Get Your Kicks at Route 66 Water Park

Southland drivers en route to Las Vegas can now beat the heat by pulling off Interstate 15 near Barstow and stopping at a new 270-acre water park with a ‘50s theme.

Lake Dolores, off the Harvard exit, has 18 water slides with names like the “Doo Wop Super Drop,” “Blueberry Hill Thrill” and “The Big Bopper,” which drops river rafters from a 12-story tower. Retro cars, oldies hits and Route 66-era billboards and cars set the retro tone. There’s also a play area for smaller children. Lake Dolores was the site of a more modest water park that opened in the 1960s and closed in 1989.

Admission is $17.95 for adults and for children 10 and up, $12.95 ages 3 to 9, free under 3. The park is open 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily through Sept. 13; then it will open weekends only. Information: (760) 257-1233.