Considering they closed it in spring 1999 I'm surprised they didn't repurpose it into some sort of Tarzan attraction since the film came out that summer
The fence is there most likely for liability reasons. If someone's trying to get in there and winds up injured (or worse), then Disney would be liable for that injury.
Don't forget, they had mini-speed boats that you could rent at all of the major resorts on the lake. This means individuals could gain access to the island if they were willing to risk it. I don't know if the speeders are still rented out, but they were definitely available throughout the 80s and 90s at the park.
I don't understand parts of the American justice system. To me, when you trespass (and when there is a visible sign warning you that it is private land you're on), it is your responsibility if you're injured.
@@marvinragen Do you, um, not know how much disney has, yes it'll be expensive but they could do something if they wanted to, maybe not something worth it but definitely something nonetheless
@@PB-N-Jenny Between what they put out to buy Fox, and having their cash cows closed for an extended period of time, Disney isn't in very good financial standing right now.
I could see that being an invitation to potential lawsuits if someone got to playing around on the island and hurt themselves and hurt themselves being a dumb ass Also depending on how long they had it fenced off they could be working on a new attraction, and want to keep lid on it till they're ready to announce it to the public. Either that or they keep their top secret Umbrella Division on the island and create experimental weapons for their military contracts.
they should make it themed with wilderness lodge since they are right next to each other, Moana Island should be by the Polynesian resort in 7 seas lagoon
What's creepy about them leaving the lights on till 2008 is that means they had to have fire inspectors going out to the island to inspect everything while it was being consumed by the vegetation.
im going to go out on a limb and say the last people to leave when it was open just left the lights on. i think your giving this greedy, selfish company way more credit than its due. like Disney is going to go out of it's way have that island inspect every year or whatever? makes no sense
Judging by the number of birds seen from the aerial footage, I'd say it's going to be pretty difficult for anyone to ever do anything with the island. It'd most likely be declared as a protected reserve.
The whole bacteria things seams worrying. Maybe the Dusky Seaside Sparrow brought some with it from polluted warmer waters? Who knows, maybe Disney just came up with the animal cruelty to birds thing to make it seams as if the deaths were caused by their staff, rather than a deadly disease. That would have saved money and their reputation.
Bungis Albondigas the death from the brain eating amoeba was naegleria fowleri which is naturally occurring in bodies of warm water. It doesn't have to be brought in by birds
I think the fence is their just to keep people off the island. Although I'm pretty sure that people can figure out another way onto the island if they wanted too, plus they could always jump the fence if they really wanted to get on the island.
I love the evolution of your commentary from the beginning of this series to now. I enjoy how polished and professional you sound. I appreciate the effort you (and your team) put into each production and anticipate watching each new video. Thank you!
My mom visited Discovery Island in the early 80's when it was still open, and she told me a lot of interesting things. Here's some information from my mom, from what she can remember: the island was mostly a bird observation place. There were some tortoises and lemurs, but it was mostly birds. All of the attractions were like the walk-through observation attractions located in Animal Kingdom today. It was a big breeding ground for birds (legally of course) so that leads her to believe the animals were abandoned there and continue to breed to this day. She said she never heard of any animals really making it off the island. There was also a type of bird (sparrow, she thinks) that was the last of its kind. It went extinct after that one specimen on the Island died. So, judging by that, this place had a pretty good cause for being there. She strongly disagrees with the rumors of Naegleria Fowleri (the brain-eating amoeba) being the cause for the shutdown. She says that was much, much more of a River Country issue, and people weren't even allowed to step into the water on the beach they had on the island. You run the risk of getting that amoeba in a lot of places down there, so I agree with her that that was not the cause for shutdown
Just heard a creepy story on some dudes who went to explore it. That’s what lead me to want to know more about this place. Nice to hear it from your mom’s perspective.
Peoples complaining about an bacteria that doesn’t exist, the instinct ion of a specie, the geographic placement, normal that it was left alone. I’ve even heard rumors that some unknown creature live’s here. Even if it was still opened, it wouldn’t have soo much visitors.
I lived in Orlando at the time, and 100% agree with your mom. I think they're planning some kind of building there, but with attendance being down and the layoffs at Disney, right now they're just trying to keep their head above water. They should have stayed out of politics and focused on entertainment. They are the most hated company in central Florida by locals. It's too bad.
The fence was put up awhile ago. It was to prevent trespassing. The graffiti you spoke of earlier was by intruders, not employees to my knowledge. There's still no plans to use the land in any way. Bzz
I feel like that were true, people that were on the island would speak up about it no doubt. Keep in mind Shane Perez claimed there was graffiti on this island back in 2004. When I was there in April there was no fence on the entrance building.
The fence is newer than you think, I bet. It looked very new when I was there, it had no weeds on it nor was it rusted. I couldn't read the signs, so I really have no idea what they said or why the fence was there. If I had to guess, they put the fence up when they decided to actually do something with their abandoned parks, sometime in July or August, most likely to prevent people from docking there after renting a boat, and exploring it.
Remember, you can rent boats to go on the lake. People may have gotten too curious and that's simply to keep visitor's from getting on a really visible, cool looking dock.
Disney security is always monitoring the island, if you get anywhere near the island, Disney will send a boat to move you. If the fence were there to keep people off the island it would have been there much sooner. Its been 17 years and they're just now putting it up? I doubt it.
I’m freaking out ! I live in Florida and have been taking the ferry past this island for YEARS and never even realized this !!!! I recognize the location of every single one of these photos! Edit : I also just realize that the weird tree/wood I’ve been seeing all these years is a pirate ship covered in tree what the heck
ACETYGRA When I was watching this the thought of a private resort with several sectioned off villas crossed my mind. The concept of a hotel on a small island like this would appeal to a lot of people
Unless the State of Florida decides to kick themselves into gear and charge disney for owning a unsafe piece of land. I'm sure there's some law somewhere they could pull to force Disney to do something.
I rarely comment on videos, but I literally spent the whole day yesterday watching your Abandoned videos... You have gotten really good at presenting the information, compared to some of the very early ones that had stuttering and nervousness and stuff ( BUT DONT redo them, that is part of the charm of the series).... This instantly became a series I will check every day for your next video. You are doing a GREAT job and I give you many kudos. One suggestion: Do an overview of US shopping centers that have been abandoned like that one in OH to give us, then breaking out and doing separate videos on ones that have an atypical history or particularly interesting life span.... (That could end up being a full length documentary) but I still like the way you handle individual retial like target & Blockbuster.
The amount of research and editing that goes into these videos shows how dedicated you are to this entire process! Congratulations on this successful series, I can't wait until the next one!
I grew up in Orlando and remember going to Discover Island once on a field trip in fifth grade (about 1995) - I remember thinking it was pretty cool (we did a bird watching project along with the field trip) but it has become one of my long-lost 90s Orlando memories along with River Country, Splendid China, Terror on Church Street, Skull Kingdom (which I never actually I went to but I remember being across the street from Wet n' Wild), Wet n' Wild, Pleasure Island, Disney Quest, Mystery Fun House, Q-Zar Laser Tag, etc., etc.
An island on a river in Florida....2 words-snakes and alligators. Alligators and tourists don't mix well at all since they like to feed the alligators.
Very cool. I remember going there when my family visited in 89. One night they left the kids at this Pirate themed thing so they could go have a parents night out. It was at the Polynesian and we had pizza, played video games and then they took us on a boat to Discovery Island after dark. We “found” a treasure chest near the pirate ship and it had stuff to make s’mores. They had a camp fire and we roasted marshmallows etc. Then they took us back and our parents picked us up. Definitely a cool experience. And much more fun than when we went during the day and just saw birds . . .
Honestly at this point, and judging how much nature has taken over it, Disney should just leave the island alone. Financial issues aside, many animals have made the island their homes so it would also be ethical to leave it alone.
Tholaran97 If thats the case, they can find a new place to build 'some small houses'. The island is already a home so it would be unethical to bulldoze over it.
Actually Some animals like lizards and small mammals can't Find a new place. Let the animals live in piece. How about your house is just bull dozed over, who cares, you can move.
Theory on the fences at 12:50: It's a cover for any negligence charges. It's the same logic as putting a vitrification notice on a structurally unsound building. If the property belongs to you and you don't tell anyone they can't be there and one of your structures hurts them they can sue you because there weren't any signs warning of the danger.
Speaking of a goverment facility being under there, they might be doing expirements of actually making real life disney characters. Rumors say that rejected ones are floating in giant glass tubes.
I visited Discovery Island twice when I was a kid in 1978 and 1979 We had a blast there! I still have photos of myself and my sister posing with big birds on our arms. And another picture of us climbing on a giant metal anchor that was half buried in the beach sand. I just remember exploring all the paths on the island. It was a lot of fun. BUT you have to remember that this was late 70's and your Disney experience was limited to The Magic Kingdom, River Country and Discovery Island. That's it. So at the time it was something else fun to do at Disney. But after Epcot opened and then MGM and finally Animal Kingdom, Discovery Island was just a forgotten afterthought. Who had the time to see this too?! I always thought Disney could make some big bucks turning this into something called Honeymoon Island. Build a dozen beach villas and rent them for the week. People could get married right on the island and then stay there too. It would be very exclusive and very expensive to stay there but I bet it would be booked immediately.
@Rowdy Jr. oh yes, my bad, i misunderstood your original comment. thought you were implying crocodilians and the like came from dinosaurs. i see what you meant now lol
I love the video, Jake. I know this is some of your earlier work but I’ve been a fan for years. Honestly, I’m amused by your fascination with construction on islands. It’s been done before. It’s not impossible. When the new Statue of Liberty Museum was built, the cement mixers and all the trucks were ferried over from New Jersey.
In like 1997, we were staying at the camping resort and I had some freedom for a kid and this place was a boat stop on the way to the bigger parks. When I had the chance to get away from the family that's where I went. This Discovery Island and the little lake side water park were the two chillest places in the whole of Disney, no crowds, maybe 30 or 40 people at the water park, have a swim and then go watch a snake show on the island with like 5 other people in attendance. Both disappeared soon after. Now you can't get away from the soul crushing lines and over hyped, over hocked shit no matter where you go.
Hey, if you guys are going to redo River Country, I will get you updated footage. I can get you night footage, but I wont go alone at night. Too many ghosts. But just ask, happy to help!
Was on Treasure Island when I was a kid. We stayed a week at Fort Wilderness. I remember taking to the boat over to the Island. And we also took the boat to and from Magic Kingdom a few times. I do remember walking around the beach and seeing the ship wreck. I think I was all of about 8 or 9 years old. Always wondered why we never went back on subsequent visits. But I do not remember anyone ever asking me if I wanted to go to Discovery Island. Suppose my parents just blew it off. Can't imagine wanting to take people to Disney these days. What a nightmare!
These videos are so intriguing and well done! Ive been watching for almost a year (last November). The first video of yours i found was your original discovery island video when a Disney tour guide got me hooked on the idea. My god am i glad he did if it wasnt for him i would never have discovered you if it wasnt for him so props to him but more importantly you for making such amazing videos
I used to go to Discovery Island as a young kid, I always loved it! There was not really anything between you and the animals which was sooooo much better than Animal Kingdom. I always wondered what happened to all the birds and lemurs. You can see the island from the monorail on the way to Magic Kingdom.
They can strand Johnny Depp there and he can become a tourist attraction... Have a water show where he water skis on the what appear to be the backs of sea turtles!
That's crazy! I was just went to Disney on vacation this summer and saw it's somewhat close to Epcot and I had no idea about this! Hopefully when I go back to Disney one day I can check this out again.
Discovery Island was a lovely place in the 1980s. It felt so different from the other parks...just quiet and laid-back, when the parks were so crazy and crowded.
but they should never ever use animals again, I am very cold person but I could never treat animals badly, they are soo innocent, this fact made me hate disney right now
@@fvkinamazed5520 that I love animals? Is this a sociopath symptom for you? baby you are the worst psychiatrist in the world :D I dont think that you are but its good that at least you are trying :D
Went there in Feb 1999, it was awesome and as memorable as Magic Kingdom, Epcot, etc. Not sure why it wasn't more popular, basically an island resort mixed with a zoo.
One of my friends is a cast member who pilots both the Ticket and Transportation Ferry along with the ferry to Fort Wilderness. When we had a conversation about Discovery Island a while back, he mentioned the largest problem Disney is currently having with any development on the island is that it has become infested with banana spiders. It makes it dangerous for cast members to step ashore there.
Interesting, if I were Disney to get the island useable again I'd just chuck a big amount of fire onto the island and wait for it to burn, of course under control :P
I was actually on the island in... 2001 or 2002? No, definitely spring of 2001. It was a school field trip, and there were only about 20 or so students, so they ferried us over to the island for some activities. The main dock was still there at the time, and everything was shut down. We weren't allowed to access most of the island, and really just stuck to a single pavilion area with picnic tables. We were being hosted by one of the zoologists who had worked on Discovery Island while it had been open, and boy did she have strong opinions about Steve Irwin. I imagine Disney used the facility for similar one-off tours for some time after then, but I was probably one of the last official guests to the place. I didn't really appreciate it at the time, but it's cool to look back on.
Seeing it's "remoteness" I'm shocked nobody has suggested that they gut the island and make several "mini-mansions" or "off the grid" houses for privacy. If people pay tons of cash to go to Bora-Bora, they might want to pay for such a place in Disney.
Some shitty brain eating amoeba is sitting there lurking in the waters, and it has polluted the island's soil because it is so small, and the island is technically un-usable, so yeah, good idea though.
I was there while they were doing it. They had cast members guarding the entrance and you could see construction vehicles moving around behind the fence. It was crazy.
I remember as a little kid going on a treasure hunt at night. It was a group of kids, and we would follow a map and the treasure was marshmallows! We made a bonfire on the beach and roasted marshmallows! This was late 70’s! Anyone else do that?
The purpose of the fence you referred to at 12:38 is to keep persons off the island that are renting boats and can just go to that dock and enter the island. That is the same reason the long dock was removed at some point in the past.
+Mrtfarrugia no, it is very much abandoned. They have been contemplating what to do with it for years. It is not safe to be inside, so not a lot of people have been inside recently.
5:58 I think this is probably referring to Disney's River Country, which was a water park at Walt Disney World. In 1980, an 11-year-old boy contracted amoebic meningoencephalitis (an amoebic infection of the brain) from the water there. The incident wasn't unique to Disney though, as other deaths by amoebic meningoencephalitis occurred that same month elsewhere in Florida. That kind of amoeba can breed in pretty much any body of fresh water during warm weather. In any case, Disney's River Country remained open until 2001, so I don't believe that the 1980 incident had much to do with its closure. Source: www.newspapers.com/clip/53952411/the-los-angeles-times/
When the Pirates of the Caribbean films were all the rage, I'm surprised they didn't reopening it with the Tortuga Island theme and have pirate like ships circling around.
Not hard to just burn the whole island down, it is an island after all, then let it regrow, and put fake tree's, plants, etc. a year later until everything re grows. Supplementing the smaller real tree's with larger fake ones until they get bigger.
WAIT, THERES A GAME ABOUT THE ABANDONED DISCOVERY ISLAND., ITS CALLED ABANDONED DISCOVERY ISLAND. Original name of the game was treasure island. The game features all of the characters from Disney, except they're all inverted and act differently from their friendly counterparts. Ps, please check out Abandoned Discovery Island. It's a really great and creative game. I forgot to say that the game is based off fnaf (Five nights at Freddy's)
Honestly, I think the best things Disney could do with the island is leave it and let nature take over, giving animals more places for shelter. Or, sell it to someone else who'd then turn it into either a nature preserve or a sort of 'WWF' building where they could house sick/endangered animals. I think this way Disney could preserve the original 'Animal Kingdom' part of the island, while still being a place where animals can feel safe and coexist with nature.
My guess is that since any guest to the resort can rent a watercraft for that lake, they wanted to make it super clear that that's not a place they are supposed to dock at lol.
2023 now but if anyone is interested there have been some “urban explorers” on TH-cam who went through here and filmed it all. Definitely had some visitors over the years who trashed it, and as you can imagine with its location most of buildings you can’t even walk through anymore because of vegetation and collapse structure. But with that being said, seeing the hospital portion of the island where they took care of the animals is mind blowing. Lots of cages and stuff still labeled with the animals names they gave them. And also cool posters and stuff from its last days.
So, I may have missed it in the video, but is the island off limits to guests? By that, I mean, if a guest decided to rent a jet ski or small boat, would the park stop you?
2017 UPDATE th-cam.com/video/3p9fcgkohoo/w-d-xo.html
I like your video! Is there any way you could please give me a shout out for linking you the video used in your update? Thanks.
Bright Sun Films DO A VIDEO ON BOBLO ISLAND IN DETROIT!!!!!!
You Should make more remakes of old Abandoned videos in a new series called, "Abandoned Remastered"
Bright Sun Films hi
Turn it into a "Haunted Island" complete with ghost effects. Flash-light tours every night.
Considering they closed it in spring 1999 I'm surprised they didn't repurpose it into some sort of Tarzan attraction since the film came out that summer
theN64hermit99 oh yeah, that would've been a great idea
That....
...would be genius.
BandVines your profile is yinyang
the island is infested with brain eating amoebas, they wouldnt be able to clear it out in time
Overwatch Unlimited hahahahaha yeh right.
The fence is there most likely for liability reasons. If someone's trying to get in there and winds up injured (or worse), then Disney would be liable for that injury.
Anyone could argue, if they remove all the buildings and leave possession to the state, they won't be liable.
Duh.
So it was easier and cheaper to put a fence there. Of course.
Disney likely thought, “why spend to clear it when we could put that money into new stuff and just leave this place to rot!”
Don't forget, they had mini-speed boats that you could rent at all of the major resorts on the lake. This means individuals could gain access to the island if they were willing to risk it. I don't know if the speeders are still rented out, but they were definitely available throughout the 80s and 90s at the park.
I don't understand parts of the American justice system. To me, when you trespass (and when there is a visible sign warning you that it is private land you're on), it is your responsibility if you're injured.
Too expensive to clear? Disney? Yeah, right.
Oblio Arrow i mean it is alot of money
@@marvinragen Do you, um, not know how much disney has, yes it'll be expensive but they could do something if they wanted to, maybe not something worth it but definitely something nonetheless
@@PB-N-Jenny Between what they put out to buy Fox, and having their cash cows closed for an extended period of time, Disney isn't in very good financial standing right now.
@@RandomAmerican3000 I guess that's true
By the way they count every cent now, it is probably not a cost effective thing for them.
Dear Jake,
Disney guests are able to rent boats. So the fence was put up to prevent guests from docking and entering the island.
Not to mention the graffiti problem.
I could see that being an invitation to potential lawsuits if someone got to playing around on the island and hurt themselves and hurt themselves being a dumb ass Also depending on how long they had it fenced off they could be working on a new attraction, and want to keep lid on it till they're ready to announce it to the public.
Either that or they keep their top secret Umbrella Division on the island and create experimental weapons for their military contracts.
Nope. Didn't you listen to Jake? Chain link fence = secretly doing secret stuff
Touch Me
The only reason you put up a fence is to keep things in or to keep them out.
The rest is a guess...
Fnati confirmed
If Moana does good, they should repurpose Discovery Island into a Polynesian theme and call it Moana's Island.
Or even jungle book themed
That's actually a really good idea!!!
Whybe you're a bloody genius
Marcus Zyker thank you!
they should make it themed with wilderness lodge since they are right next to each other, Moana Island should be by the Polynesian resort in 7 seas lagoon
What's creepy about them leaving the lights on till 2008 is that means they had to have fire inspectors going out to the island to inspect everything while it was being consumed by the vegetation.
when you consume vegetables then it is not creepy. But when vegetables consume your island then it is creepy? How unfair!
@@youarelife3437niggawhat?
im going to go out on a limb and say the last people to leave when it was open just left the lights on. i think your giving this greedy, selfish company way more credit than its due. like Disney is going to go out of it's way have that island inspect every year or whatever? makes no sense
Maybe the fence is to keep whatever is on the island in there...
Franco Zamora DUN DUN DUUUUUNNN
Franco Zamora CONSPIRACY THEORYS!!!!
**Thinks of Five Nights at Treasure Island** O_O
Kevin Velez NO GOD PLEASE NO, NOOOOOO!!!
Franco Zamora most likely
This is basically the real Jurassic Park
The_ Mysterious_Gamer Yeah
Yep
The_ Mysterious_Gamer They're is also a abandoned disney water park.
I was thinking the same thing
Isla Nublar
Judging by the number of birds seen from the aerial footage, I'd say it's going to be pretty difficult for anyone to ever do anything with the island. It'd most likely be declared as a protected reserve.
The island is probably hazardous, with unstable ground and squatting predators such as crocodiles or something crazy.
The whole bacteria things seams worrying. Maybe the Dusky Seaside Sparrow brought some with it from polluted warmer waters? Who knows, maybe Disney just came up with the animal cruelty to birds thing to make it seams as if the deaths were caused by their staff, rather than a deadly disease. That would have saved money and their reputation.
Bungis Albondigas the death from the brain eating amoeba was naegleria fowleri which is naturally occurring in bodies of warm water. It doesn't have to be brought in by birds
Alligators, not Crocodiles, Crocodiles lie in central America, not Florida
The Laughing Jack there actually r crocs in FL, there aren't as many as gators but they do live in parts o/ FL
Florida crocodiles only live in the Everglades
I think the fence is their just to keep people off the island. Although I'm pretty sure that people can figure out another way onto the island if they wanted too, plus they could always jump the fence if they really wanted to get on the island.
Rose Skerrett true they could just go through that dock with the shed
to much effort just 3 cuts and you can roll a section out of the way
It is their fence after all
Or maybe the fence is there to keep whatever’s on the island inside
I love the evolution of your commentary from the beginning of this series to now. I enjoy how polished and professional you sound. I appreciate the effort you (and your team) put into each production and anticipate watching each new video. Thank you!
5 years later it still does feel like he’s constantly growing his skills in editing and commentary
*2019:* “Raid Area 51!”
*2020:* “Raid discovery island!”
You can't Disney is closed due to Corona :(
@@jackielecza7160 That would actually make it easier as there's less employees to notice, security is still there though.
@@mattwolf7698 and someone did
Lets do an airsoft match there at night. No flashlights
@@jackielecza7160 take helicopter
My Aunt worked at Discovery Island when she was 19. I have a picture of her and her workmate, it's cool and creepy at the same time.
a username did she ever say what was in there
Shoutout to the guy that went camping out there this week.
Same that man brought me here
😂😂😂😂😂😂
Link????
what channel? i’d like to see the video!!
Raymond Royale same AS me
My mom visited Discovery Island in the early 80's when it was still open, and she told me a lot of interesting things. Here's some information from my mom, from what she can remember: the island was mostly a bird observation place. There were some tortoises and lemurs, but it was mostly birds. All of the attractions were like the walk-through observation attractions located in Animal Kingdom today. It was a big breeding ground for birds (legally of course) so that leads her to believe the animals were abandoned there and continue to breed to this day. She said she never heard of any animals really making it off the island. There was also a type of bird (sparrow, she thinks) that was the last of its kind. It went extinct after that one specimen on the Island died. So, judging by that, this place had a pretty good cause for being there. She strongly disagrees with the rumors of Naegleria Fowleri (the brain-eating amoeba) being the cause for the shutdown. She says that was much, much more of a River Country issue, and people weren't even allowed to step into the water on the beach they had on the island. You run the risk of getting that amoeba in a lot of places down there, so I agree with her that that was not the cause for shutdown
Dang that’s a whole paragraph.
Just heard a creepy story on some dudes who went to explore it. That’s what lead me to want to know more about this place. Nice to hear it from your mom’s perspective.
Peoples complaining about an bacteria that doesn’t exist, the instinct ion of a specie, the geographic placement, normal that it was left alone. I’ve even heard rumors that some unknown creature live’s here. Even if it was still opened, it wouldn’t have soo much visitors.
I lived in Orlando at the time, and 100% agree with your mom. I think they're planning some kind of building there, but with attendance being down and the layoffs at Disney, right now they're just trying to keep their head above water. They should have stayed out of politics and focused on entertainment. They are the most hated company in central Florida by locals. It's too bad.
@@caermenperez9482 can't read?
The fence was put up awhile ago. It was to prevent trespassing. The graffiti you spoke of earlier was by intruders, not employees to my knowledge. There's still no plans to use the land in any way.
Bzz
I feel like that were true, people that were on the island would speak up about it no doubt. Keep in mind Shane Perez claimed there was graffiti on this island back in 2004. When I was there in April there was no fence on the entrance building.
The fence is newer than you think, I bet. It looked very new when I was there, it had no weeds on it nor was it rusted. I couldn't read the signs, so I really have no idea what they said or why the fence was there. If I had to guess, they put the fence up when they decided to actually do something with their abandoned parks, sometime in July or August, most likely to prevent people from docking there after renting a boat, and exploring it.
Remember, you can rent boats to go on the lake. People may have gotten too curious and that's simply to keep visitor's from getting on a really visible, cool looking dock.
The lifeguards will come and get you if you get too close to the island
Disney security is always monitoring the island, if you get anywhere near the island, Disney will send a boat to move you. If the fence were there to keep people off the island it would have been there much sooner. Its been 17 years and they're just now putting it up? I doubt it.
Anyone here because of the Florida man who went camping on the island?
Yep
YES!!!
Yeah how'd you know 😀
Guilty! Lol
Honestly I don't blame him. It does sound like paradise.
I never miss any of your Disney episodes! I love them
Springbok ASMR hey :D
Springbok ASMR OMG SPRINGBOK
hi
Spring book
Somebody needs to get an expert drone flyer to send a drone down there.
Luke Jackson He said "expert". The footage they had wasn't very good.
Luke Jackson He said "expert". The footage they had wasn't very good.
Disney has an FAA no fly zone. It has also been amended to include drones.
Jim Simpson some1 needs 2 come ^ w/ a tiny drone tht can b controlled frm a few miles away
Jim Simpson theres some drone shots in this video. still illegal but possible.
I’m freaking out ! I live in Florida and have been taking the ferry past this island for YEARS and never even realized this !!!! I recognize the location of every single one of these photos!
Edit : I also just realize that the weird tree/wood I’ve been seeing all these years is a pirate ship covered in tree what the heck
I live a few lakes over from the lake the island is on and never even thought twice about seeing it on the map. Just zoomed in on it and WOW
Another great video! Thanks, Jake!
Love your videos Dan! Gotten a few of my friends into Urbex from them :)
OMG DAN WATCHES JAKE
HOLY crap it's DAN! Dude I love your videos keep up the good work!
London Tipton cc
4
The island will remain, to be never touched again. its not worth their time or money.
I think it would be a great spot for a resort. Perhaps one with a POTC theme
ACETYGRA
ACETYGRA When I was watching this the thought of a private resort with several sectioned off villas crossed my mind. The concept of a hotel on a small island like this would appeal to a lot of people
Unless the State of Florida decides to kick themselves into gear and charge disney for owning a unsafe piece of land. I'm sure there's some law somewhere they could pull to force Disney to do something.
Who else is here in 2020 and don’t know why???
Same
I watched because I got nostalgic :)
idk why i'm here
Hahaha! Same! :)
This was on my recommendations
I rarely comment on videos, but I literally spent the whole day yesterday watching your Abandoned videos... You have gotten really good at presenting the information, compared to some of the very early ones that had stuttering and nervousness and stuff ( BUT DONT redo them, that is part of the charm of the series).... This instantly became a series I will check every day for your next video. You are doing a GREAT job and I give you many kudos.
One suggestion: Do an overview of US shopping centers that have been abandoned like that one in OH to give us, then breaking out and doing separate videos on ones that have an atypical history or particularly interesting life span.... (That could end up being a full length documentary) but I still like the way you handle individual retial like target & Blockbuster.
+Ken M I appreciate the comment thanks!
Even when someone gives a youtuber constructive criticism, they still sound douchey.
Daniel Flanard Um, no they didn’t ? lol
I feel like that's a great idea!!
The amount of research and editing that goes into these videos shows how dedicated you are to this entire process!
Congratulations on this successful series, I can't wait until the next one!
I would really love to see this place we turn into a Pirates of the Caribbean resort. To pay homage to the old treasure Island motive.
I grew up in Orlando and remember going to Discover Island once on a field trip in fifth grade (about 1995) - I remember thinking it was pretty cool (we did a bird watching project along with the field trip) but it has become one of my long-lost 90s Orlando memories along with River Country, Splendid China, Terror on Church Street, Skull Kingdom (which I never actually I went to but I remember being across the street from Wet n' Wild), Wet n' Wild, Pleasure Island, Disney Quest, Mystery Fun House, Q-Zar Laser Tag, etc., etc.
An island on a river in Florida....2 words-snakes and alligators. Alligators and tourists don't mix well at all since they like to feed the alligators.
I prefer to wear the alligators. They make some nice boots.
Very cool. I remember going there when my family visited in 89. One night they left the kids at this Pirate themed thing so they could go have a parents night out. It was at the Polynesian and we had pizza, played video games and then they took us on a boat to Discovery Island after dark. We “found” a treasure chest near the pirate ship and it had stuff to make s’mores. They had a camp fire and we roasted marshmallows etc. Then they took us back and our parents picked us up. Definitely a cool experience. And much more fun than when we went during the day and just saw birds . . .
Heading there now. Looks like a perfect place for a self quarantine.
plumberjoe80 are you the guy they just found there 👀
Are you the one that just got caught? 👀
That is what Southern Pirate Outdoors did and he was arrested. Check out his channel.
Honestly at this point, and judging how much nature has taken over it, Disney should just leave the island alone. Financial issues aside, many animals have made the island their homes so it would also be ethical to leave it alone.
They can find a new place to live. I think it would be nice to build some small houses that people visiting to stay in for a few days.
Tholaran97 If thats the case, they can find a new place to build 'some small houses'. The island is already a home so it would be unethical to bulldoze over it.
Actually Some animals like lizards and small mammals can't Find a new place. Let the animals live in piece.
How about your house is just bull dozed over, who cares, you can move.
maybe build a cheap tower to add atmosphere to the park
Abandoned due to a power outage releasing the velociraptors from their cages.
A JP Fan!
That would fit perfectly and Jurassic Park just keeps getting popular and popular it would paid for in no time.
Abandoned for a nightguard dying while working the nightshift due to "malfunctions"
Theory on the fences at 12:50: It's a cover for any negligence charges. It's the same logic as putting a vitrification notice on a structurally unsound building. If the property belongs to you and you don't tell anyone they can't be there and one of your structures hurts them they can sue you because there weren't any signs warning of the danger.
Lets be honest guys, we all know theres a government facility under that discovery island.
Speaking of a goverment facility being under there, they might be doing expirements of actually making real life disney characters. Rumors say that rejected ones are floating in giant glass tubes.
Its where they drop there dead bodies of the park
Maybe that’s where Walt Disney is frozen!!!!
It's where Disney houses their Umbrella Division that's responsible for developing experimental bio-chemical weapons
run by lizard people
So I’m in my hotel room at Disney right now, and while I’m listening to this video, I’m actually looking at the island
I visited Discovery Island twice when I was a kid in 1978 and 1979
We had a blast there! I still have photos of myself and my sister posing with big birds on our arms. And another picture of us climbing on a giant metal anchor that was half buried in the beach sand.
I just remember exploring all the paths on the island. It was a lot of fun.
BUT you have to remember that this was late 70's and your Disney experience was limited to The Magic Kingdom, River Country and Discovery Island. That's it. So at the time it was something else fun to do at Disney.
But after Epcot opened and then MGM and finally Animal Kingdom, Discovery Island was just a forgotten afterthought. Who had the time to see this too?!
I always thought Disney could make some big bucks turning this into something called Honeymoon Island. Build a dozen beach villas and rent them for the week. People could get married right on the island and then stay there too. It would be very exclusive and very expensive to stay there but I bet it would be booked immediately.
Take a drink every time he says "Island"!
God only gave me one liver man
Nysguy2003 I'll be dying soon of alcohol poisoning, goodbye world.
docindahouze
lol
+Kieran Eliuk 😁
Nysguy2003 #Dead after 4 minutes.
Thats where Disney keeps lost children from the other Disney parks. Its a Mega Sweatshop.
Not true but alright
You know since Alligators live on that island, We could just call it "Jurassic Park"
Prehistoric Matt *DUN DUN, DUN DUN, DUN DUN DUN DUN DUN DUN DUNNNNN, DUN DUN DUN DUN DUN DUN DUN DUN DUN DUNNNN, DUN DUN DUN DUNNNNN*
And birds cause birds are modern dinosa.........
OMG!this I basically Jurassic Park in real life
And get sued by Universal...
@Rowdy Jr. none of those are related to dinosaurs though... the vultures are, though, so i guess the vultures make it discovery island.
@Rowdy Jr. oh yes, my bad, i misunderstood your original comment. thought you were implying crocodilians and the like came from dinosaurs. i see what you meant now lol
all i could think the whole time was jurassic park
That could be possible IF Universal bought the rights....
Me too
Would be a neat location for a fan film or something similar. Very interesting!
I love the video, Jake. I know this is some of your earlier work but I’ve been a fan for years.
Honestly, I’m amused by your fascination with construction on islands. It’s been done before. It’s not impossible. When the new Statue of Liberty Museum was built, the cement mixers and all the trucks were ferried over from New Jersey.
500 likes and no dislikes. Speaks of the effort and quality you put in your videos. Keep it up you are awesome.
Thanks so much!
In like 1997, we were staying at the camping resort and I had some freedom for a kid and this place was a boat stop on the way to the bigger parks. When I had the chance to get away from the family that's where I went. This Discovery Island and the little lake side water park were the two chillest places in the whole of Disney, no crowds, maybe 30 or 40 people at the water park, have a swim and then go watch a snake show on the island with like 5 other people in attendance. Both disappeared soon after. Now you can't get away from the soul crushing lines and over hyped, over hocked shit no matter where you go.
Hey, if you guys are going to redo River Country, I will get you updated footage. I can get you night footage, but I wont go alone at night. Too many ghosts. But just ask, happy to help!
+KamikazeeDolphin Contact us
I thought Disney announced they were going to start filling it.
+Mrtfarrugia filling it in
It isn't the ghosts you need to worry about.It's the gascots.
Lol ghosts, smh.
Enjoyed every bit of this. Jake, your the Disney expert, love it.
Shane2907 you're*
Was on Treasure Island when I was a kid. We stayed a week at Fort Wilderness. I remember taking to the boat over to the Island. And we also took the boat to and from Magic Kingdom a few times. I do remember walking around the beach and seeing the ship wreck. I think I was all of about 8 or 9 years old. Always wondered why we never went back on subsequent visits. But I do not remember anyone ever asking me if I wanted to go to Discovery Island. Suppose my parents just blew it off. Can't imagine wanting to take people to Disney these days. What a nightmare!
Do an abandoned video on the UK theme park Camelot.
Agreed!
I used to love Camelot!!
Do it!
Where was that theme park?
+Charlotte Veal Chorley in Lancashire. not much to see there now except very old buildings and a roller coaster.
These videos are so intriguing and well done! Ive been watching for almost a year (last November). The first video of yours i found was your original discovery island video when a Disney tour guide got me hooked on the idea. My god am i glad he did if it wasnt for him i would never have discovered you if it wasnt for him so props to him but more importantly you for making such amazing videos
Thanks for watching, I really appreciate the support!
Discovery Island: shuts down
Alligators: *Its free real-estate*
Maybe that’s why they put up that fence?
I used to go to Discovery Island as a young kid, I always loved it! There was not really anything between you and the animals which was sooooo much better than Animal Kingdom. I always wondered what happened to all the birds and lemurs. You can see the island from the monorail on the way to Magic Kingdom.
They should re-open this Island and call it Port Royal for a Pirates of the Caribbean park
john clifford the movie's shit now, it wont sell
They can strand Johnny Depp there and he can become a tourist attraction... Have a water show where he water skis on the what appear to be the backs of sea turtles!
tommysobo123 haha
Call it treasure island to fuck with minds of creepypasta readers...
I visited Discovery Island back in 1989, my friend and I found it a very relaxing park, away from the hustle and bustle. It was lovely.
That's crazy! I was just went to Disney on vacation this summer and saw it's somewhat close to Epcot and I had no idea about this! Hopefully when I go back to Disney one day I can check this out again.
Discovery Island was a lovely place in the 1980s. It felt so different from the other parks...just quiet and laid-back, when the parks were so crazy and crowded.
I remember visiting this place when I was a kid. Didn't even think about it being abandoned now.
Let's be real here, we all know the island was abandoned due to the velociraptor outbreak.
They should Have made it Peter Pan island where grown ups go to be young again....adult getaway 😉😉😉😍😍😍😙😙😙
too late now i suppose
but they should never ever use animals again, I am very cold person but I could never treat animals badly, they are soo innocent, this fact made me hate disney right now
Hailey Q At least they were sent to better places after Discovery Island.
@@HK-gm8pe sociopath symptoms
@@fvkinamazed5520 that I love animals? Is this a sociopath symptom for you? baby you are the worst psychiatrist in the world :D I dont think that you are but its good that at least you are trying :D
Went there in Feb 1999, it was awesome and as memorable as Magic Kingdom, Epcot, etc. Not sure why it wasn't more popular, basically an island resort mixed with a zoo.
Me and my brother rented a mini speed boat at the Polynesian, you can get a pretty close up look at the island. It's sooo cool!
what is preventing you from entering? is there a gate or guards?
Probably didn't want to trespass.
Nixsy924 Probably both.
*I
Now, it's a creepypasta...
PERFECT
And.........i use to be zoo assistant on Disney's discovery islandaaa
I was thinking the same thing. Glad someone said it.
Uhhh you know, kind of a weird question but...
Wanna see my head come off?
How sad! I was there in 1995! It was my favorite place! I loved sitting on the boardwalk taking pictures of the buzzards & all the other birds.
One of my friends is a cast member who pilots both the Ticket and Transportation Ferry along with the ferry to Fort Wilderness. When we had a conversation about Discovery Island a while back, he mentioned the largest problem Disney is currently having with any development on the island is that it has become infested with banana spiders. It makes it dangerous for cast members to step ashore there.
Interesting, if I were Disney to get the island useable again I'd just chuck a big amount of fire onto the island and wait for it to burn, of course under control :P
Michael DiPietro yeah bye with that lol I see one spider I’m gone away I’m moving to the andromeda galaxy
Ew evil 8 legged bananas
I call bullshit michael.
As a former disney boat captain I can confirm this to be true. Who was your friend who worked there?
I was actually on the island in... 2001 or 2002? No, definitely spring of 2001. It was a school field trip, and there were only about 20 or so students, so they ferried us over to the island for some activities. The main dock was still there at the time, and everything was shut down. We weren't allowed to access most of the island, and really just stuck to a single pavilion area with picnic tables. We were being hosted by one of the zoologists who had worked on Discovery Island while it had been open, and boy did she have strong opinions about Steve Irwin.
I imagine Disney used the facility for similar one-off tours for some time after then, but I was probably one of the last official guests to the place. I didn't really appreciate it at the time, but it's cool to look back on.
BG IKR cringe af
_Walt Disney is frozen on that island somewhere ;)_
Raid it
@@OfficialDrize D-Day style but with row boats
@@TheStig_TG lol
@@TheStig_TGsomeone get Stalin
There was a Disney ad on this video😂
Abby Ryan 2 years later I got one as well
iLightning 2 days later same
@@rockhardmemes2203 6 days later same
Same
Same here
Discovery Island reminds of Jurassic Park and Jurassic World how the past what left behind and the future was build a few meters away.
They could’ve made a lot if they turned into like a island paradise theme with hotels and pools and stuff.
honestly my favorite series on TH-cam
Honestly my favorite viewer
Seeing it's "remoteness" I'm shocked nobody has suggested that they gut the island and make several "mini-mansions" or "off the grid" houses for privacy. If people pay tons of cash to go to Bora-Bora, they might want to pay for such a place in Disney.
Some shitty brain eating amoeba is sitting there lurking in the waters, and it has polluted the island's soil because it is so small, and the island is technically un-usable, so yeah, good idea though.
SCROUTE55
You're an idiot. Do some research instead of feeding on the urban legends.
That's exactly what I was thinking. It should be a secluded resort
cesariojpn They’d be surrounded by the park and all its property. I wouldn’t want to hear Disney fireworks overhead every night.
I would leave it the way it is.
This video is already nostalgic, just the idea of an abandoned island like this is so cool.
Hey did you here how the river country pool is getting filled in
What? :O Well... at least they're doing something with it.
I was there while they were doing it. They had cast members guarding the entrance and you could see construction vehicles moving around behind the fence. It was crazy.
Ayden Hascerflef
Interesting. I wonder what's going to become of it.
DVC for the Wilderness Lodge?
also, when did construction start on river country? is there an article anywhere?
The possibility of a real life Myst island is probably the most amazing thing i could ever imagine.
I remember as a little kid going on a treasure hunt at night. It was a group of kids, and we would follow a map and the treasure was marshmallows! We made a bonfire on the beach and roasted marshmallows! This was late 70’s! Anyone else do that?
Neverland would be awesome! With a mermaid grove and pixie hollow and everything. I'd go
Completely "Abandoned By Disney"
Nice reference to the creepypasta!
The purpose of the fence you referred to at 12:38 is to keep persons off the island that are renting boats and can just go to that dock and enter the island. That is the same reason the long dock was removed at some point in the past.
I always wanted to go here when I was little. D: Then, Animal Kingdom opened.....
Thanks for this vid.
I love that some homeless guy was living on Discovery Island. He wasn't hurting anyone, he just found a place to live where no one else was.
4 years later a man went on the island and camped there and recorded it live on TH-cam … now we know what it looks like
We need to organise an event and storm the island. Just like Area 51.
GET YOUR ROW BOATS BOYS
YES
Then disney is gonna go NAZI MODE AND RENIFORCE THE SHORE LIKE NORMANDY SO BOYS GET YOUR AIRSOFT GUNS WE WILL STORM EURO- oh i meant DISCOVERY ISLAND
HELL YEAH AND SO WE CAN FOUND THE MYSTERY OF THE MICKEY MASCOT IN- *Fbi Is on my house* NONONO WAIT *im ded*
Dont photo negative mickey will kill u
Do the Astrodome the 8th Wonder of the world.
I thought that became a megachurch? So not really abandoned.
+Mrtfarrugia no, it is very much abandoned. They have been contemplating what to do with it for years. It is not safe to be inside, so not a lot of people have been inside recently.
Exactly and because of its history, it deserves a video
Exactly
yesss
5:58 I think this is probably referring to Disney's River Country, which was a water park at Walt Disney World. In 1980, an 11-year-old boy contracted amoebic meningoencephalitis (an amoebic infection of the brain) from the water there. The incident wasn't unique to Disney though, as other deaths by amoebic meningoencephalitis occurred that same month elsewhere in Florida. That kind of amoeba can breed in pretty much any body of fresh water during warm weather.
In any case, Disney's River Country remained open until 2001, so I don't believe that the 1980 incident had much to do with its closure.
Source: www.newspapers.com/clip/53952411/the-los-angeles-times/
Even though it would be near impossible, a near identical restoration of this island would be amazing
When the Pirates of the Caribbean films were all the rage, I'm surprised they didn't reopening it with the Tortuga Island theme and have pirate like ships circling around.
Same,but animals and banana spiders would have gotten in the way
Not hard to just burn the whole island down, it is an island after all, then let it regrow, and put fake tree's, plants, etc. a year later until everything re grows. Supplementing the smaller real tree's with larger fake ones until they get bigger.
WAIT, THERES A GAME ABOUT THE ABANDONED DISCOVERY ISLAND., ITS CALLED ABANDONED DISCOVERY ISLAND. Original name of the game was treasure island. The game features all of the characters from Disney, except they're all inverted and act differently from their friendly counterparts.
Ps, please check out Abandoned Discovery Island. It's a really great and creative game.
I forgot to say that the game is based off fnaf (Five nights at Freddy's)
O yea they finally finished the game I remember it was the first five nights of Freddys fan made game
Honestly, I think the best things Disney could do with the island is leave it and let nature take over, giving animals more places for shelter. Or, sell it to someone else who'd then turn it into either a nature preserve or a sort of 'WWF' building where they could house sick/endangered animals.
I think this way Disney could preserve the original 'Animal Kingdom' part of the island, while still being a place where animals can feel safe and coexist with nature.
UsoppFanGirl Or breed dinosaurs and wait until it gets bigger and has a volcano.
I just saw a video of Abandoned and I'm just.. Wow I'm just Hooked For Good!! Keep Up The Good Vid!!
i love the irony that he put a jungle song at the end credits, specifically busy earnin'
hey man love these videos even got my dad into them
Thanks so much!
They should build a couple southern style McMansions and kinda air bnb them out and it could be a resort
how crazy is it that i decided to revisit this video on the 25th anniversary of discovery island's closure
🤷♂️
I'm sure that fence has been put up to keep people from going on the island and filming. like the 2 people you mentioned at the beginning of the video
If that were the case I think they would have fenced the service dock as well.
My guess is that since any guest to the resort can rent a watercraft for that lake, they wanted to make it super clear that that's not a place they are supposed to dock at lol.
RIP TOWER OF TERROR
Legit Luke Tower of terror is at Disneyland Paris. They didn't close it. Not yet.
Infamous Onion Cutting Ninja! Yes ikr
Infamous Onion Cutting Ninja! Me too, but it is about to close down.
Tower of Terror in Disneyland is being renovated to have a Guardians of the Galaxy theme. The one in Florida is staying the same for the time being.
wahoowa 23 well that elevator won't be replaced :P
2023 now but if anyone is interested there have been some “urban explorers” on TH-cam who went through here and filmed it all. Definitely had some visitors over the years who trashed it, and as you can imagine with its location most of buildings you can’t even walk through anymore because of vegetation and collapse structure. But with that being said, seeing the hospital portion of the island where they took care of the animals is mind blowing. Lots of cages and stuff still labeled with the animals names they gave them. And also cool posters and stuff from its last days.
So, I may have missed it in the video, but is the island off limits to guests?
By that, I mean, if a guest decided to rent a jet ski or small boat, would the park stop you?
Disney security in boats are constantly monitoring the island and if you get within close proximity to the island you will be told to leave.
+Bright Sun Films any chance you could fly a drone from the Wilderness Lodge?
+zoom zoom103 Lol that's a fucking GREAT question. I would LOVE to see that.
Leave the park or the island?
Both lol
More than likely just the island though
“...and every night the ghost of Walt Disney roams the island searching for paying punters and things to copyright... ooooh creepy!”
First time watcher. These are even more amazing in 2020.
7:15 I dont know why but that image just scared the literal sh*t out of me
Bruh, it scares anyone
It didn't scare me.