magic trick. Jimmy Brown the magician is fantastic and I love that they have Santa there. More, Roadside Presidents app for iPhone, iPad. Credits, Media/Business Inquiries I didnt want to go to six flags or another big park that would take the entire day waiting in lines. About 20 dioramas -- accompanied by audio at the push of a button -- bring to life the Three Little Pigs, Jack Sprat, Hansel & Gretel, assorted princesses and woodsmen Magic Forest opened in 1963, the brainchild of Arthur Gillette, who wisely built his fairyland along a major highway (Route 9) and just south of the town of Lake George, a magnet for summertime and weekend crowds from New York City. Mixed among the dioramas are giant statues of American icons, several of them reworked Muffler Men: Pecos Bill, Paul Bunyan, Smokey Bear, the Statue of Liberty, a big Indian, a couple of space-walking astronauts. Keep exploring with the Roadtrippers mobile apps. ClickSwipe through our gallery for a preview of everything there is to explore when you visit Magic Forest. Rex the Diving Horse leaped on cue into a pool for many years; now his son, Lightning, takes the plunge twice a day. ' Gilette remembers. The park is expected to be open May through October, with tickets going on sale in March. Still gives me creeps every night to look back on it. Dino Roar Valley is so fun its prehistoric! But the future doesnt have to be dark for analog attractions like the Magic Forest: I feel like disappearing Americana is not as much a problem as it was just 10 years ago, Baker says. As of this week, over 700 lots from Magic Forest were posted by Schenectady-based Collar City Auction & Realty Management, all put there by the parks former owner, Jack Gilette. The rides were antique pieces that were fascinating to me because it was like an amusement park museum. In the beginning, I was getting over 30 emails a day, he says. The former safari area will see the most changes. Luckily, anyone with the money and means to drive to Lake George can still own a piece of history. Modern amusement parks just cant compete with the thrill we got when we realizedperhaps too latethat our body weight was testing the load-bearing limits of one of five rides said to accommodate adults. Yes, it is small and management is aware it needs work. We put an ax in his hands and made him a woodsman.". Hes come to the buyers, too. Amazing! Hundreds of fiberglass figures strewn about the heavily-wooded park were faded by decades of sun and exposure to the elements, covered in spider webs and other forest detritus. The theme park reopened in 2019 with a new owner and a new name: Lake George Expedition Park. Explore the unknown as you traverse the Dino Nest and uncover the world sleeping beneath our feet as you excavate colossal dinosaurs in the Fossil Dig Site. WebMagic Forest (Gone) Lake George, New York The theme park reopened in 2019 with a new owner and a new name: Lake George Expedition Park. WebMagic Forest Route 9, Lake George, NY Best For: Infants 0-2 Little Kids 3-6 Big Kids 7-9 Tweens 10-12 Teens 13-17 Best suited for the very young, or anyone with a penchant for quirky roadside attractions, this small amusement park opened in That means the array of memories up for auction come from a variety of other fairs, carnivals and fun lands. RoadsideAmerica.comYour Online Guide to Offbeat Tourist Attractions. On-route maps, 1,000s of photos, special research targets! He comes to me and says, Now, what more do you want? And so Charlie Woods attitude helped me buy more stuff.. Plenty of parking. Jack Gillette, the longtime owner of Magic Forest, initially purchased Uncle Sam (and other pieces) at auction from the Danbury Fair decades ago when the fair closed its doors in 1981. These reviews are the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. June 27 - Sept. 5 But some of the once-over 700 sculptures that once called the park home are just now resurfacing. Most hotels are fully refundable. Today, many roar obliviously north on the interstate, but enough families exit to keep MF hopping, under the management of Arthur's successor, Jack Gillette, since 1988. 8.6 Fabulous 813 reviews Price from 102 per night Check availability Best Western of Lake George There is so much potential to this park. The Magic Forest felt like it was from a different time not only physically, but spiritually. Sometimes, Baker would get ten emails expressing interest in a single item before he could even list it as sold. Most of these giants had already stood at a handful of locations before coming here so it is not surprising they are on the move again.. My husband told me he was creeped out & felt like the statues were following is with their eyes. There are also a petting zoo, magic shows, and stunt shows with the last remaining diving horse, Lightning. The day we were there, a summer camp group was there and they had their own food item stored in coolers. 10am5pm | Sat & Sun Only A great park. The park's famous Santa Claus overlooks the parking lot. WebCompare 721 hotels close to Magic Forest Park with room rates, reviews, and availability. Model characters from fairy tales with the audio interpretation are a great initiative. Information 1912 US Route 9 Lake George, NY 12845 518-668-7627 Memorial Day - October Visit Website Posted in Family Fun, Group Attractions One, a giant clown, has to be the most remodeled MM in the world. And how the Magic Forest park will be incorporated into this new park? For other uses, see, "Dinosaurs coming to Lake George this summer", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Lake_George_Expedition_Park&oldid=1074053798, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 26 February 2022, at 04:51. Many recycled rides from other parks. There was this crazy little tiny squirrel that was literally the smallest figure I listed and everyone wanted that thing, he says. WebLake George (0.7 miles from Magic Forest) Situated off Interstate 87 and set in the heart of the Adirondack Park Preserve, this Holiday Inn Resort Lake George offers indoor and outdoor pools and an on-site restaurant and lounge. Almost all of the quirky attractions of Magic Forest described below -- including the diving horse, the gigantic Uncle Sam, and the Muffler Men -- have been removed. 3. enchanted forest water safari where the fun never stops is up in old forge, this place was near Lake George. Detailed Reviews: Reviews order informed by descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as cleanliness, atmosphere, general tips and location information. Baker is surprisingly sanguine as he watches the collection split up and scatter around the country. The park was somewhat enjoyable but I would not return because of the use of the animal in this manner, and it ruined our time at the park. Start here.Use RoadsideAmerica.com's Attraction Maps to plan your next road trip. Three of the four fiberglass giants were purchased by Atlantis Plumbing in Dallas, Georgia. The rides are very old school, and my kids. Copyright 1996-2023 Doug Kirby, Ken Smith, Mike Wilkins. All four of us had a really awesome day. $$ Photos See all photos Connect with Magic Forest on Facebook Log In or Create new account The theme park reopened in 2019 with a new owner and a new name: Lake George Expedition Park. We took our almost 3 year old and she loved it. Its also shady as it is indeed in a forest. The Dinosaur park is amazing!! The information in this post is a record of the parks previous incarnation. When the Fair went out of business, Jack Gillette bought him in April 1982 (along with dozens of other statues) and stood him in the Magic Forest parking lot. The new park will transport viewers to prehistoric times with animatronic dinosaurs, a Dino-Roar Valley, and more. Enjoy the 20 minute train ride to watch the life-size animal statues with kids. Hours Was wondering about parking at magic forest theme park (parking is free) and taking the trolley to great escape. Sometimes I wonder if we really saw Lightning, the last remaining diving horse in the country, take his famous (and some may say inhumane) dive twice the day we visited, or if it was all a mirage. He says to me, Do you know Charlie Woods? WebLake George Expedition Park is an amusement park located in Lake George, NY along Route 9. Ronald McDonald Vacation Home Coming to Lake George, Check Out Weekend Events With Barrel Fest & More in Lake George, Dont Miss Your Last Chance for Winter Carnival & Ice Bar Fun in Lake George, Winter Carnivals, Fireworks & Fun: See Whats Happening in Lake George This Weekend, Get Into a Valentines Day Mood in Lake George This Weekend, Bundle Up for All the Frozen Fun Going On Around Lake George This Weekend. You may have heard about a new, dinosaur-themed park coming to Lake George, but do you know whats happened to the iconic Uncle Sam statue? $$ - $$$ American Steakhouse Vegetarian Friendly, $$ - $$$ Italian Vegetarian Friendly Vegan Options, $$ - $$$ American Bar Vegetarian Friendly, $ American Diner Vegetarian Friendly, $ American Cafe Vegetarian Friendly, Points of Interest & Landmarks Civic Centres. enchanted forest water safari where the fun never stops is up in old forge, this place was near Lake George. Take your kids to the Magic Forest to let them have a perfect time in this retro themed amusement park filled with around 25 fun rides including the kiddie rides that are perfect for both the toddlers and the older kids. Actually, that helps to explain a lot about this place. A bit dirty, rides seem OLD and somewhat banged up, and the animals are not taken care of very well (they seem well fed but cages are dirty and small). Best Western of Lake George 2452 State Route 9N, Lake George, NY, 12845 $77 per night Mar 1 - Mar 2 Stay at this business-friendly hotel in Lake George. Its a good mix of things to do. Dino Roar Valley is so fun its prehistoric! WebMagic Forest 3.5 461 #10 of 27 things to do in Lake George Amusement & Theme Parks Closed now 10:00 AM - 6:00 PM Visit website Call Write a review About A family fun park, in the Adirondacks, that features 25 amusement rides, including the Safari Ride, plus live animal performances, magic shows and the ever-popular "Rex the Diving Horse." Rides are fun and seeing Santa was really great! Magic Forest probably has the longest running permanent "Diving Horse" show since Atlantic City's Steel Pier burned down. 51. We left & renamed it "bizzaro world". WebMagic Forest Route 9, Lake George, NY Best For: Infants 0-2 Little Kids 3-6 Big Kids 7-9 Tweens 10-12 Teens 13-17 Best suited for the very young, or anyone with a penchant for quirky roadside attractions, this small amusement park opened in Best Western of Lake George 2452 State Route 9N, Lake George, NY, 12845 $77 per night Mar 1 - Mar 2 Stay at this business-friendly hotel in Lake George. WebStatues from Magic Forest in Lake George are up for sale. Santa had been on the Atkins diet and looked as healthy as the animals. No computerized rides here! I was buying stuff and bringing it back up here and just putting it in my parking lot, wherever I could, Gillette recounted. The former Magic Forest amusement park, located at the corner of Route 9 and Bloody Pond Road, has since shed the towering fiberglass giants that once loomed over its parking lot. WebCompare 721 hotels close to Magic Forest Park with room rates, reviews, and availability. But in fact, hes actually returned home. Hes believed to be the largest Uncle Sam statue in the world. There are plenty of unnerving fairy tale statues along the wooded trails of Magic Forest -- an impressive collection of contorted bodies, asymmetrical faces, weird leers, and bulging eyes. Also guarding the minivans and SUVs is a large Santa Claus, reportedly the most popular statue on the property. I have no place to store it, he said. Anyone who wants to be one of Gillettes next buyers has a month to do it. WebLake George (0.7 miles from Magic Forest) Situated off Interstate 87 and set in the heart of the Adirondack Park Preserve, this Holiday Inn Resort Lake George offers indoor and outdoor pools and an on-site restaurant and lounge. The theme park reopened in 2019 with a new owner and a new name: Lake George Expedition Park. We did go early in the season. Rides were available for all ages and the Dino roar exhibits were entertaining as much as they were informative. After Ellsworth decided to take the park in a different direction, Gillette contacted Joel Baker, owner of the Muffler Man restoration company American Giants, to help facilitate the sale of all of those fiberglass figures. This was our first time. Close. I made, I dont know, about 20 or 30 trips, sometimes with a tractor-trailer. I didnt want to go to six flags or another big park that would take the entire day waiting in lines. Where else can you see Esso tigers and Sinclair Dinosaurs peacefully coexisting with pink flamingos and polar bears? 7.1/10 RoadsideAmerica.comYour Online Guide to Offbeat Tourist Attractions. Jack Collins is slated to be the General Manager and COO of the new park; he brings experience working as the General Manager of the Great Escape and has also consulted with Santas Workshop in Wilmington. WebMagic Forest 3.5 461 #10 of 27 things to do in Lake George Amusement & Theme Parks Closed now 10:00 AM - 6:00 PM Visit website Call Write a review About A family fun park, in the Adirondacks, that features 25 amusement rides, including the Safari Ride, plus live animal performances, magic shows and the ever-popular "Rex the Diving Horse." The stable and manger are not in use. It is now a running joke In our family that as a pumishment we will return to bizzaro world. Sign up for our newsletter & stay up to date. Gillette sold Magic Forest in Lake George in 2019 and retired. Magic Forests rides and layout will mostly remain the same, except for the removal of Uncle Sam and a few other fixtures, including animal statues; 23 of the 25 rides will remain in operation. Undeterred, we assured her that we were willing participants in the charade that the park was still a viable tourist destination. Maybe what we actually saw was the ghost of Rex, the parks original equine entertainer and Lightnings fatheror perhaps it was all an elaborate magic trick performed by the resident magician, Jimmy Brown (who also doubledor rather, tripledas the parks lone emcee and balloon animal artist). Then there are the fairy tale worlds blessed with good fortune, as if every child who ever visited used up a secret wish on its behalf. WebMagic Forest - Lake George Expedition Park FUN TO MAKE YOU SOAR Enter a world of nostalgia and wonder Magic Forest is the park of your childhood dreams! Theyve added Dino valley and are working on updates around magic forest. Ruben Ellsworth, owner of Ellsworth & Son Excavating in Fort Ann, purchased the Magic Forest amusement park from the Gillette family, who has operated the park for nearly 60 years. No portion of this document may be reproduced, copied or revised without written permission of the authors. WebLake George (0.7 miles from Magic Forest) Situated off Interstate 87 and set in the heart of the Adirondack Park Preserve, this Holiday Inn Resort Lake George offers indoor and outdoor pools and an on-site restaurant and lounge. Most hotels are fully refundable. Rex the Diving Horse leaped on cue into a pool for many years; now his son, Lightning, takes the plunge twice a day. There were no lines. WebLake George, New York. ", Hudson River Sightseeing Cruise from Albany, Central Troy Historic District Walking Food Tour, Albany Scavenger Hunt: Empire State Of Mind, 2 Hour Private Forest Immersion Retreat in Woodland Sanctuary, 3 Day Reiki Certification Retreat in Vermont, Lake George Regional Chamber of Commerce & CVB. Start here.Use RoadsideAmerica.com's Attraction Maps to plan your next road trip. Information 1912 US Route 9 Lake George, NY 12845 518-668-7627 Memorial Day - October Visit Website Posted in Family Fun, Group Attractions Visitors passing through the garish fairyland entrance building are inundated with choices, as paths curve away into clusters of statues, rides and brightly painted cottages. Our website found buyers who truly have a passion for saving these kinds of things.. The next button will take you to Roadpass to create a free Roadpass account and finish the process. However, not long after, Gillette got another chance; all thanks, unknowingly, to another local entertainer, whose name lives on in nearby Glens Falls. Staff throughout park are great with the kids and very friendly! The majority of the items have now sold and most of the well-known, larger items are gonelike the big animals and Muffler Menbut there are still plenty of items online for those that are interested.. 92% of travelers recommend this experience. Create and Save Your Own Crazy Road Trip! Having trouble using this site? We need your email address to send you trip itineraries and other updates. Unfortunately, for each figure whose origins are known, anothers backstory has been lost over time. This park is a cute stop and great for small kids without the meltdowns that come with large parks when theyre beyond exhausted. Almost all of the quirky attractions of Magic Forest described below -- including the diving horse, the gigantic Uncle Sam, and the Muffler Men -- have been removed. tourist attractions and odd sights in New York, World's Highest and Longest Pedestrian Bridge. We are located on the seasonal Greater Glens Falls Transit Trolley route. But its hard not to become despondent and dig in your heels when it feels as if the world you love is rapidly disappearing. Jack Gillette, the longtime owner of Magic Forest, initially purchased Uncle Sam (and other pieces) at auction from the Danbury Fair decades ago when the fair closed its doors in 1981. Jimmys magic show was the highlight of our visit. The pace has slowed, but each week he continues to get inquiries. But we bet this up close encounter will come back in someone's nightmares. Uncle Sam is 38 feet tall and formerly stood at the Danbury Fairgrounds in Connecticut. "His head is the way we got him. Fairies were missing fingers, buttons used to activate animatronics were broken, and, when I put a quarter into a prize machine, I received nothing in return. Train ride wasn't running which was disappointing. Magic Forest probably has the longest running permanent "Diving Horse" show since Atlantic City's Steel Pier burned down. UPDATE 06/2019: The Magic Forest has been taken over by new owners and is now known as the Lake George Expedition Park.
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