BEAN BLOSSOM — As the summer temperatures continue to rise, the Bill Monroe Memorial Music Park and Campground is giving visitors and locals a place to cool off.

A lake water park and beach opened just before July 4. The 5-acre lake already existed, but the beach and activities are new.

Ben Voils co-owns the park with his uncle, Rex Voils. They decided to add the water park and beach as a way to provide more amenities to their campers, Ben Voils said last week.

If locals pay to enter the campground, they also can get access to the lake and water features.

“It gives the locals a place to go and cool down,” he said.

The name of the new addition is Bigfoot Beach in honor of the music park’s mascot. Voils said there have been about four to five “sightings” already.

When he was growing up, Voils’ family would go to Redbrush Park in Jackson County every summer. It had a lake with water features similar to what is planned for Bigfoot Beach.

The beach currently has rope swings and a water slide. Voils said a zip line is being designed and there are plans to have a floating platform, too, with a dive board and slide.

“It will probably be a continuous thing for the next three years to build it up to the final goal,” he said.

“We’re just going to keep building on it until we get all the way around the lake, basically, with features.”

Voils said last week that about 40 people a day were coming to check out the water park, a mixture of campers and locals.

Visitors can pay $5 to enter the campground and use all of the amenities there including the pavilion, walking trails and Bigfoot Beach. Children 12 and younger are admitted free.

Campers get access to the water park with their camping reservation.

Voils said that business overall has been on the upswing this season. The music park’s season began at the end of May with the {span}John Hartford Memorial Festival.

“Camping has turned around big time from last year,” Voils said, adding that that is the “ultimate goal.”

The next event at Bill Monroe Music Park and Campground will be its own version of Woodstock. The Chubbstock Music Festival kicks off Aug. 1 and runs through Aug. 4. Willie Nelson’s granddaughter, Raelyn Nelson, is slated to perform with her band. An outside promoter is putting on that event and nearly 100 rock bands will perform.

More information on upcoming events can be found at billmonroemusicpark.com or at the park’s Facebook page.

In response to rumors about a restaurant opening at the music park, Voils said that is not a possibility unless sewer service is extended to Bean Blossom. Until then, Voils said it’s “literally impossible” to have a restaurant on the current pump-and-haul system.