Today was such an eventful day! On top of what I'm about to tell you we did, we also drove in 3 states AND went to Calico Ghost Town! So awesome, though. So after Calico, we kept on truckin' and made our way to what I call Lake Dolores and Rock-A-Hoola. This is an abandoned water park that has been abandoned since 2004. It used to be so awesome when it was first abandoned, because it wasn't so destroyed and tagged up. It made me so sad walking through the park because I hate that people are so destructive. Anyway, I hope these pictures can give you insight on just how cool this water park used to be! I'll include a few original photos from when it was at its prime. For a quick history lesson on Rock-A-Hoola... The waterpark is located in Newberry Springs, just off the 15; in the Mohave Desert. In the '50's, a man named Bob Byers purchased the land and built a man-made lake, which he named Lake Dolores; after his wife. Within a decade, a small camp ground near the lake was opened to the public. The site evolved into a waterpark within the next 25 years. Many rides and attractions were added in order to lure in people traveling between Los Angeles and Las Vegas. In the late 1980's the park closed, due to a downturn in the popularity. Byer's sold the then deserted waterpark in 1990 to a business trio, who had plans to grow the park. In 1998 the park was renamed "Rock-A-Hoola" and was known for the constant playing of rock and roll music. In only three seasons of the park re-opening, the trio were already three million dollars in debt! In 2000, they filed for bankrupsy. The property was then returned to Dolores Byers (Bob Byers died in '96). A month before her death, Dolores sold the property, in 2001, to an investment group. The park was renamed "Discovery Park" and had $400,000 in renovations. After cutting back hours and only being open on weekends, the park closed in 2004. So, we found a huge piece of glass, propped it up on a wall in the "Locker Room", and took a selfie! Now, I want you to see a few old pictures of the park, when it was in its prime! And now for the jumpy pictures! Directions: I took the 15 toward Vegas, exited Harvard Road and turned left onto Harvard Road, crossed over the freeway and turned left onto Hacienda Road. Take that road all the way until you see the water park on your right. Arne's Royal Hawaiian MotelArne's Royal Hawaiian Motel opened in 1957 as a motel for people to stay in, when passing through a town called Baker. Baker is just off the interstate 15. The hotel had 43 rooms in multiple buildings, two-stories, a pool and a game room. According to reviews, this hotel was a 1-2 star motel and was in horrible staying conditions. The motel was abandoned in 2009. Despite how apparently disgusting this motel was, what remains is pretty cool. If you are familiar with Bates Motel, this motel definitely resembles it quite well. The hotel was known for having a tropical tiki theme throughout, with retro furniture. Address: 7940 West Baker Boulevard, Baker, CA 92309 What an eventful day it was!!!
Thanks for reading!! Until next time, Ciao
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Happy Earth Day! That picture is from Easter, on our stroll through Barnett. Yesterday, Jes had the day off and we wanted to do an all day adventure, before we met with my pastor; for coffee, at 6! We decided to venture to Julian and get pie. We didn't have much of a plan. We drove up and our first stop was in Santa Ysabel, at Dudley's Bakery. I grew up eating Dudley's bread and it always makes me feel warm inside when I go there. After a wonderful service at church, for Easter, these crosses really stood out to us both.. As this picture says, Dudley's was founded in 1963. Dudley Pratt was a middle aged expert baker who had previous bakeries and wanted to start one in Santa Ysabel. After receiving criticism on the bakery being "too far away" he soon had customers traveling from near and far to taste his delicious breads, fruit bars, and pastries. Every Summer, Mr. Dudley Pratt would close the store for two months, to travel to Europe and get inspiration. He would search long and far for delicious and unique breads, pastries, cafes and more to find the perfect flavors to adapt to his menu; to please his customers. Ten years after opening the bakery, Dudley Pratt passed away. The bakery still prides itself on doing things the Dudley way. Quality, taste, uniqueness and freshness is their hallmark. The bakery now produces thousands of loaves of bread a day, and provides deliciousness to many bakeries and grocers all over San Diego County. After visiting Dudley's, we trucked along and made our way to Julian. We took a few delightful pictures along the way. It really was a beautiful day! Our first stop, in Julian, was the Julian Jail. This used to be my favorite place to go and peek in to. Before, they had the door open and a gate, so people could peer in and imagine being a criminal back in 1914. They have since closed the door and blocked off the window. It's sad that others have to ruin it for people like us, who aren't planning on throwing our trash in there; but, simply enjoying history. We continued driving and saw a sign for Lake Cuyamaca. We both hadn't been in a long time, and decided to explore that area. I was amazed with how beautiful it is, once we started driving around to the other side of the lake. The sun glistening off the water, the clear blue skies and my best friend by my side..how could I feel any happier??! We both glanced into the water at the water toys we could rent, and we knew then what we were doing for the day! The winds were considered "strong", so we couldn't rent anything other than a motor boat. We were so excited, since neither of us had rented a motor boat before. With Jesse's military discount, it was only $25 for a half day! Not bad! We went into the restaurant next to the rental shop, bought a veggie sandwich and headed down to the dock. Say "hello" to our little blue boat! We both knew I didn't have a clue what I was doing, if I was captain; so, from then on, I referred to him as Captain Jesse. It was so lovely to just sit back, take pictures, and enjoy the beautiful day. Knowing at the beginning of the day we had no idea we would be doing this, made it even more fun! Being spontaneous and enjoying life, really is the way to live. We went around for a bit, docked the boat on an "island", and enjoyed our lunch. Please excuse my "candid" moments. I prefer to be behind the camera, not in front. ;) After eating, we started our hike, on the "island". And now for our jumpy pics! I apologize for mine being blurry. We returned the boat, and made it back to Julian in time for pie!! We ordered one slice of Dutch Apple with a scoop of cinnamon. We will definitely be back!! Picture of the day is of two huge frogs we saw while leaning over the edge of the wooden bridge. They were SO big. I think they were fake, but Jesse thinks they're real. Who knows... Thanks for reading! Until next time, Ciao
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AuthorA passionate lover of food, adventure, traveling, and enjoying life! Archives
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