First up is this great photo taken at the aftermath of the train robbery. A curious crowd watches as the undertaker (who looks to be about 18) brushes off the corpse of the bad man. They're about to cart the body away, and the desperado will be buried in boot hill, in a narrow grave just 6 by 3. Crime never pays!
Uncle Maynard feels like a kid again as he poses atop the Wells Fargo stagecoach, holding invisible reins and skillfully driving his team of imaginary fiery steeds. He has to get the mail to Denver by sundown, hopefully he won't run into any bandits!
And finally, a nice overview of the area where you could pan for real gold. I like the fact that they excavated a sort of "strip mine" area for you to walk down into just to make things interesting... it would have been much easier (and cheaper) to just build the thing at ground level. When it came to old-timey western flavor, Knott's definitely gave Disney a run for their money.
Ahhhh... I sure miss the Pan For Gold...
ReplyDelete"in a narrow grave just 6 by 3"
ReplyDeleteDid they bury him there, on the lone prairie? The six year old in me wants to poke the body with a stick.
Great Pics! I wish they would have rebuilt the gold panning area after putting in the Ghost Rider. Now it is just a big rock garden with subtle hints of it's former glory.
ReplyDeleteThese are great. I can smell the gun powder now.
ReplyDeleteDon't worry bout Uncle Maynard, the bandits will be invisible too. :)
ReplyDeleteoh man! i was hoping to pan for gold when i get there someday.
ReplyDeletethe simple pleasures are just not what they used to be....
The Pan for Gold is still there, just took my son a couple of months ago. Different location though. He loved it.
ReplyDeleteI gotta say, concrete rock sculpting has come a long way since those early days... Looks like they just slushed some down that left side and let it set!
ReplyDelete