Oaks Amusement Park

08/08/2007 Posted by davidbrody

I have been to a few amusement parks, not just the top brand names but the small little ones scattered all over the country. I spent a day at the park for a group event with the company I work for and it was a sad dissapointment. Three rides, all 3 of them which are suppose to be somewhat thrilly, were a let down and painfull. The last year or so, a lot of my friends called the roller coaster the neck and back pain coaster and I didn't believe them. Having done it now I can say, it is true and everybody at the event with me talked about how the coaster just hurt and not about it being fun. I don't recall anybody doing it twice. I woke up the next day sore. Sure the screaming eagle was fun and didn't hurt but one ride doesn't make a park. The only saving grace is the Lewis and Clark Great Adventure. It makes no sense at all, just a scary ride redone to be historical. But it is so awesome because it is so bad. Creepy in a David Lynch way and probably should be featured in some independent college films. Random, nonsensical, half broken, craziness which can't be expressed in words. After the ride you and your friends can spend 20 minutes asking why about everything in the ride, "Why the stobe light eagle?" Why the sexual bumping bear with crazy eyes? Why the indian lady with her back turned doing nothing and looking like a skeleton? Why the exit to the future with day glow drawings? It would have been good if they just said on a sign, "Oaks Park, just a little better than the traveling carnival which shows up over night at a parking lot at K-Mart with no warning. We don't have Carnies, we have some college and high school kids working here who are clean." And that was the nicest thing about the place, no 40 year old, drugged out, tattooed, scary, running the rides.

Pros: Nice outdoor setting, wooded and by a rive with the city in the background.

Cons: Bathrooms, food, rides, young adult fun.

06/11/2007 Posted by toddvania2

Ah, what can I say that's positive? Not much. This park used to be a wonderful place to go when I was younger, when they had decent rides like the Zipper, Roll-O-Plane, Haunted Castle, etc. The only 'thrill' rides of any substance they have there now are the Screamin' Eagle, Spider, and Rock-O-Plane. Everything else is basically for young children, and the whole place is designed for them, it seems. The once-spooky Haunted Castle (turned into the 'Haunted Mine' in 1981), has been transformend into some sort of Lewis & Clark adventure, if I remember right. Wow. Thirillsville. Urgent sarcasm at work there. Food? Very, very much overpriced. Of course it is...they're betting that you're not going to take time out of your ride bracelet (a concept that has taken over from buying tickets/ride tokens), that's good for 3 or 4 hours to leave and go to a restaurant or store and come back, right? For $5 or so, I got a cheeseburger that a gas station could have made better. The park itself is beautiful, and a brochure that boasts the park is located on 'the dramatic Wilamette River' isn't a faux pas. The views of the river are spectacular, the train ride really gets you this view. Although why they haven't rebuilt the charming tunnel the train used to go through is a mystery to me. The picnic grounds are fantastic, but don't try for them on weekends. The park likes to cater to company picnics those days, and getting a spot is next to impossible. Bring your own food, as stated above. The food in their snack bars is awful. The roller rink is one area that the current management has wisely decided to leave alone, it has managed to keep its nostalgia through several floods! The Wurlitzer organ is impressive to look at and hear, and there's a unique 'Wave' style floor at the back of the main floor, which is unequaled in look and feel in any other rink in the country. To sum it up, better rides & food needed. I can't believe this place doesn't have a Zipper.

Pros: Nice river views, picnic spots, roller rink, free admission (on regular business days).

Cons: Few stand-out rides, bad, expensive food, too crowded on weekends, bad parking arrangements.