Birt Family Focus

Splash Mountain -- 10/09/01
Photos by Cheryl

Let's All Go to the Laughin' Place!

Wagons HO! Dole whips in hand, we leave Adventureland and head into the rootenest tootenest part of the Magic Kingdom for some good old fashioned fun.

My family always enters Frontierland from Adventureland so the first thing we encounter is Splash Mountain. This has a fast pass booth so if the line is long (and it can be 2-3 hours long at times) got one and come back later- you don't want to miss it!

Themed around the old south and the Uncle Remus stories I always heard as a child, this ride has special significance for me. Long before Walt made Song of the South, my granddaddy was telling me those tales.Just hearing his voice in my head as I move through the queue puts me in a laughing place. Though the official theme is the movie, there is very little of that here- it's all Brer Rabbit and his cronies, especially Brer Fox and Brer Bear.

Except for the big drop for which this ride is famous, this is a mild little boat ride with incredibly cute tableaux depicting Brer Rabbit trying to get away from Brer Fox and Brer Bear. The sets are amazingly detailed and the critters are cute as a bug's ear. "Specially those 'possums. :-)

Here's a trivia question- what attraction has bunches of big bare bear butts? You guessed it. My DD has invented a game for this ride- counting up how often you are treated to a scene involving Brer Bear's backside. There are several, but even though the final count never changes, Jessie loves to play.

The last time we rode this, Sept. 15th, we got wetter than usual because of some circumstances I believe were planned so beware- there is no way to ride this and stay dry. For one thing, the boat now hesitates before entering the mountain. It hesitates just long enough to take on a few million gallons of water as a result of the previous boat's five story drop splash. Also, in the Laughing Place, where once the fountains jumped across your boat, one now streams continuously across at a low enough angle to make you have to duck to avoid getting hit full on the side of the head. It is easy for the rider in the seat ahead of you to hold up a hand and direct the flow right into your face, too. Just ask my DH. These things happened every time we rode that day (3 times) so I think they were imagineared.

A few tips- if you want to stay dry, wear a poncho- one long enough to cover the seat when you sit down, it will be wet already when you first get in. If you want to get really wet- request a seat in the front of the boat. Open your eyes at the top of the drop for a spectacular view of the Magic Kingdom. Lastly- ride it several times- you will need to do this to see all the details- and besides it's fun!