Big Thunder Mountain

Big Thunder Mountain Railroad sits next to the Rivers of America waterway.  The steam-powered Mark Twain Riverboat paddlewheel operates on the river.  A pilot is stationed at the top of the 150-ton boat, but the ship is attached to an underwater track, so steering the vessel is not required.  A crewmember stationed at the lower level near the aft end of the ship actually sets the boat's speed by controlling the steam output from the bio-diesel-fueled boiler.

The trees on the right edge of the picture sit on Tom Sawyer Island, an artificial island that sits within the man-made river.  There are no rides on the island, but there are some caves to explore and structures to climb.  The only way onto the island is by boat.  Guests can take motorized rafts that have room for about three dozen guests to stand during the quick trip to and from the island.  The other way to cross the river is by using Tokyo Disneyland's only human-powered ride, the Beaver Brothers Explorer Canoes.  Originally called Davy Crocket Explorer Canoes, each small boat has room for 20 guests.  Similar canoe rides used to operate at Walt Disney World and Disneyland Paris, but both locations got rid of their canoes in the mid 1990s.  Disneyland in California and Shanghai Disneyland in China still have canoes that operate during good weather conditions.  This picture shows three motorized rafts at the docks, but not the small canoes or large paddle-boat.

©2022 Joel A. Rogers.