There Goes Santa Claus : Fantasy Forest in the San Bernardino Mountains will shut next year after 42 years due to high costs.

Nestled high in the San Bernardino Mountains among centuries-old Ponderosa pines, Fantasy Forest at Santa’s Village is a family attraction that puts the theme in theme park--a place to catch the holiday spirit any time of the year.

But after 42 years of delighting young and old, Santa and his reindeer are packing it up and moving back to the North Pole this spring as Santa’s Village closes shop for good. The high cost of operations has finally killed the struggling park, which once had 800,000 visitors annually, according to its rosy-cheeked owner, J. Putnam Henck. For many Southern Californians, the passing of this historic amusement park will end a holiday tradition.

Stepping inside Fantasy Forest at Santa’s Village is like stepping into a Candyland game. With the fancifully shaped log cabins and pastel-colored toadstools--and a staff in green elves’ caps--it seems as if you have stepped into a fairy tale.

Now as theme parks go, this one is a little rough around the edges. The paint is chipping here and there, and not a whole lot has been done in the way of technical innovations since it opened Memorial Day, 1955. But no one seems to mind much.

There is an antique Ferris wheel and a carousel, both of which are about as popular with the kids as with the parents who are madly taking their pictures.

“I’ve been coming here since I was a kid,” said Dee Brink, of Anaheim. “My daughter, Emily, who is 11 months old, is never going to get to see it, so we’re taking lots of videos. Everyone is disappointed they are closing.”

The bobsled is a small roller coaster in size, but it packs a punch. Hold on tight or you’ll be jostled more than you expect. On a recent trip, the ride operator made the mistake of sending the coaster around only twice instead of the appointed three times. After several adolescent boys protested, he good-naturedly sent the coaster around for a grand total of five times to make amends. That’s the kind of place Santa’s Village is--an amusement park with a human face.

Most of the remainder of the village’s 25 rides aren’t too intense, which makes them fine even for smaller kids. Most rides are also equipped so that parents and children can ride together.

The Magic Train ride is a trip down storybook lane with painted characters in scenes from Hansel and Gretel, Humpty Dumpty, Jack and Jill and more. Alice in Wonderland’s Mirror Maze is an indoor fun house full of dizzying mirrors and keyholes to climb through. With today’s cartoon heroes, one wonders if visiting children even recognize the literary characters. Nevertheless, they seem to enjoy the easygoing rides.

Some of the gift shops are about as much fun as the rides. The Mill Wheel House has reasonably priced Christmas decorations and ornaments; Santa’s Doll and Train House has stuffed animals and toys; and the Puppet Tree has marionettes and hand puppets for sale. And a gingerbread boy from the Good Witch’s Bakery is standard issue at Santa’s Village for every tiny hand.

Pony and burro rides and a Cinderella Pumpkin Coach wind their way through the surrounding forest, and there is a Bumble Bee monorail that buzzes by above much of the park. The lines for the rides and attractions are seldom long, with the exception of the one to visit Santa.

“I like Santa the best,” said Ashley Guyatt, 6, while in line. “We’ve been coming here since she was born,” said Cheryl Guyatt, of Rancho Cucamonga. “This is where Santa lives, and now he’s moving.”

The mood is somber among most visitors to Santa’s Village, and there’s a general feeling that an era is passing. “It’s been a holiday tradition of ours since we came here for the first time over 20 years ago,” said John Keisling, of Banning. “It’s relaxed and friendly, everybody gets along, and now we bring our grandson, Sheldon, who is 5.”

Some wonder aloud whether a little sprucing up here and there in the pine-filled theme park could have done any good.

“It’s kind of a neat place, but they could fix it up a bit,” said Darrin Delconte, of Rolling Hills.

“Everyone’s always wanted us to put in new things,” Henck, 79, says. “But that didn’t fit here, and that’s what people like about it.”

Santa’s Village opened six weeks before Disneyland, Henck will proudly tell you. The park had a steady stream of traffic in the form of day-tripping motorists on the Rim of the World Highway throughout the 1950s and ‘60s, but has been struggling ever since. The Henck family took over the amusement park in 1978, when the original group of investors went bankrupt.

“Keeping it up has always been tough,” Henck said. “My wife, Pamela, always did everything on the creative end.” Santa’s Village was a labor of love for the couple, and a mom-and-pop operation that last February lost its mom when Pamela Henck died after a long illness. People who work around the theme park will tell you that Henck and Santa’s Village haven’t been the same since.

But that doesn’t stop the crowds from coming. “We just keep hoping enough people will come that he will change his mind,” said Megan Gullickson of San Diego.

Not likely. “Half the people on the mountain have worked here, and we have such a loyal following, but unfortunately that’s not enough to pay the bills,” said Henck.

A group called Wildhaven has bought the 200 acres of forest land where Santa’s Village sits. By this time next year, children won’t be visiting Santa in Fantasy Forest but may instead come to see foxes, bobcats and other endangered wildlife in their new home among the pines. Wildhaven plans to open an animal rehabilitation center with educational tours.

Until this spring, however, Santa’s Village will remain the quiet little amusement park it’s always been. If you’re looking for a family outing this holiday season that offers laser light shows or colossal roller coasters, you won’t get it here. But what you will get is Santa Claus--every day, all day--and a reminder of a time when that was enough.

BE THERE

Fantasy Forest at Santa’s Village, Highway 18, two miles east of the Lake Arrowhead turnoff. Admission: ages 2 and under, free; ages 3 to 59, $12; seniors 60 and over, $8.50. Open daily through Jan. 4, except Christmas; weekends only through March 1. (909) 337-2481.