J’s Amusement Park and Haunted House

Foggy Madness  :::::  From the overgrown Go Kart track.Foggy Madness ::::: From the overgrown Go Kart track.
Ghost Ride  :::::  A Tilt-A-Whirl car and flying ghost next to the wrecked Bumper Car trackGhost Ride ::::: A Tilt-A-Whirl car and flying ghost next to the wrecked Bumper Car track
Come play with us Danny . . . forever . . . and ever Come play with us Danny . . . forever . . . and ever
Wood Nymph Slumber Party  :::::  Lost in the woods between the amusement park and resort.Wood Nymph Slumber Party ::::: Lost in the woods between the amusement park and resort.
Bucket 2  :::::  The Scrambler ride.Bucket 2 ::::: The Scrambler ride.
Mad Mouse  :::::  Rusting and decaying roller coaster ride.Mad Mouse ::::: Rusting and decaying roller coaster ride.
Launch Mechanism  :::::  Launch Mechanism :::::
Unsafe and Any SpeedUnsafe and Any Speed
Mad Esses  :::::  Mouse's eye view of the rickety roller coaster.Mad Esses ::::: Mouse's eye view of the rickety roller coaster.
Hurtling Through the Cosmos  :::::  Hurtling Through the Cosmos :::::
You Meddling Kids  :::::  You Meddling Kids :::::
G10 Red-Eye  :::::  G10 Red-Eye :::::
Casket Showroom  :::::  Moldy casket in the rotting, walk-thru Haunted House.Casket Showroom ::::: Moldy casket in the rotting, walk-thru Haunted House.
Back in the Box  :::::  Back in the Box :::::
The Torture Never Stops  :::::  The filthy, stinky kitchen with it's weird, moldy mirrors, blood covered fridge and mop bucket.The Torture Never Stops ::::: The filthy, stinky kitchen with it's weird, moldy mirrors, blood covered fridge and mop bucket.
Toshiba Murder  :::::  The Haunted House.Toshiba Murder ::::: The Haunted House.
Rubber Rat  :::::  Hanging diorama inside the Haunted House.Rubber Rat ::::: Hanging diorama inside the Haunted House.
The Blue Gargoyle  :::::  The Blue Gargoyle :::::
Paper Trail  :::::  May be the scariest spot in the whole place.Paper Trail ::::: May be the scariest spot in the whole place.
Raceway Garages  :::::  Midnight in the storage yard of the Autopia-style go-kart track.Raceway Garages ::::: Midnight in the storage yard of the Autopia-style go-kart track.
J's Amusements  :::::  The main control station of the Autopia-style go cart track.J's Amusements ::::: The main control station of the Autopia-style go cart track.
Low Clearance  :::::  On the Go Kart track.Low Clearance ::::: On the Go Kart track.
Slip Sliding Away  :::::  In the woods nearby are some buildings from a long defunct resort.  They are slowly caving in as they slither down a steep hill.  Slip Sliding Away ::::: In the woods nearby are some buildings from a long defunct resort. They are slowly caving in as they slither down a steep hill.
Funhouse  :::::  Inside one of the collapsing bunkhouses.Funhouse ::::: Inside one of the collapsing bunkhouses.
The Mouse Trap  :::::  The Mouse Trap :::::
  • Foggy Madness  :::::  From the overgrown Go Kart track.
  • Ghost Ride  :::::  A Tilt-A-Whirl car and flying ghost next to the wrecked Bumper Car track
  • Come play with us Danny . . . forever . . . and ever
  • Wood Nymph Slumber Party  :::::  Lost in the woods between the amusement park and resort.
  • Bucket 2  :::::  The Scrambler ride.
  • Mad Mouse  :::::  Rusting and decaying roller coaster ride.
  • Launch Mechanism  :::::
  • Unsafe and Any Speed
  • Mad Esses  :::::  Mouse's eye view of the rickety roller coaster.
  • Hurtling Through the Cosmos  :::::
  • You Meddling Kids  :::::
  • G10 Red-Eye  :::::
  • Casket Showroom  :::::  Moldy casket in the rotting, walk-thru Haunted House.
  • Back in the Box  :::::
  • The Torture Never Stops  :::::  The filthy, stinky kitchen with it's weird, moldy mirrors, blood covered fridge and mop bucket.
  • Toshiba Murder  :::::  The Haunted House.
  • Rubber Rat  :::::  Hanging diorama inside the Haunted House.
  • The Blue Gargoyle  :::::
  • Paper Trail  :::::  May be the scariest spot in the whole place.
  • Raceway Garages  :::::  Midnight in the storage yard of the Autopia-style go-kart track.
  • J's Amusements  :::::  The main control station of the Autopia-style go cart track.
  • Low Clearance  :::::  On the Go Kart track.
  • Slip Sliding Away  :::::  In the woods nearby are some buildings from a long defunct resort.  They are slowly caving in as they slither down a steep hill.
  • Funhouse  :::::  Inside one of the collapsing bunkhouses.
  • The Mouse Trap  :::::

J’s Amusement Park was a small family run operation hidden away in the woods near Guernville California.  It originally opened in the 1960s and closed in 2003.  These images were shot in November 2008 and January 2009. The site was cleared in 2011 and, as of 2024, remains a vacant lot.

The Mad Mouse Roller Coaster dominates the site.  Getting close to it, you can see its rusty silver paint flaking off in big chunks and its oddly twisted ricketyness.  The whole thing looks ready to collapse with a sneeze.  In the center of the yard is a rusty old Scrambler ride, one of those spinning, County fair-style pot-metal puke-inducers that you can just picture flinging its parts and children’s bodies into the parking lot.  Nature has almost completely reclaimed the Disney Autopia-style go-kart track, disappearing into landscaping run amok.  There’s the rusting remnants of a Tilt-A-Whirl and bumper car ride too.

The most interesting structure on the site might be the rotting, walk-through haunted house called “Dr. Evil’s House of Horrors.”  Stinking of mildew and decay, the claustrophobic, pitch-dark spaces were difficult to work in, but it’s not very often you just find a real casket in an abandoned location.

Late in the night I wandered off on my own and got a little lost exploring the wet and foggy woods behind the amusement park.  The dense forest screened out most the full moon’s light, leaving the muddy trail dark and mysterious.  Deeper in, some buildings from a long defunct resort are slowly caving in as they slither down a steep hill.  The son of J’s founder, Mike, told me the resort was haunted (as he competitively threw hatchets with a friend into a block of wood from 20-feet, outside the haunted house, at midnight), but to me the entire place had an overwhelmingly haunted quality.  I felt like an extra in a Scooby Doo cartoon.

 

 

 

 

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