Dinosaur World
I photographed remains of the 65-acre 'Dinosaur World', once the largest dinosaur-related theme park in the world, located in the town of Beaver, Arkansas. The location is a scenic one, deep in the middle of the lush Ozark Mountains of Northwestern Arkansas (my home state), near the town of Beaver.
I was also glad to have my drone with me to capture an aerial perspective of such a kitschy scene in a very picturesque part of my the US state where I was born & raised.
It was a somewhat overcast early evening and I was the only person in the area. There was a bit of traffic on the mountain road that runs past the park area, but just a car every few minutes. Spider Creek, a fairly large and very beautiful creek, runs through the center of the park, with the majority of the dinosaurs located on the north side. There were once around 100 statues of various dinosaurs and other prehistoric creatures, as well as a few of fantasy, including King Kong (being tied down by cavemen, of course, to add to the overall confusion). I walked around for a while, trying my best to shoot images of all the dinosaurs, though I know I missed a few, trying to imagine what the park was like when in full operation. My brother remembers coming here as a child in the late 1970’s & said that it was a fun experience for young children, with dinosaurs (at the time) looking very lifelike to young eyes. The natural setting adds to the authenticity as a realistic habitat of the giant reptiles depicted in the interestingly crafted statues.
Dinosaur World opened in the late 1960's and closed for good in 2005, going through a series of name changes and attraction updates along the way. In total there were around a hundred dinosaurs, cavemen, and other prehistoric creatures, as well as a large King Kong statue being tied down by cavemen. A semi-famous actor who starred in a King Kong film in the 1970’s lent his name to the park for a spell so it seems that they implemented the giant gorilla into the attractions at some point. However, there is no It also hosted the largest Noah's Ark mural in the world, as well as a still-standing & very kitschy tyrannosaur which was featured in the film 'Elizabethtown' in 2005.
I’d prefer not to discuss how I gained access, however I will say that entry is very restricted, and that there are overseers nearby. As always, objective when visiting abandoned locations is only to photograph them as they are; I never damage property in any way, as I have a great respect for the history of locations that I visit, and want them to remain in tact long as possible.
Read MoreI was also glad to have my drone with me to capture an aerial perspective of such a kitschy scene in a very picturesque part of my the US state where I was born & raised.
It was a somewhat overcast early evening and I was the only person in the area. There was a bit of traffic on the mountain road that runs past the park area, but just a car every few minutes. Spider Creek, a fairly large and very beautiful creek, runs through the center of the park, with the majority of the dinosaurs located on the north side. There were once around 100 statues of various dinosaurs and other prehistoric creatures, as well as a few of fantasy, including King Kong (being tied down by cavemen, of course, to add to the overall confusion). I walked around for a while, trying my best to shoot images of all the dinosaurs, though I know I missed a few, trying to imagine what the park was like when in full operation. My brother remembers coming here as a child in the late 1970’s & said that it was a fun experience for young children, with dinosaurs (at the time) looking very lifelike to young eyes. The natural setting adds to the authenticity as a realistic habitat of the giant reptiles depicted in the interestingly crafted statues.
Dinosaur World opened in the late 1960's and closed for good in 2005, going through a series of name changes and attraction updates along the way. In total there were around a hundred dinosaurs, cavemen, and other prehistoric creatures, as well as a large King Kong statue being tied down by cavemen. A semi-famous actor who starred in a King Kong film in the 1970’s lent his name to the park for a spell so it seems that they implemented the giant gorilla into the attractions at some point. However, there is no It also hosted the largest Noah's Ark mural in the world, as well as a still-standing & very kitschy tyrannosaur which was featured in the film 'Elizabethtown' in 2005.
I’d prefer not to discuss how I gained access, however I will say that entry is very restricted, and that there are overseers nearby. As always, objective when visiting abandoned locations is only to photograph them as they are; I never damage property in any way, as I have a great respect for the history of locations that I visit, and want them to remain in tact long as possible.
At the abandoned 'Dinosaur World' amusement park near Eureka Springs, Arkansas, US
