The long-forgotten adventure park was once ‘always busy’ and loved by thousands and Brits are recalling childhood memories from time spent there — now it’s completely unrecognisable.
Do you remember visiting this beloved attraction?(Image: Wikimedia Commons)
Some places are built to spark immeasurable joy and excitement within humans and it’s safe to say theme parks rank fairly high on that list. Many theme parks around the world have given individuals core memories they hold on to dearly, even decades later, with cherished visits to funfairs forming the building blocks of countless childhoods.
One such theme park existed in the UK, specifically in Cornwall, and people who visited the funfair in its heyday recall having some of the best moments of their lives there. It’s a pity then, that this beloved theme park now lies forgotten, completely unrecognisable in its current form, a mere shell of its former glory.
Dobwalls Adventure Park in Cornwall’s Liskeard was a family-run theme park established in the 1970s which brought incalculable joy to thousands.
Founded by John Southern, the funfair commenced operations in 1970 and held the title of being Cornwall’s top visitor attraction for years.
The theme park’s highlights were its two miniature railway locomotive networks, which were complemented by recreational grounds and large play areas, both indoors and outdoors, as well as an art gallery and stunning woodland walks.
John established himself as a pioneer in tourism after he transformed his modest pig farm into one of the South West’s most loved (and earliest established) attractions.
Dobwalls Adventure Park’s hallowed grounds saw locomotives chugging along its two-mile tracks for over 35 years, and the funfair quickly established itself as a school-favourite destination for days out.
With one admission ticket, visitors could enjoy the Krazee Kavern play barn, take unlimited rides on the locomotives in the park, step into the Rocky Ridge water and sand play area, have fun with Mr Blobby, wander through the locomotive shed, and take in the wonders of the Steam Back in Time exhibition.
The steam and diesel trains however, remained the funfair’s star attractions through the decades.
There was a choice of two tracks for visitors to indulge — the Rio Grande and the Union Pacific Railroad.
The Rio Grande line became operational in 1970 itself, and famously featured a four per cent or 1:25 gradient, earning it the title of the world’s steepest ascent on any passenger-carrying miniature railway.
Tunnels and steep climbs only added to its undeniable charm, with the line weaving in and out of a forest in a bid to recreate the Colorado railroads.
The Rio Grande’s success spread like wildfire, leading to the addition of the Pacific track in 1979, which closely resembled the Union Pacific Sherman Hill line in Wyoming, USA, and had a ruling gradient of 1.51 per cent (1:66).
Whisking into canyons and over bridges and trestles, the locomotive lines gave visitors the kind of thrill one could only dream of in those days.
The adventure park’s theme itself was modelled on successful American funfairs, complete with ‘cowboys and Indians’.
Unfortunately, the beloved theme park began to see a decline in numbers and popularity, facing stiff competition from newer, bigger and better funfairs that were coming up across the UK.
Older cherished attractions like the Go Kart track also became defunct and added to the park’s decline.
By the end of 2006, the theme park began closing down its railway lines, and by June 2007, it was announced that Dobwalls Adventure Park’s redevelopment projects had been stalled, and the funfair would not be reopening in its original form.
All of the adventure park’s locomotives were put up for sale, and by early 2008, eight of them had been sold to a man in Dorset and were to be run at Dorset’s Plowman’s Railroad near Ferndown.
The locomotives have since been exported all the way over to Australia, with some users on social media claiming to have seen them in the Land Down Under.
The 22-acre site upon which Dobwalls once sat proudly was put up for sale in 2012 with a guide price of £400,000 in a sealed bid auction.
Now, Charteroak runs a popular holiday cottages accommodation, Southern Halt, from the site where the adventure park once functioned.
Abandoned but never forgotten
Scores of Brits still remember their time at Dobwalls Adventure Park, with several social media users taking to Facebook to reminisce over the theme park’s glory days and recall the countless cherished memories they made at the famous South West funfair.
In a post on the public group 7 1/4″ Railways , one Facebook user recalled: “It was always busy when we went. I remember my 1st visit and all the steam locos were in steam.”
While another visitor emotionally shared: “Loved my visit there as a kid in the summer of 1982. Fascinating place to visit. Never had that many holidays in Cornwall.
“Intended to return around ten years later to try and take some photos of the trains in operation, but found that much of the routes had been built over, so never bothered in the end. Just watched the Big Boy depart from outside the fence!”
Another user wrote, “Was a fantastic place when I visited in the mid 1980’s,” while one fondly recalled, “Only managed one visit but enjoyed every minute.”
One visitor who hoped to take their grandkids to the funfair wrote: “We went there many times when holidaying in Devon and Cornwall. Bought the t-shirts and other memorabilia. I had hoped to take my grandchildren there, but sadly that’s now not to be.”
Some even shared seeing the beloved locomotives in Australia, with one individual writing, “Saw one of the big diesels at Diamond Valley Railroad near Melbourne about 10 years ago,” while another shared, “Quite a few of them are in Victoria Australia.”
One user fondly wrote, “This was a fantastic place spent a lot of time in Cornwall and visited a lot,” while another shared, “Went there every year for probably ten years when we were going to vacation to Cornwall.”
