They dubbed one pair of impressive trees 'The Twin Towers,' dedicated on Sept. In 1999, Doug and Carolyn Campbell, along with Doug's brother Don, bought the Confusion Hill business, with a dream to restore its vintage vacation charm. In 1993, the ridge top was logged, and toward the end of the millennium the business was for sale. In the 1980s and '90s, Confusion Hill started to appear a little time-weary. One half of the Twin Tree rotted and fell down, so the ride was realigned to continue without it. In 1955, Hudson added a miniature train to carry passengers through the redwoods to the top of Smokestack Hill, passing through the 'World Famous Twin Tree Tunnel.' The Mountain Train Ride, with points of interest narrated by its conductor/engineer, wound for 30 minutes along a 1 1/4 mile switchback. The twisted shack was situated atop a confluence of unexplainable forces, enhancing the visible effects in a place where magnets went haywire, water ran uphill, and objects changed size. Its main features were a gift shop/snack bar and a 'Gravity House' he built. Hudson rationalized that there must be other spots where the laws of physics run amok - for example, his frontage along US Highway 101. Entrepreneur George Hudson had visited the Oregon Vortex (opened 1930), the Santa Cruz Mystery Spot (1940), and probably witnessed the winning formula of Trees of Mystery (1946). There was room to add what travelers didn't yet know they desired - great tourist traps.

In 1949, improvements in northern California's stretch of US Highway 101 opened the region's majestic forests and rocky coasts to increased tourism.

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