Return to Oz

This weekend “Oz The Great and Powerful” will be taking movie goers on a trip back to the Land of Oz. A few years ago, I literally got the chance to do the same. 

Once upon a time, a long time ago, Beech Mountain, N.C., was more than a ski resort. It was home to The Land of Oz theme park where Dorothy, Scarecrow, Tin Man, the Lion and the Wicked Witch would mingle with guests as they cruised along a real yellow brick road through enchanted gardens and past landmarks from the movie. After 10 years of operation, it closed in 1980.

I actually visited the park as a kid, the Technicolor memories still burned in my brain. My friend Veronica recently framed my original map of the park, which proudly hangs inside the foyer of our home.

Thanks to realtor Cindy Keller, who oversees the property, there’s new life in Oz, and I was able to trot down the yellow brick road, this time with my wife and kids in tow. 

The park’s gardens have been restored and guests can now rent Dorothy’s house for nightly stays. The three-bedroom structure, modeled to look like the farmhouse in the 1939 film, is a cozy abode decorated with Oz memorabilia and wonderful attention to detail. In the den, a basket of artificial poppies sits next to antique furniture. 

A framed print of bluebirds hang on the wall. In Dorothy’s room, a portrait of Judy Garland as Dorothy welcomes guests. And a shelf full of Oz-related knickknacks -- character dolls, photos, snow globes and more -- set a whimsical tone.

Downstairs is a cellar where Keller will take guests of Dorothy’s house by appointment. With a flick of a switch, Keller turns on cyclone-style sound effects and green Christmas lights. Visitors stroll through the cellar and take a gander at its walls, which are decorated with black light paintings including the Wicked Witch soaring across the sky writing “Surrender Dorothy” in clouds of smoke. 

Once visitors have trekked through the cellar, it’s into the adjacent building, a topsy-turvy house made to look like Dorothy’s after the cyclone. Then it’s out the back door and onto the yellow brick road. The beautiful trail made of more than 40,000 yellow bricks offers a marvelous nature hike among trees with faces and other landmarks from the park. Both the lion’s den and the witch’s castle still stand, as do the gates of the Emerald City, all of which make fantastic photo ops. Keller will also take guests by appointment through a small Oz museum that features memorabilia from the park and the 1939 film including Wicked Witch Margaret Hamilton’s striped stockings.

Skiers who rent Dorothy’s house can have their lift tickets waiting for them on the kitchen table. They can then ski over to the top of the slopes with no need to drive down the mountain and park at Ski Beech. Once they’re done skiing, they can take the chair lift home.

Snowfall is nothing short of magical. But throw in a yellow brick road, and you know you’re not in Kansas any more.

For more information about staying at Dorothy’s house call: 828-387-2000, www.emeraldmtn.com.