Goodbye Yellow Brick Road: The eerie abandoned Land of Oz theme park hidden at top of a North Carolina mountain

• 1.Fire and death forced park to close ten years after it opened in 1970
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• 2. Park based on popular Wizard of Oz theme attracted 400,000 visitors in its first summer
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• 3. Tourists could explore Dorothy's farmhouse, meet the characters and depart in a special hot air balloon ride
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• 4. Vandals and thieves damaged Oz, as it lay forgotten on top of a mountain resor

At the top of a winding North Carolina mountain road is the entrance to Oz, a 1970s theme park abandoned less than 10 years after it opened. 

In its heyday the Land of Oz could attract 20,000 visitors a day, but now the neglected Yellow Brick Road is missing some bricks, the Wicked Witch of the West's castle is empty and the Emerald City has disappeared. 

In the same way the Wizard of Oz created the Emerald City to wow his subjects, entrepreneur Grover Robbins dreamed up the Beech Mountain theme park as a way of attracting families - and money - to the resort town.

Lost: The Yellow Brick Road weaves through the abandoned theme park, which has been the victim of fire and theft since closing

Eerie: Props can be found in the deserted houses and characters carved into trees when the park opened in 1970 appear ghoulish in the deserted park

Using local craftsmen and entertainers, Robbins and designer Jack Pentes built their grand interpretation of the popular 1939 film over 450 acres. 

The Yellow Brick Road wound its way through the park, leading tourists to a replica Emerald City. Dorothy's house, the castle of the Wicked Witch of the West and the Munchkin village were all faithfully recreated.

 

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The men behind the project even set up a balloon ride made out of a ski lift, so that visitors would get a winged-monkey's eye view of the park nestled in the mountains before they were whisked back to the real world.

The park opened on June 15, 1970 by Debbie Reynolds, accompanied by her then little-known daughter, Carrie Fisher. In its first summer 400,000 visitors came to the Land of Oz, according to Watauga Lake Magazine.

Sadly, however, Robbins never lived to see his masterpiece, dying at the age of 50 of bone cancer only six months before the park opened in 1970.

More tragedy was to beset the park, when a fire destroyed Emerald City and part of the museum collection, including dresses worn by Judy Garland in the movie. 

Visitor numbers started to dwindle and finally, ten years after its opening day brought in 20,000 visitors, the Land of Oz closed its gates. 

Keep out: The gates to Oz, which attracted 400,000 visitors in its first summer, closed ten years after the park started

Theatrical: Local entertainers would play the parts of characters in the beloved film, greeting families as they explored the mountain resort theme park

Abandoned and forgotten, the park became a target for vandals and thieves, who destroyed or stole props in the park, including entire houses.

The park was designed originally to walk tourists through the story, starting with the farmhouse, where Aunt Em could be found in the kitchen. As the sound effects of a tornado began, tourists would be ushered into to the storm shelter with one of several Dorothys who worked at the park. 

A door in the cellar would then open on to a tilted version of the farmhouse, to recreate the storm damage, and a pair of striped stockings and ruby red slippers of the Wicked Witch of the East, would greet the visitors as they left the house.

However, characters carved into the trees lining the now uneven Yellow Brick Road and stone characters scattered throughout the Munchkin village appear ghoulish in the abandoned park, and the witch's castle looms eerily in the mountain mist.

All hope is not lost for the Land of Oz though. In the 1990s project Emerald Mountain was started by a group of kind-hearted volunteers who, with a little bit of the Cowardly Lion's courage and the Scarecrow's brains, have slowly restored the park.

Popular: Judy Garland as Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz, released in 1939. One of her dresses and props from the film were in a museum at the park

Lost in time: The Land of Oz was once filled with families exploring the mountain park, but its exhibits, like the Munchkin village, right, are now eerily deserted 

Weeds have been cleared from the Yellow Brick Road, the fountain and waterfall have been repaired and, proving that there really is no place like home, Dorothy's house has been converted into a cosy cottage, which can be rented to holiday-makers. 

'Each summer we add something back to OZ. Sometimes it is original items returned to us from caring friends. One of my proudest moments was hauling back to OZ what I believe to be the very last balloon in existence,' Cynthia Keller, who helps look after the park, said.

Tourists are still welcome at the Land of Oz where they have the option of hiring a costume and going in search of the Emerald City. The park also holds a two-day festival each year, with a guided tour through the park, a picnic at the Kansas farmhouse and, for an additional $100, a whirlwind visit from Dorothy herself.

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