Huge Abandoned Resort in the Desert | $100 Million Lost | Destination Adventure 

I worked there for 12+ yrs from the late 90's to the early 2010's. The memories came back flooding from you walking the property. I owe the path of my career to that resort. It's a travesty that Kah-Nee-Ta shut down, and it's sad to see it just rotting away. You can still see that it has the potential to be somewhat of what it used to be. Hopefully she gets the TLC she deserves and that was not given to her for so long 🤞🏽

Enrolled member of the Warm Springs Reservation. Always will love my home regardless of the struggle we continue to go through

Dude. That interview with Grandpa was so epic. Love his outlook and positive outlook

Oh my goodness Dustin, your interview with Grandpa was like looking at a time capsule. Some words of wisdom were definitely shared. Between the smiles and cadence of speech; it's like looking at twins visiting at different time periods. Precious. ❤ Thank you for sharing your life Give grandpa a hug from your fans here in RU-vid land.

Ah man, your grandad is a treasure of a human being ! What a wise kind soul!!!

I’m so excited it’s opening up again this year, watching this video after it closed gave me a big nostalgia vibe, swimming in the hotel pool, then shuttle to the warm springs and back and fourth. The good ol days!

Watching this video made me miss working there. I can’t believe it’s been 10 years from when I first start back in 2011 😳 fun fact the hot springs was only accessible to the tribal members, also another fun fact the golf shop you mention was actually the entrance to the pool and it had golf balls for the miniature golf course we had and the golf course was down the road from there like you were going up to the lodge but a bit further down, and there was also a tennis court the way as well 😊

This grandfather is so proud of his grandson. You can see he is so touched that Dustin is doing so well and that he has passed down all the good things to another generation. I can tell in his voice and holding back tears of pride this guy is good people.

Awww, your grandpa is super cute and very wise..🤗

Your grandpa is the best! His meaning of success is hands down the best! Oh to spend a day with that man!

We need more people like your grandfather in the world. Good thing he trained you properly.

That intro made me cry, what a lovely man your gramps is. Just lost my pap, he was 101! I hope you get to have him for many years to come.

The interview with your grandfather is the best. Such a wise man. So great that he inspired such an adventurous spirit and you are now spreading that inspiration to us your audience. Also embrace the grey it looks good!

Almost forgot about your grandpa , what a great guy with words of wisdom, I wish more people had such a great outlook on life . It all makes sense to me .

Dude. That interview in the beginning made me miss my Grandpa so much but it flooded in a bunch of happy thoughts of him. I cried but it was a good cry. Thank you.

I wish you could have seen it open. I am a member of the Warm Springs tribe and for many of us that was home. I held 3 different jobs there and was part of the closing team. It broke our hearts that we had to close.

I absolutely love your channel. I enjoy your sense of humor. But seeing this with you and your grandpa put the icing on the cake. Thank You for being you and doing what you do. I deal with deep depression but watching you is one of the few things i can do to help me feel better. Thank You!!

Your Grandfather is wonderful, also I like the gray in your beard. That place is amazing. Thank you for sharing the exploration, as always.

I lnow this was 2 years ago...I spent a lot of my teenage years here. I honestly didn't know it was closed..you grow up and movebon with life...but Iloved coming here as a kid. Wow. Totally took me back..while making me sad too. Thanks kiddo. ❤

I love the relationship that you have with your grandpa.

0:32 "oh, i don't know whether i can handle can handle serious questions." i love him already!.....addendum..So profound in his simplicity.

Used to go their for Christmas, rent a room, spend a couple days reading in front of the fire place in the lobby and enjoy an amazing dinner

The golf shop you came across was for the mini golf course located at the waterpark. The actual golf course is about a mile east of that location, directly below the resort.

loved your grandpa. Reminded mine :) Thank you Brother !!

I just love your dear grandfather! He is very wise! 💗

I'm a grandpa myself and and that interview had me teard up! You are a lucky grandson for sure! As far as Oregon goes there's a tremendous amount to see in this great state!

This place is deeply important to me and my family. So many powerful memories and stories are tied to it for me and I was thoroughly devastated when it shuttered. My father who I had spent many weekend trips going here with to visit passed away a year or so before it closed. I remember the somber last visit I made, it was deep in fire season, smoke so thick it blotted the sun and made the whole sky red. Ever since all I could think about was what would become of this building. Something so important to a community, the people who would visit, and also just the amazing architecture. I'm glad to see at least when you filmed this it seems to be holding on as well as it can, and that people are respectful of it. My hope is that at least minor care is being taken to protect the buildings structure. The beauty of the lobby sticks with me, and I often feel it gets overlooked in terms of some of the most beautiful of its kind, a miniature timberline lodge I'd call it. Its also super unique as almost a cozy brutalism vibe. I had been meaning to make this trip myself but just hadn't found the time to do it, so I thank you for doing it for me. They're currently fixing the water park/hot spring and lower lodge. But my main hope is that they will eventually do the same for the upper lodge, or at least continue to maintain and preserve it.

Love the videos. I was born Edmonton and grew up in the Yukon. Living in Whitehorse since I was 2 yrs old, my father was a trucker hauling everything and we frequently visited Alaska and surrounding gold mines, top of the world highway. To lower bc Vancouver. That ring you wear blue sapphire with the two diamonds. I have my fathers rings and he had the same one. My father was born in Vancouver, and did the oilfields of Alberta. That crashed in the early 80s and me being born in 78. The life journey I took resembling a lot of what your doing. I now reside in Alberta as I follow the same steps my father did. Love the channel and want to do an adventure channel myself, wife and 3 kids via big rig motor home since I’m a truck lover. I’ve been truck vlogging for almost 4 years

Wow, so sad to see this video. My parents bought their first travel trailer around 1998 and we stayed there in the RV park close to the river that first time. After that, we went for a week just about every summer, which included my 30th and 40th birthdays. I always looked forward to my week there...being able to cook our own food in our RV spot in the trailer and also spending the day at the pool. The scenery driving into Kah-nee-ta was spectacular as well. We always tried to get spots 23 and 25 in the RV park, which were the best. I loved that village pool...the blue slide was there first, and then eventually they added the green slide, which was longer and faster. The village area dates back to the 60's, including the teepees. The February floods of 1996 totally wiped out that area, but they rebuilt the area bigger and better than it was before. There was/is a time capsule buried by the entrance of the spa building, with an eagle sculpture on top. The lodge area at the top of the hill was more expensive, but more of a hotel, and then they had the casino in there, and also a nice restaurant. At some point, the tribe decided that casino in the lodge was too isolated, so they closed that, and opened one closer to Madras, OR, with bigger plans to have one in the Gorge. But, over time, we began seeing the start of the decay due to very poor financial and operational management, around 2010 I'd say. The critical infrastructure wasn't being maintained as it should have been, and gradually became more of an ongoing maintenance issue each time we were there, particularly the RV hookups in the spots closest to the river. Eventually the hot tub area by the kid pool began to fail, and the cleanliness around it was bad. It was $10/day for the day-trippers to enter the village pool, but more and more, the workers at the desk (where the golf balls were shown) just looked the other way most of the time. Like they didn't care at all. When we first started going, the weekly rate was around $25, and eventually became close to $60/week! The value for that much higher price wasn't worth it at all, and fewer and fewer people (including us) decided to go elsewhere. I think 2015 was the last time my parents and I stayed there. The pandemic likely would have wiped them out, agreed, but the operation was too far gone several years prior to that. I'd love to see it restored to what it was, but as someone pointed out, the cost to do so at this point would be prohibitive, and unless it could be owned and operated completely outside of the tribe (which I doubt) I'm afraid Kah-nee-ta is a relic of Oregon's past.

Very cool interview with your Grandpa!

I used to go there every summer for family reunions growing up. This brought tears to my eyes. Absolutely miss this place more than anything.

Your grandpa is so charming! Such a lovely man!

Yes, I was at Kah-Nee-Ta with my parents in the early/mid-60s. Only in its infancy without all the high rise buildings around the swimming pool and a single office (much like us visiting Disneyland in 1959 and they barely had the submarine and Frontierland going and a few other features). Indian reservation (funded by the FEDS), initially a camping, camper, mobile home parking resort, ... later into this super hotel, swimming pool, and hanging out in the sun. Always wondered about it - googled it - and it was gone. Same old phrase - location, location, location. And as always, it was federally funded for all of these 60 years - until the funds were pulled - and it collapsed. It was also out in the eastern highland Oregon dry and brown desert scrub brush - that doesn't appeal to us coastal lowland Pacific Northwesterners blue water and green tree people.

I never knew my Grandpa he died when I was little and my so call sperm donor never had anything to do with us. Having a Father like your Grand pa would of made this man very happy.You are not only lucky but you are very blessed ! You just dont meet people like that anymore

My parents and their friends took our families there decades ago. It was one of our favorite destinations despite the long drive. So sad it's been abandoned. I have hopes it will be revived, in one form or other.

Every single one of your videos are beautiful and so special in their own way ❤

That definition of success is a keeper. Like that was a great way to define it.

I worked at Kah Nee Ta. Up until about 3 months before they closed. My wife worked until they closed. I was a janitor and she was a room inspector. Wild horses isn't the only wild animals out there.

Kah-nee-ta was a great place! My biggest regret is not taking the time to rent a tepee. I rockhound that region often and it is so beautiful. I bail out of Portland and head over that way regularly. The interview with your Grandpa was so good!! That is so you in 50 years lol. He is a very wise man and I get older I am figuring out what he has. Peace and love

Your grampa is a great guy, you have the same mannerisms. Brought tears to my eyes watching you both. Wish I would have known mine.

Oh my goodness what an amazing man your grandfather is ... amazing words of wisdom 💓 I am definitely sending all the biggest hugs from all of us to all of you .thank you very much Dustin for your amazing stories and adventures As always see you on the next adventure ☺️ safe travels

I have been there since I was 6 years old, and I had the best memories with cousins. I have been there more then 6 times and it’s sad to see what it’s has become. I’m 18 now. I have a photo gallery book and this place has a lot of them 😢

oh geez , you are blessed and perhaps all whom have seen this .Thank you both and hug the world .

Your Grandpa is amazing! He reminds me of my Grandpa. I lost him in 1990 and I was 18. Thank you for sharing him with the world! ☺️

Dustin, I love the upside down globe in intro. Your adventures are seriously interesting and what I call neat adventuring and quality entertainment. Grandpa is a perfect travel partner and guide.

Your grandpa.. what a guy. Gotta love him..

Ugh I wish I even one of my grandparents lived long enough so I could interview them like this. Unfortunately they were all gone by the time I turned 9 or so. I never got a chance to spend time with them or ask them questions which 30-year-old me now has. I'm envious of anyone who still has their grandparents around...please spend time with them on my behalf and cherish those memories. You are truly lucky to be able to have that time. Take it from someone who never got the chance.

Ok I love your grandfather. I knew after his first answer that he was an awesome person. Perfect sense of humor. I missed out on grandparents. They were gone before I was born. Thanks for sharing.

That interview should be shown on every screen in the world. So uplifting I was smiling the whole time. You're lucky to have such inspirational family man!

Grandpa gave me goosebumps. What a wonderful man. Thanks D. 😊

I just realized something whilst watching your interview with your grandfather. Even though you can't physically find new undiscovered places, you can still find new undiscovered places you've already been to with the people you love, as those people are the ones that help you discover your true self when you're there with them and can change everything.

I really enjoyed the interview with your grandpa, and thank you so much for sharing with us. Enjoy every minute you can with your grandparents! Mine are long gone, and I'd love to be able to sit down for a chat with them again.

Your grandpa is adorable! I would agree with him about getting a hug everyday forever that would be so great! Such a cool adventure today too! Love your videos ❤

Aww. ...I love your gran dad ..he's awesome ..a beautiful man ..

Your Grandad is truly amazing and I love his attitude to life

Happiness in your heart is the key to success. Love it. I have always said that and it is good to see someone in their 70s say the same. I’m 33 with no real career, no family, no kids, and I am about to live in a van… lol To some that might sound unsuccessful, but I personally love my life the way it is! I am very happy and enjoy making others happy too. That is most important than anything in my opinion.

Thank you for doing this the Warm SPRINGS PEOPLE need all the help they can get. This resort closed because of bad management not the tribe but the person they contracted to do run the resort. Such a wonderful place, been going there since I was a small child and so miss it.

I had my first swimming lessons at Kah-nee-ta back in the early 70s. The town I lived in bussed the grade school kids in for lessons for a week every year and I remember wanting to stay in one of the concrete teepees, but never did. The locals desperately need this resort to come back to life, but the safe drinking water issue has to be dealt with first.

Your grandfather ora is so warm and bright. You and your family are blessed to have him in your life. His definition of success was spot on. Thank you so much for sharing him with the world.

Thank you for sharing your conversation with your grandfather with us. I miss mine. They both died when I was when I was a young girl. I am now 67 and stillmiss them. I don't have to tell you to cherish your time with him, it's evident just how much you love him by the way you talk about him. I found your page yesterday and spent about 12 hours traveling with you. God bless and protect you on your travels! Blessings from Proctor Minnesota!

Your grandpa is my new favorite person on planet earth. Just after my husband!

I jabe to agree with everyone else. I really enjoyed your interview with your grandpa. What a great guy.

Wonderful to meet your grandpa! Thanks for sharing ☺️

A hug every day for eternity... I'm not crying you're crying!! What a precious man.

I like things that roll and go !!! Bert Munroe 😂😂😂❤❤❤ I'm 52 . My body hurts through living but I'm still 17 at heart . Enjoy each day you have . Bikes make me feel free but after 46 yrs riding it hurts but its my escape ❤❤❤❤❤

Awesome Grandpa. Give him another hug from Us Thanks, Dustin!

That interview with him rocks! Makes me really miss my pop pop. He was a lot like yours.

I see you sure got the foolhardyness from grampa ,good on both of you. COOL!

I mean what do you even say... This is why we love your channel. Your content is soul moving and thoughtful and humorous. Joy. Going to work on my zone first thing in the morning...and share hugs❤.

Your so fortunate and blessed to have a "pops" . What great watch. Thanks so much for sharing.

I grew up going to Kah-Nee-Ta. Alot of my family and I worked there too. It used to be so much fun! I'd love to see it brought back to life.

It’s coming back in 2023! So happy!

Perhaps Grandpa and I live by the same motto- You don't stop playing because you grow old; You grow old because you stop playing. He's a gem!

Key to happiness, Ignore what is bad and focus on what is good.

Love your Pops man. What a wonderful outlook on life.

I just discovered your channel the other day and this is the second video from you that I watched. I was intrigued by the headline (and love the conversation with your grandfather), but I was completely blown away when I realized the "abandoned resort in the desert" was Kah-Nee-Ta! I spent my childhood in the high desert of Central Oregon and have many fond memories of day trips with my family to Kah-Nee-Ta. It was always such an exciting treat when we got to go! I remember camping there once at the RV park as well. I did not realize it had closed down and I am saddened to see it in its current state. It's been roughly 30 years since my last visit there, but I still remember the tee pees, the golf course and the fun and excitement of being a kid, splashing around in the swimming pool on a sunny summer day!

I'd like to see you go back for the reopening by next year. the village will be opened. ❤️

Wonderful interview with grandpa. A writer out of Portland, by the name of Jujea Kim did an excellent article concerning what occurred. Very very shameful, what they did to it. Them tried to put the blame of other people. Others have written about it also. Have a great day with grandfather, stay safe, thank you for sharing this with us today from Henrico County Virginia

His last answer, what a great response.

This was so reminiscent of my grandmother who passed 5 years ago. I took after her, named my first child after her, and inherited my awesomeness from her. She was happy every day she woke up and spread that to others. We used to have these types of conversations and it’s where all of “My Best Grandma Stories” came from. Keep asking these questions every chance you have for yourself, and for all of us who can’t any more. Thank you for sharing your amazing adventures…and for reminding me of the best of my grandmother. Stay safe, healthy, and happy!

Your Grandpa seems like a genuinely wonderful man! I love your beard! You keep it looking healthy and groomed! Please don’t dye the grey! It looks very handsome! Take care and be safe!

No wonder we love you as your grandfather is a spectacular gem. You are blessed my man, blessed.

Love your grandpa! So heartwarming! We can all take a page from his book! At 57, I feel like there's a lot of 17 left on me. Thanks for this!

Another awesome adventure by the one and only. Your grandfather is a sincere person, with a very beautiful view on life. I can see why you take joy in the little things. Lots of love from my son, mother, lana the husky and I. Must have been surreal being in that place. Kind of a representation of life these days.

Happiness in your heart. I love that !!!! Success is so easy and needs no key. I love that too !! DO NOT dye your grey. I am sharing an ON-LINE Hug now. So cute !! Thank you for sharing your grandfather with us here.

Grandpa is adorable, what a kind man, you're blessed to have him.

You are very lucky to know your grandparents I never got to know mine.

I'm so glad we got to stay in a teepee the last summer they were open!!! I love this place and hope it opens again soon!! Please hug your grandpa for me💗

Was there many times when I lived in Portland back in the 70's. I remember the first time I saw it the wildfires went almost to the front door and stopped, it looked so strange. I still think about all the fun we had there and the bar was super cool with indians in it talking in their language. The pool was beautiful and kept so clean back then.

BIG HUG for grandpa!

Thanks for sharing some of your times with your Grand Dad with us! Lots of folks going through some rough patches right now and your videos are a wonderful "pick me up". Heart warming interview and such an interesting place to explore. Thanks Dude!

Well, the apple definitely hasn't fallen very far from the tree. Your grandpa is wonderful! I'd hug him any day. You are very lucky to have him in your life. The grey looks great BTW. Don't change. Safe travels!

"70 going 17 is not a problem." That's solid advice.

This was quite the resort back in the day. Living close by I used to love going there for dinner and the cuisine was excellent as well as the view from the dining room. The lower area has all been refurbished with a major remodel and is due to open in a few months. The pools feature natural mineral-rich water piped from the near-by hot springs BTW. I especially enjoyed swimming on days when it was near freezing outside as the temperature of the water kept you warm. The resort was mostly staffed by tribal members who were always friendly and welcoming too. The tribes are still looking for a company to partner with them to remodel and refurbish the main resort and eventually re-open at some point in the future. I would certainly rate it as my all time favorite resort in Oregon and I have been to most of them.

Thank you for taking us along with you on your adventures. Tell your grandfather hello and give him a hug. Much love and many prayers for you and yours.

Dustin, absolutely LOVED the interview with your grampa. It's very evident where you get your awesomeness from. Another great episode!

Thank you both for making me so happy today!

Thank you so much for sharing Grampa. He is awesome!!

Thank you thank you thank you for this interview with your grandfather! It was a great reminder that mindset is what matters most!

So cool!! I have heard they are rebuilding the resort. Crazy that I live just down the road from your grandpa in McMinnville 😁👍