Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
Encyclopedia
Big Thunder Mountain Railroad (or for short Big Thunder Mountain) is an indoor/outdoor mine train roller coaster
located in Frontierland
at several Disneyland-style Disney Parks worldwide. The ride exists at Disneyland Park (Anaheim)
and the Magic Kingdom
at Walt Disney World
as Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, and at Tokyo Disneyland
and Disneyland Park (Paris)
as Big Thunder Mountain. Big Thunder Mountain Railroad is also the name of the fictional rail line the roller coaster depicts.
was discovered on Big Thunder Mountain in the American southwest. Overnight
, the small mining town of Rainbow Ridges (at Disneyland), Tumbleweed (at the Magic Kingdom
), or Thunder Mesa (at Disneyland Paris
) became a thriving mining town. Mining was prosperous, and an extensive line of mine trains was set up to transport the ore
. Unknown to the settlers, the Mountain was a sacred spot to local Native Americans
and was cursed.
Before long, the settlers' desecration of the mountain caused a great tragedy, which, depending on the park, is usually depicted to be an earthquake
(Disneyland Paris, Disneyland) or a flash flood
(Magic Kingdom), which befell the mines and town, and the town was abandoned. Some time later, the locomotives were found to be racing around the mountain on their own, without engineers or a crew. The Big Thunder Mountain Railroad was founded in the old mining camp to allow tourists to take rides on the possessed trains.
Keeping in time with the theme, the station buildings on all four versions of the ride are designed to look as though they are the abandoned offices of a mining company from the mid to late 19th century. The mountains themselves are themed to the red rock formations of the American Southwest
. The rock work designs on Disneyland's Big Thunder Mountain Railroad are based on the hoodoos
of Bryce Canyon National Park
in Utah
.
In the Magic Kingdom version of Big Thunder Mountain Railroad and in the Tokyo and Paris versions, the rockwork designs are based on the rising buttes that are located in Utah and Arizona
's Monument Valley
. Special care was taken by the Imagineers to make it appear that the rocks were there originally, and the track was built around the rocks, unlike a number of earlier mine rides, which were built the other way around (by sculpting the rocks around the tracks). The action of the ride takes place completely in the sagging, rotting tunnels of the mountain. In contrast to most steel roller coaster
s, where the thrills come from the perception of flying through open air, the thrills on Big Thunder Mountain Railroad are meant to come from the perceived instability of the mine and its threats of collapse. Sound effects of a typical locomotive operation are piped into the surrounding scenery to add realism to guests viewing the ride from observation platforms, including the steam whistle sounding, even though there is no whistle displayed on the locomotives.
and ride design engineer Bill Watkins. The concept came from Baxter's work on fellow Imagineer Marc Davis's concept for the Western River Expedition
, a western-themed pavilion at the Magic Kingdom, designed to look like an enormous plateau
and contain many rides, including a runaway mine train roller coaster
. However, because the pavilion as a whole, was deemed too expensive in light of the 1973 construction and opening of Pirates of the Caribbean
, Baxter proposed severing the mine train and building it as a separate attraction.
The Big Thunder Mountain Railroad project was put on hold again in 1974 as resources and personnel were being diverted to work on constructing Space Mountain
over in Tomorrowland
, but this delay may have ultimately produced a smoother ride as the use of computers in attraction design was just beginning when the project was resumed. Big Thunder Mountain Railroad was one of the first Disney rides to utilize computer-aided design
. The attraction first opened at Disneyland in 1979, with the Magic Kingdom's larger version in Florida opening in 1980. Tokyo Disneyland added its own version in 1987 and in 1992, Euro Disneyland (now named Disneyland Park) opened with Big Thunder Mountain as an opening day attraction.
, assayer's office and mercantile appear among the buildings. This is the village of Rainbow Ridge, which used to overlook the loading platform of the sedate Mine Train through Nature's Wonderland. Disneyland's version of Big Thunder Mountain Railroad was built on the land the Mine Train used to occupy. Many of the animal animatronics throughout the attraction are animatronic animals from previous attraction. Other allusions to the Mine Train through Nature's wonderland include:
Imagineers rethought the attraction for Disneyland Paris, creating a layout mostly based on the Disneyland's Big Thunder Mountain Railroad but with several significant changes to both the layout and accompanying structure.
The revised European ride, takes the form of a large island in the center of the Rivers of the Far West
, accessed from its riverside station by tunnels underneath the water. The attraction in Disneyland Paris is the only Big Thunder Mountain to have been an opening day attraction at the park. Hong Kong Disneyland
does not have a Big Thunder Mountain Railroad attraction (or a western-themed Frontierland
, for that matter), however, a planned Grizzly Gulch is under construction at Hong Kong Disneyland with a theme similar to Frontierland. The planned attraction Big Grizzly Mountain Runaway Mine Cars will carry a theme similar to Big Thunder Mountain Railroad's theme.
Upon entering the attraction, the queue winds through a narrow rock wall and passing under the tracks. The surrounding walls were originally created from 100 tons of gold ore from Rosamond
. Within this half of the queue, a series of Wild West themed features including a mining town (called "Big Thunder") and a water cranking machine. The mining town is the original location of the boarding area of the Mine Train Through Nature's Wonderland. The queue goes up some stairs in a wooden shack and reaches the area where the riders board the trains. Leaving the outdoor loading station, riders enter a dark tunnel. The sounds of bats can be heard as the trains make a right hand turn and then a left hand turn before climbing the first lift hill. To the left of the trains, guests can view a series of rainbow colored caverns. These are also placed as a tribute to the Mine Train Through Nature's Wonderland. At the top, the trains exit into the daylight and stayed slow at the drop before making a 180-degree turn drop to the right before leveling out into the left-hand turn, before making a small drop and climb, and then making another right-hand turn (passing under a tree with several opossums
hanging from it). The trains then drop down into a cave (where two coyotes are howling on top of), rise up, hit a block brake, make a right-hand turn, exit the tunnel, and climb the second lift hill.
Warnings of blasting up ahead on the track can be seen by guests as the trains crest the second lift hill. Three desert tortoise
s and two rattlesnakes can also be seen alongside the lift hill. As the trains go slow and start to drop away to the right, an animatronic goat with a stick of dynamite in its mouth bleats at the passing guests and 2 skunks
attempt to spray the passing guests. After descending this drop, the trains rise up into a 540-degree downhill helix to the right before passing over another hill, making a left-hand turn into a tunnel, and climbing the third lift hill. While climbing the third lift hill, rocks start shaking, simulating an earthquake, and appearing ready to crush the riders.
At the top, the trains exit the lift hill, slow down, and drop away to the right into a short straightaway, making another right-hand turn into a short tunnel onto a trim brake bridge. After this bridge, riders drop away to the left, passing a T-Rex skeleton and splashing through Dinosaur Gap, as they rise up to the right into the final brake run. The trains pass by the buildings of Big Thunder before returning to the station.
Unlike its clones, Disneyland's Big Thunder Mountain is the only Big Thunder Mountain that loads and unloads park guests without a traditional station roof.
, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad is almost a mirror image of the Disneyland version. The only differences are an enclosed loading station on a hillside, the replacement of Big Thunder with Tumbleweed, and an altered section of layout before the second lift hill.
In this version, upon entering the queue, guests make their way up the hillside past old mining equipment to the station building. Once inside, the queue snakes through the upper level of the two level station where guests can view a panorama of the ride. The queue then travels down a gradual ramp, switches back, and reaches the loading station. After a wait, guests enter the 30-45 passenger trains. On the signal of a flashing green lantern at the head end of the platform, the train is clear to leave the station.
Leaving the station, the trains immediately enter a dark tunnel and make a tight left hand turn. After a short straightaway during which the sounds of bats can be heard, the trains make a slight right hand turn and climb the first lift hill. A series of caverns can be seen on the right hand side of the lift hill track. At the top, once again, it slows down and riders make a drop away to the left, before making a right hand turn and going over two hops while passing under the second lift hill and second lift hill drop. It is typical to make a flyby with another train during this section.
After going under the second lift hill drop (which is a point where it may be possible to see the riders on another train), the trains make a tight downwind spiral to the right into a short tunnel. Emerging from the tunnel, riders find themselves in the abandoned town of Tumbleweed. The Walt Disney World Railroad
's track can be seen to the right of the guests. While passing through Tumbleweed, the track goes through several bunny hops, and the train seems to sway from side to side. The swaying is achieved by banking the track slightly. On the left, riders see the wagon of Professor Cumulus
Isobar, whose rainmaking
machine works too well, and a party being held on the second floor of the flooded saloon. On the right, one sees a remaining resident spinning around in a floating bathtub
. In the early years of the ride, the floodwaters in Tumbleweed were much more torrential than they are today.
After Tumbleweed, the trains pass through a short tunnel called Dave V Jones
Mine, make a left hand turn, and climb the second lift hill. At the top, the train slows down and the riders drop away to the left and cross back under the lift hill as the trains rise up into a 540 degree downhill helix to the left, before going over another airtime hill before dropping back down. The trains make a right hand turn into a tunnel, and climb the third lift hill. An earthquake is in progress and the rocks seem ready to crush and bury the train. In the early years of the ride, the tunnel exit seemed to collapse with falling rocks. Cresting the lift hill, the trains slow down and exit out into the daylight, and drop away to the left heading for the Rivers of America
, before they make a left hand turn through a short tunnel, crossing back over the drop, and then drop away to the right through the boneyard and geyser
s before hitting the final brake run and returning to the station.
, Big Thunder Mountain is mostly identical to the Magic Kingdom version of Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, with three exceptions:
, Big Thunder Mountain sits on an island in the middle of the Rivers of the Far West
, where Tom Sawyer's Island would normally sit. Unlike all of the other versions of the ride, this version has an elaborate backstory concerning the town of Thunder Mesa, founded by Henry Ravenswood to support the mining in the mountain. This backstory influences not just Big Thunder Mountain but also Frontierland's other major attraction, Phantom Manor
, Disneyland Paris's equivalent of the Haunted Mansion
.
Although the ride itself is located on an island, guests board the trains at a depot on the mainland. The overall layout of the ride is influenced by Disneyland's Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, it is a mirror image but significantly altered with tunnels to allow trains to travel under the river to the station on the mainland.
Big Thunder Mountain at Disneyland Paris is more heavily themed than the other versions of the ride.
Leaving the station on the mainland, the trains descend into a long and dark tunnel, before making a right hand turn, sharply rising up, and climbing the first lift hill. This tunnel takes guests under the water and onto Big Thunder Island in the middle of the Rivers of the Far West. Stalactites and stalagmites can be seen growing next to the track. The sounds of bat
s up above can also be heard. At the top, a waterfall
parting around the tracks suggests that the tunnel is flooding. Riders leave the first lift hill, slow down a little bit, and drop away to the left before making a right hand turn. If the trains are being dispatched timely, a dueling illusion can be made between the guests' train and a train in the helix.
After this turn, the trains pass under the second lift hill and its drop, before making a left hand turn onto a bridge. A vista of the ride can be seen as the trains make a slight right hand turn, before suddenly falling through a washed out
section of the bridge within view of Phantom Manor. An on-ride camera is present here to take pictures of the riders, which can be purchased after the ride at the Big Thunder Photographer shop near the ride's exit. After the washed out bridge, the trains make a left turn on the remaining, rickety section of the bridge. Entering one of the camps of the Big Thunder Mining Company, trains start climbing the second lift hill. Two tied down donkey
s can be seen to the riders' right, braying at passing guests, with an empty watering pail in front of them. A goat
can be seen pulling on a piece of clothing hanging on a clothesline to the riders' left, as the trains pass a parked steamroller
and mine elevator, and travel under a water tower. Guests are also treated to views of Frontierland
and Phantom Manor
as the trains climb the lift hill.
At the top of the second lift hill, riders can see The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror
at Walt Disney Studios Paris on the horizon. Cresting the second lift hill, the trains drop away to the left into a short straight segment. The squealing of the wheel flanges on the curve can be heard as the train starts down the drop. As guests rise up the hill, one might notice a sign reading "BEWARE! BROKEN TRESTLE!" attached to the water tower at the bottom of the second lift hill (this sign is also visible if one sits in the very back of the train and looks backward as the train climbs the second lift hill). Then the trains cross over a broken trestle as they travel through the downhill 540-degree helix.
Following the helix, the trains pass through a short cave and go over a quick rise and drop as they shoot down a canyon. As the trains drop through the tunnel, a loud gust of wind is heard. Then the trains make a right hand turn atop a rickety trestle into a tunnel with a sign reading "DANGER! T.N.T." over the entrance and climb the third lift hill. As the train starts to climb the third lift hill, an unseen miner can be heard yelling "Fire in the hole
!" After that, it becomes evident that the miners are dynamiting the cave the riders are going through, and blasting can be seen on both sides of the train.
As trains climb the lift hill, an earthquake hits and the rocks violently begin to shake. The tunnel is in danger of collapsing, and a lantern on the left hand side of the train starts swinging back and forth, while a lantern on the right hand side goes out. As the trains crest the lift hill, gold can be seen rushing out of the ceiling before the trains exit the tunnel and travel along a very short straight section of track. Riders get a view out over Frontierland, as well as Space Mountain
in Discoveryland off in the far distance, before dropping away to the left into a straightaway heading for a tunnel portal. The trains then enter a tunnel that seems to go on forever. This is the tunnel that takes guests back to the mainland and back to the station. Guests encounter a swarm of bats in the tunnel. The trains continue to accelerate until suddenly rising out of the tunnel, now back on the mainland. From here, the trains travel past the station, through the loading dock, and then turn around to reenter either station track.
Big Thunder Mountain in Paris can be considered to have four lift hills if one counts the chain that aids in preventing trains from rolling back into the final tunnel as a lift hill.
The screeching of wheel flanges on the second lift hill drop is an effect achieved through a sound effect. Anti-rollback dogs before the second and third lift hills give off a sound effect for the bridges on these turns. The anti-rollback dogs on the washed out bridge before the second lift hill were added in 2009, with the ones before the third lift hill being added in 2008. Anti-rollback dogs are also used on the hill in the canyon after the broken trestle.
Mine Train roller coaster
A Mine Train roller coaster is a steel roller coaster whose trains depict a set of mine carts, sometimes pulled by the reproduction of a steam locomotive which is often designed in a cartoon style...
located in Frontierland
Frontierland
Tokyo Disneyland's instance is known as Westernland, as "frontier" does not adequately translate into the Japanese language. The Mark Twain sails this park's Rivers of America...
at several Disneyland-style Disney Parks worldwide. The ride exists at Disneyland Park (Anaheim)
Disneyland Park (Anaheim)
Disneyland Park is a theme park located in Anaheim, California, owned and operated by the Walt Disney Parks and Resorts division of the Walt Disney Company. Known as Disneyland when it opened on July 18, 1955, and still almost universally referred to by that name, it is the only theme park to be...
and the Magic Kingdom
Magic Kingdom
Magic Kingdom Park is one of four theme parks at the Walt Disney World Resort located near Orlando, Florida. The first park built at the resort, Magic Kingdom opened Oct. 1, 1971. Designed and built by WED Enterprises, the park's layout and attractions are similar to Disneyland in Anaheim, California...
at Walt Disney World
Walt Disney World Resort
Walt Disney World Resort , is the world's most-visited entertaimental resort. Located in Lake Buena Vista, Florida ; approximately southwest of Orlando, Florida, United States, the resort covers an area of and includes four theme parks, two water parks, 23 on-site themed resort hotels Walt...
as Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, and at Tokyo Disneyland
Tokyo Disneyland
is a 115 acre theme park at the Tokyo Disney Resort located in Urayasu, Chiba, Japan, near Tokyo. Its main gate is directly adjacent to both Maihama Station and Tokyo Disneyland Station. It was the first Disney park to be built outside of the United States and opened on April 15, 1983...
and Disneyland Park (Paris)
Disneyland Park (Paris)
Disneyland Park is a theme park at Disneyland Paris, a resort complex just outside of Paris, in the new town of Marne-la-Vallée, France. The first of two parks built at the resort, it opened as Euro Disneyland on 12 April, 1992...
as Big Thunder Mountain. Big Thunder Mountain Railroad is also the name of the fictional rail line the roller coaster depicts.
Theme
Although the details of the backstory vary from park to park, all follow the same general story arcs. Some time in the late 1800s, goldGold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...
was discovered on Big Thunder Mountain in the American southwest. Overnight
Gold rush
A gold rush is a period of feverish migration of workers to an area that has had a dramatic discovery of gold. Major gold rushes took place in the 19th century in Australia, Brazil, Canada, South Africa, and the United States, while smaller gold rushes took place elsewhere.In the 19th and early...
, the small mining town of Rainbow Ridges (at Disneyland), Tumbleweed (at the Magic Kingdom
Magic Kingdom
Magic Kingdom Park is one of four theme parks at the Walt Disney World Resort located near Orlando, Florida. The first park built at the resort, Magic Kingdom opened Oct. 1, 1971. Designed and built by WED Enterprises, the park's layout and attractions are similar to Disneyland in Anaheim, California...
), or Thunder Mesa (at Disneyland Paris
Disneyland Park (Paris)
Disneyland Park is a theme park at Disneyland Paris, a resort complex just outside of Paris, in the new town of Marne-la-Vallée, France. The first of two parks built at the resort, it opened as Euro Disneyland on 12 April, 1992...
) became a thriving mining town. Mining was prosperous, and an extensive line of mine trains was set up to transport the ore
Ore
An ore is a type of rock that contains minerals with important elements including metals. The ores are extracted through mining; these are then refined to extract the valuable element....
. Unknown to the settlers, the Mountain was a sacred spot to local Native Americans
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
and was cursed.
Before long, the settlers' desecration of the mountain caused a great tragedy, which, depending on the park, is usually depicted to be an earthquake
Earthquake
An earthquake is the result of a sudden release of energy in the Earth's crust that creates seismic waves. The seismicity, seismism or seismic activity of an area refers to the frequency, type and size of earthquakes experienced over a period of time...
(Disneyland Paris, Disneyland) or a flash flood
Flash flood
A flash flood is a rapid flooding of geomorphic low-lying areas—washes, rivers, dry lakes and basins. It may be caused by heavy rain associated with a storm, hurricane, or tropical storm or meltwater from ice or snow flowing over ice sheets or snowfields...
(Magic Kingdom), which befell the mines and town, and the town was abandoned. Some time later, the locomotives were found to be racing around the mountain on their own, without engineers or a crew. The Big Thunder Mountain Railroad was founded in the old mining camp to allow tourists to take rides on the possessed trains.
Southwestern United States
The Southwestern United States is a region defined in different ways by different sources. Broad definitions include nearly a quarter of the United States, including Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas and Utah...
. The rock work designs on Disneyland's Big Thunder Mountain Railroad are based on the hoodoos
Hoodoo (geology)
A hoodoo is a tall, thin spire of rock that protrudes from the bottom of an arid drainage basin or badland. Hoodoos consist of relatively soft rock topped by harder, less easily eroded stone that protects each column from the elements...
of Bryce Canyon National Park
Bryce Canyon National Park
Bryce Canyon National Park is a national park located in southwestern Utah in the United States. The major feature of the park is Bryce Canyon which, despite its name, is not a canyon but a giant natural amphitheater created by erosion along the eastern side of the Paunsaugunt Plateau...
in Utah
Utah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
.
In the Magic Kingdom version of Big Thunder Mountain Railroad and in the Tokyo and Paris versions, the rockwork designs are based on the rising buttes that are located in Utah and Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
's Monument Valley
Monument Valley
Monument Valley is a region of the Colorado Plateau characterized by a cluster of vast sandstone buttes, the largest reaching above the valley floor. It is located on the northern border of Arizona with southern Utah , near the Four Corners area...
. Special care was taken by the Imagineers to make it appear that the rocks were there originally, and the track was built around the rocks, unlike a number of earlier mine rides, which were built the other way around (by sculpting the rocks around the tracks). The action of the ride takes place completely in the sagging, rotting tunnels of the mountain. In contrast to most steel roller coaster
Steel roller coaster
A steel roller coaster is a roller coaster that is defined by having a track made of steel. Steel coasters have earned immense popularity in the past 50 years throughout the world...
s, where the thrills come from the perception of flying through open air, the thrills on Big Thunder Mountain Railroad are meant to come from the perceived instability of the mine and its threats of collapse. Sound effects of a typical locomotive operation are piped into the surrounding scenery to add realism to guests viewing the ride from observation platforms, including the steam whistle sounding, even though there is no whistle displayed on the locomotives.
History
Big Thunder Mountain Railroad was designed by Imagineer Tony BaxterTony Baxter (imagineer)
Tony Wayne Baxter is currently Senior Vice President, Creative Development, Walt Disney Imagineering, and is responsible for overall creative direction for the Disneyland Resort....
and ride design engineer Bill Watkins. The concept came from Baxter's work on fellow Imagineer Marc Davis's concept for the Western River Expedition
Western River Expedition
The Western River Expedition is the name of a Disney attraction that was designed but never built. It was to be a western themed boat ride, slated to appear in the northwestern section of Frontierland at the Magic Kingdom, a theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Florida...
, a western-themed pavilion at the Magic Kingdom, designed to look like an enormous plateau
Plateau
In geology and earth science, a plateau , also called a high plain or tableland, is an area of highland, usually consisting of relatively flat terrain. A highly eroded plateau is called a dissected plateau...
and contain many rides, including a runaway mine train roller coaster
Mine Train roller coaster
A Mine Train roller coaster is a steel roller coaster whose trains depict a set of mine carts, sometimes pulled by the reproduction of a steam locomotive which is often designed in a cartoon style...
. However, because the pavilion as a whole, was deemed too expensive in light of the 1973 construction and opening of Pirates of the Caribbean
Pirates of the Caribbean (theme park ride)
Pirates of the Caribbean is a log flume type of dark ride at the Disneyland, Magic Kingdom, Tokyo Disneyland, and Disneyland Paris theme parks....
, Baxter proposed severing the mine train and building it as a separate attraction.
The Big Thunder Mountain Railroad project was put on hold again in 1974 as resources and personnel were being diverted to work on constructing Space Mountain
Space Mountain (Magic Kingdom)
Space Mountain is an indoor outer space-themed steel roller coaster at the Magic Kingdom theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. It opened on January 15, 1975 and is the original version of the iconic attraction that is included in all five of the Disney theme parks...
over in Tomorrowland
Tomorrowland
- Tomorrowland 1955–1967 :The first Tomorrowland opened at Disneyland on July 18, 1955, with only several of its planned attractions open, due to budget cuts. The construction of the park was rushed, so Tomorrowland was the last land to be finished. It became something of a corporate showcase,...
, but this delay may have ultimately produced a smoother ride as the use of computers in attraction design was just beginning when the project was resumed. Big Thunder Mountain Railroad was one of the first Disney rides to utilize computer-aided design
Computer-aided design
Computer-aided design , also known as computer-aided design and drafting , is the use of computer technology for the process of design and design-documentation. Computer Aided Drafting describes the process of drafting with a computer...
. The attraction first opened at Disneyland in 1979, with the Magic Kingdom's larger version in Florida opening in 1980. Tokyo Disneyland added its own version in 1987 and in 1992, Euro Disneyland (now named Disneyland Park) opened with Big Thunder Mountain as an opening day attraction.
Tributes to Mine Train through Nature's Wonderland
At Disneyland, a scaled-down western town sits adjacent to the queuing lines and tracks returning to station. A Western saloon, hotelHotel
A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. The provision of basic accommodation, in times past, consisting only of a room with a bed, a cupboard, a small table and a washstand has largely been replaced by rooms with modern facilities, including en-suite bathrooms...
, assayer's office and mercantile appear among the buildings. This is the village of Rainbow Ridge, which used to overlook the loading platform of the sedate Mine Train through Nature's Wonderland. Disneyland's version of Big Thunder Mountain Railroad was built on the land the Mine Train used to occupy. Many of the animal animatronics throughout the attraction are animatronic animals from previous attraction. Other allusions to the Mine Train through Nature's wonderland include:
- the Rainbow Caverns (glowing pools of water by the first lift hill)
- precariously balanced rocks in the third lift hill
- The name of the ride itself - Big Thunder was originally the name of an enormous waterfall the train passed on the tour. Little Thunder was located nearby.
Name
At the Magic Kingdom and at Disneyland, the ride is known by its full name of Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. The Tokyo and Paris versions would drop the word Railroad in favor of the name Big Thunder Mountain. Tokyo Disneyland's Big Thunder, which is almost identical to the Magic Kingdom's, opened in 1987, five years after the park opening. Also at Magic Kingdom and Disneyland, the name of the ride is sometimes shortened to Big Thunder Mountain, Thunder Mountain Railroad, or even just Thunder Mountain.Imagineers rethought the attraction for Disneyland Paris, creating a layout mostly based on the Disneyland's Big Thunder Mountain Railroad but with several significant changes to both the layout and accompanying structure.
The revised European ride, takes the form of a large island in the center of the Rivers of the Far West
Rivers of America (Disney)
The Rivers of America is an artificial river found in the Frontierland district of the Magic Kingdom-classed Disney theme parks around the world. The first river was built in Disneyland when the park opened in 1955. It surrounds Tom Sawyer Island, which can be reached by rafts traveling from the...
, accessed from its riverside station by tunnels underneath the water. The attraction in Disneyland Paris is the only Big Thunder Mountain to have been an opening day attraction at the park. Hong Kong Disneyland
Hong Kong Disneyland
Hong Kong Disneyland is located on reclaimed land in Penny's Bay, Lantau Island. It is the first theme park located inside the Hong Kong Disneyland Resort and is owned and managed by the Hong Kong International Theme Parks. The park opened to visitors on 12 September 2005...
does not have a Big Thunder Mountain Railroad attraction (or a western-themed Frontierland
Frontierland
Tokyo Disneyland's instance is known as Westernland, as "frontier" does not adequately translate into the Japanese language. The Mark Twain sails this park's Rivers of America...
, for that matter), however, a planned Grizzly Gulch is under construction at Hong Kong Disneyland with a theme similar to Frontierland. The planned attraction Big Grizzly Mountain Runaway Mine Cars will carry a theme similar to Big Thunder Mountain Railroad's theme.
Disneyland version
Disneyland's version of Big Thunder Mountain Railroad is the original version of the ride.Upon entering the attraction, the queue winds through a narrow rock wall and passing under the tracks. The surrounding walls were originally created from 100 tons of gold ore from Rosamond
Rosamond, California
Rosamond is a census-designated place in Kern County, California, USA, north of Palmdale, in the Antelope Valley, the westernmost desert valley of the Mojave Desert. Rosamond is also south of Mojave, , and north of Lancaster at an elevation of 2342 feet...
. Within this half of the queue, a series of Wild West themed features including a mining town (called "Big Thunder") and a water cranking machine. The mining town is the original location of the boarding area of the Mine Train Through Nature's Wonderland. The queue goes up some stairs in a wooden shack and reaches the area where the riders board the trains. Leaving the outdoor loading station, riders enter a dark tunnel. The sounds of bats can be heard as the trains make a right hand turn and then a left hand turn before climbing the first lift hill. To the left of the trains, guests can view a series of rainbow colored caverns. These are also placed as a tribute to the Mine Train Through Nature's Wonderland. At the top, the trains exit into the daylight and stayed slow at the drop before making a 180-degree turn drop to the right before leveling out into the left-hand turn, before making a small drop and climb, and then making another right-hand turn (passing under a tree with several opossums
Virginia Opossum
The Virginia opossum , commonly known as the North American opossum or tlacuache in Mexico, is the only marsupial found in North America north of Mexico. A solitary and nocturnal animal about the size of a domestic cat, and thus the largest opossum, it is a successful opportunist...
hanging from it). The trains then drop down into a cave (where two coyotes are howling on top of), rise up, hit a block brake, make a right-hand turn, exit the tunnel, and climb the second lift hill.
Warnings of blasting up ahead on the track can be seen by guests as the trains crest the second lift hill. Three desert tortoise
Desert Tortoise
The desert tortoise is a species of tortoise native to the Mojave desert and Sonoran desert of the southwestern United States and northwestern Mexico. They can be located in western Arizona, southeastern California, southern Nevada, and southwestern Utah. The species name agassizii is in honor of...
s and two rattlesnakes can also be seen alongside the lift hill. As the trains go slow and start to drop away to the right, an animatronic goat with a stick of dynamite in its mouth bleats at the passing guests and 2 skunks
Striped Skunk
The striped skunk, Mephitis mephitis, is an omnivorous mammal of the skunk family Mephitidae. Found over most of the North American continent north of Mexico, it is one of the best-known mammals in Canada and the United States.-Description:...
attempt to spray the passing guests. After descending this drop, the trains rise up into a 540-degree downhill helix to the right before passing over another hill, making a left-hand turn into a tunnel, and climbing the third lift hill. While climbing the third lift hill, rocks start shaking, simulating an earthquake, and appearing ready to crush the riders.
At the top, the trains exit the lift hill, slow down, and drop away to the right into a short straightaway, making another right-hand turn into a short tunnel onto a trim brake bridge. After this bridge, riders drop away to the left, passing a T-Rex skeleton and splashing through Dinosaur Gap, as they rise up to the right into the final brake run. The trains pass by the buildings of Big Thunder before returning to the station.
Unlike its clones, Disneyland's Big Thunder Mountain is the only Big Thunder Mountain that loads and unloads park guests without a traditional station roof.
Magic Kingdom version
At the Magic KingdomMagic Kingdom
Magic Kingdom Park is one of four theme parks at the Walt Disney World Resort located near Orlando, Florida. The first park built at the resort, Magic Kingdom opened Oct. 1, 1971. Designed and built by WED Enterprises, the park's layout and attractions are similar to Disneyland in Anaheim, California...
, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad is almost a mirror image of the Disneyland version. The only differences are an enclosed loading station on a hillside, the replacement of Big Thunder with Tumbleweed, and an altered section of layout before the second lift hill.
In this version, upon entering the queue, guests make their way up the hillside past old mining equipment to the station building. Once inside, the queue snakes through the upper level of the two level station where guests can view a panorama of the ride. The queue then travels down a gradual ramp, switches back, and reaches the loading station. After a wait, guests enter the 30-45 passenger trains. On the signal of a flashing green lantern at the head end of the platform, the train is clear to leave the station.
Leaving the station, the trains immediately enter a dark tunnel and make a tight left hand turn. After a short straightaway during which the sounds of bats can be heard, the trains make a slight right hand turn and climb the first lift hill. A series of caverns can be seen on the right hand side of the lift hill track. At the top, once again, it slows down and riders make a drop away to the left, before making a right hand turn and going over two hops while passing under the second lift hill and second lift hill drop. It is typical to make a flyby with another train during this section.
After going under the second lift hill drop (which is a point where it may be possible to see the riders on another train), the trains make a tight downwind spiral to the right into a short tunnel. Emerging from the tunnel, riders find themselves in the abandoned town of Tumbleweed. The Walt Disney World Railroad
Walt Disney World Railroad
The Walt Disney World Railroad is a narrow gauge railroad circling the Magic Kingdom theme park at Walt Disney World Resort. Operated by Main Street Operations, the gauge, 1.5-mile railroad circles the entire park with stations at Main Street, U.S.A. and Frontierland, and formerly at the...
's track can be seen to the right of the guests. While passing through Tumbleweed, the track goes through several bunny hops, and the train seems to sway from side to side. The swaying is achieved by banking the track slightly. On the left, riders see the wagon of Professor Cumulus
Cumulus cloud
Cumulus clouds are a type of cloud with noticeable vertical development and clearly defined edges. Cumulus means "heap" or "pile" in Latin. They are often described as "puffy" or "cotton-like" in appearance. Cumulus clouds may appear alone, in lines, or in clusters...
Isobar, whose rainmaking
Rainmaking
Rainmaking refers to the act of attempting to artificially induce or increase precipitation, usually to stave off drought.In the US, rainmaking was attempted by traveling showmen. It was practiced in the old west but may have reached a peak during the dust bowl drought of the American West and...
machine works too well, and a party being held on the second floor of the flooded saloon. On the right, one sees a remaining resident spinning around in a floating bathtub
Bathtub
A bath , bathtub , or tub is a large container for holding water in which a person may bathe . Most modern bathtubs are made of acrylic or fiberglass, but alternatives are available in enamel over steel or cast iron, and occasionally waterproof finished wood...
. In the early years of the ride, the floodwaters in Tumbleweed were much more torrential than they are today.
After Tumbleweed, the trains pass through a short tunnel called Dave V Jones
Davy Jones (Pirates of the Caribbean)
Davy Jones is a fictional character and antagonist in the Pirates of the Caribbean series. Davy Jones is the captain of the Flying Dutchman , roaming the seas in search of souls to serve upon his vessel for a century...
Mine, make a left hand turn, and climb the second lift hill. At the top, the train slows down and the riders drop away to the left and cross back under the lift hill as the trains rise up into a 540 degree downhill helix to the left, before going over another airtime hill before dropping back down. The trains make a right hand turn into a tunnel, and climb the third lift hill. An earthquake is in progress and the rocks seem ready to crush and bury the train. In the early years of the ride, the tunnel exit seemed to collapse with falling rocks. Cresting the lift hill, the trains slow down and exit out into the daylight, and drop away to the left heading for the Rivers of America
Rivers of America (Disney)
The Rivers of America is an artificial river found in the Frontierland district of the Magic Kingdom-classed Disney theme parks around the world. The first river was built in Disneyland when the park opened in 1955. It surrounds Tom Sawyer Island, which can be reached by rafts traveling from the...
, before they make a left hand turn through a short tunnel, crossing back over the drop, and then drop away to the right through the boneyard and geyser
Geyser
A geyser is a spring characterized by intermittent discharge of water ejected turbulently and accompanied by a vapour phase . The word geyser comes from Geysir, the name of an erupting spring at Haukadalur, Iceland; that name, in turn, comes from the Icelandic verb geysa, "to gush", the verb...
s before hitting the final brake run and returning to the station.
Tokyo Disneyland version
At Tokyo DisneylandTokyo Disneyland
is a 115 acre theme park at the Tokyo Disney Resort located in Urayasu, Chiba, Japan, near Tokyo. Its main gate is directly adjacent to both Maihama Station and Tokyo Disneyland Station. It was the first Disney park to be built outside of the United States and opened on April 15, 1983...
, Big Thunder Mountain is mostly identical to the Magic Kingdom version of Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, with three exceptions:
- The abandoned town section is replaced by a longer cave before the second lift hill.
- The station sits on columns rather than on a hillside.
- The ending is altered. Instead of crossing back over the drop from the third lift hill, the track makes a U-turn before dropping through the Boneyard/geyser scene, passing through a short tunnel, and making a right hand turn into the final brakes. The trains pass in front of the station, and then turn back into the boarding area.
Disneyland Park (Paris) version
At Disneyland Park (Paris)Disneyland Park (Paris)
Disneyland Park is a theme park at Disneyland Paris, a resort complex just outside of Paris, in the new town of Marne-la-Vallée, France. The first of two parks built at the resort, it opened as Euro Disneyland on 12 April, 1992...
, Big Thunder Mountain sits on an island in the middle of the Rivers of the Far West
Rivers of America (Disney)
The Rivers of America is an artificial river found in the Frontierland district of the Magic Kingdom-classed Disney theme parks around the world. The first river was built in Disneyland when the park opened in 1955. It surrounds Tom Sawyer Island, which can be reached by rafts traveling from the...
, where Tom Sawyer's Island would normally sit. Unlike all of the other versions of the ride, this version has an elaborate backstory concerning the town of Thunder Mesa, founded by Henry Ravenswood to support the mining in the mountain. This backstory influences not just Big Thunder Mountain but also Frontierland's other major attraction, Phantom Manor
Phantom Manor
Phantom Manor is an attraction located in Frontierland at Disneyland Park in Disneyland Paris. Sharing a similar theme with the Haunted Mansion attractions at Disneyland, Magic Kingdom and Tokyo Disneyland, it opened with Euro Disneyland on April 12, 1992...
, Disneyland Paris's equivalent of the Haunted Mansion
Haunted Mansion
The Haunted Mansion is a dark ride located at Disneyland, the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World and Tokyo Disneyland. A significantly re-imagined incarnation of the ride, known as Phantom Manor, is located in Disneyland Paris...
.
Although the ride itself is located on an island, guests board the trains at a depot on the mainland. The overall layout of the ride is influenced by Disneyland's Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, it is a mirror image but significantly altered with tunnels to allow trains to travel under the river to the station on the mainland.
Big Thunder Mountain at Disneyland Paris is more heavily themed than the other versions of the ride.
Leaving the station on the mainland, the trains descend into a long and dark tunnel, before making a right hand turn, sharply rising up, and climbing the first lift hill. This tunnel takes guests under the water and onto Big Thunder Island in the middle of the Rivers of the Far West. Stalactites and stalagmites can be seen growing next to the track. The sounds of bat
Bat
Bats are mammals of the order Chiroptera "hand" and pteron "wing") whose forelimbs form webbed wings, making them the only mammals naturally capable of true and sustained flight. By contrast, other mammals said to fly, such as flying squirrels, gliding possums, and colugos, glide rather than fly,...
s up above can also be heard. At the top, a waterfall
Waterfall
A waterfall is a place where flowing water rapidly drops in elevation as it flows over a steep region or a cliff.-Formation:Waterfalls are commonly formed when a river is young. At these times the channel is often narrow and deep. When the river courses over resistant bedrock, erosion happens...
parting around the tracks suggests that the tunnel is flooding. Riders leave the first lift hill, slow down a little bit, and drop away to the left before making a right hand turn. If the trains are being dispatched timely, a dueling illusion can be made between the guests' train and a train in the helix.
After this turn, the trains pass under the second lift hill and its drop, before making a left hand turn onto a bridge. A vista of the ride can be seen as the trains make a slight right hand turn, before suddenly falling through a washed out
Washout
A washout is the sudden erosion of soft soil or other support surfaces by a gush of water, usually occurring during a heavy downpour of rain or other stream flooding. These downpours may occur locally in a thunderstorm , or over a large area, such as following the landfall of a tropical cyclone...
section of the bridge within view of Phantom Manor. An on-ride camera is present here to take pictures of the riders, which can be purchased after the ride at the Big Thunder Photographer shop near the ride's exit. After the washed out bridge, the trains make a left turn on the remaining, rickety section of the bridge. Entering one of the camps of the Big Thunder Mining Company, trains start climbing the second lift hill. Two tied down donkey
Donkey
The donkey or ass, Equus africanus asinus, is a domesticated member of the Equidae or horse family. The wild ancestor of the donkey is the African Wild Ass, E...
s can be seen to the riders' right, braying at passing guests, with an empty watering pail in front of them. A goat
Goat
The domestic goat is a subspecies of goat domesticated from the wild goat of southwest Asia and Eastern Europe. The goat is a member of the Bovidae family and is closely related to the sheep as both are in the goat-antelope subfamily Caprinae. There are over three hundred distinct breeds of...
can be seen pulling on a piece of clothing hanging on a clothesline to the riders' left, as the trains pass a parked steamroller
Steamroller
A steamroller is a form of road roller – a type of heavy construction machinery used for levelling surfaces, such as roads or airfields – that is powered by a steam engine...
and mine elevator, and travel under a water tower. Guests are also treated to views of Frontierland
Frontierland
Tokyo Disneyland's instance is known as Westernland, as "frontier" does not adequately translate into the Japanese language. The Mark Twain sails this park's Rivers of America...
and Phantom Manor
Phantom Manor
Phantom Manor is an attraction located in Frontierland at Disneyland Park in Disneyland Paris. Sharing a similar theme with the Haunted Mansion attractions at Disneyland, Magic Kingdom and Tokyo Disneyland, it opened with Euro Disneyland on April 12, 1992...
as the trains climb the lift hill.
At the top of the second lift hill, riders can see The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror
The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror
The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror, more commonly known as Tower of Terror, is a drop tower thrill ride at Disney's Hollywood Studios , Disney California Adventure Park, Tokyo DisneySea and Walt Disney Studios Park . It is based upon the television show The Twilight Zone...
at Walt Disney Studios Paris on the horizon. Cresting the second lift hill, the trains drop away to the left into a short straight segment. The squealing of the wheel flanges on the curve can be heard as the train starts down the drop. As guests rise up the hill, one might notice a sign reading "BEWARE! BROKEN TRESTLE!" attached to the water tower at the bottom of the second lift hill (this sign is also visible if one sits in the very back of the train and looks backward as the train climbs the second lift hill). Then the trains cross over a broken trestle as they travel through the downhill 540-degree helix.
Following the helix, the trains pass through a short cave and go over a quick rise and drop as they shoot down a canyon. As the trains drop through the tunnel, a loud gust of wind is heard. Then the trains make a right hand turn atop a rickety trestle into a tunnel with a sign reading "DANGER! T.N.T." over the entrance and climb the third lift hill. As the train starts to climb the third lift hill, an unseen miner can be heard yelling "Fire in the hole
Fire in the hole
"Fire in the hole" is a warning used in English-speaking countries to indicate that an explosive detonation in a confined space is imminent. It originated with miners, who needed to warn their fellows that a charge had been set....
!" After that, it becomes evident that the miners are dynamiting the cave the riders are going through, and blasting can be seen on both sides of the train.
As trains climb the lift hill, an earthquake hits and the rocks violently begin to shake. The tunnel is in danger of collapsing, and a lantern on the left hand side of the train starts swinging back and forth, while a lantern on the right hand side goes out. As the trains crest the lift hill, gold can be seen rushing out of the ceiling before the trains exit the tunnel and travel along a very short straight section of track. Riders get a view out over Frontierland, as well as Space Mountain
Space Mountain: Mission 2
Space Mountain: Mission 2 is a steel roller coaster-type attraction in Discoveryland at Disneyland Park in Disneyland Paris themed around a journey into space. The attraction opened on June 1, 1995, three years after the opening of the park, as a revival of interest to draw more guests to the...
in Discoveryland off in the far distance, before dropping away to the left into a straightaway heading for a tunnel portal. The trains then enter a tunnel that seems to go on forever. This is the tunnel that takes guests back to the mainland and back to the station. Guests encounter a swarm of bats in the tunnel. The trains continue to accelerate until suddenly rising out of the tunnel, now back on the mainland. From here, the trains travel past the station, through the loading dock, and then turn around to reenter either station track.
Big Thunder Mountain in Paris can be considered to have four lift hills if one counts the chain that aids in preventing trains from rolling back into the final tunnel as a lift hill.
The screeching of wheel flanges on the second lift hill drop is an effect achieved through a sound effect. Anti-rollback dogs before the second and third lift hills give off a sound effect for the bridges on these turns. The anti-rollback dogs on the washed out bridge before the second lift hill were added in 2009, with the ones before the third lift hill being added in 2008. Anti-rollback dogs are also used on the hill in the canyon after the broken trestle.
Accidents
- A 22 year-old man was killed on the Disneyland incarnation in a derailment on September 5, 2003, purportedly as a result of neglected ride maintenance. The court case surrounding this was settled out of court in 2005 and a scholarship fund was set up at Brooks College, a Southern California university, in the victim's name for aspiring animators as he was seeking a career in animation.
- In Disneyland Paris, on April 25, 2011, at 2:50p.m., a fiberglass rock and some wood on Lift C fell on the train, injuring 5 people out of 25 who were in the train. One of them was a 38 year old man who was severely hit on the head and was transported to the Beaujon hospital at the town of Clichy Sur Seine. The other four returned to the park the same day. The man left hospital a few days later. The attraction was closed for investigations to determine the causes of the accident. Once the attraction reopened, the falling rock scene was removed from the attraction.
See also
- List of current Disneyland attractions
- Magic Kingdom attraction and entertainment historyMagic Kingdom attraction and entertainment historyThe Magic Kingdom is a theme park located at the Walt Disney World Resort in Florida. Below is a list of the current attractions found therein, arranged by "land" and with brief descriptions...
- Tokyo Disneyland attraction and entertainment historyTokyo Disneyland attraction and entertainment history-Current attractions:* Snow White's Adventures* Pinocchio's Daring Journey* Dumbo the Flying Elephant* Cinderella Castle* Cinderella's Fairy Tale Hall* Castle Carrousel* Alice's Tea Party* Peter Pan's Flight* Pooh's Hunny Hunt* It's a Small World...
Official links
- Disneyland - Attraction Profile
- Magic Kingdom - Attraction Profile
- Tokyo Disneyland - Attraction Profile
- Disneyland Resort Paris - Attraction Profile
- Video footage from riders' POV