Tuesday, January 14, 2020

River Pix, 1996

I'm working my way through a whole bunch of nice Frontierland photos taken by Mr. X, mostly featuring the river and its many charms. It's almost as if he knew there would be big changes in a few decades.

One thing that doesn't change is the presence of ducks. Imagine being a duck at Disneyland! Sometimes lucky guests will see a mama and her ducklings strolling by, probably on their way to ride Space Mountain.


Here's a nice picture of a Keelboat as it was passing Cascade Peak. That vessel is full, you couldn't cram more people on board with a shoehorn. There's the usual CM piloting the Keelboat (at the stern), but there are two freeloading CMs relaxing up front. That's the way to make a paycheck!


And speaking of Cascade Peak, here it is again; this time we have a Davy Crockett Explorer Canoe, with its full compliment of 20 guests, plus 2 CMs to keep them from founding on the rocks or being eaten by snapping turtles the size of Edsels. 


Thanks to Mr. X for these pretty photos of Frontierland!

10 comments:

Nanook said...

Major-

Yes, those CM's are 'living the life' "keeping a weather eye out" for any snapping turtles, indeed-! Cheers for Cascade Peak.

Thanks to Mr. X.

MIKE COZART said...

Yeah that’s a BIG THUNDER MOUNTAIN RR cm and a TOM SAWYER ISLAND cm ridin’ up front on that Keel Boat !! I wonder why? I don’t think most guests had any idea of the changes that would eventually take place to The Rivers of America .... sadly, mostly for worse.

Andrew said...

Mike Cozart, I wonder if that was just how the CMs chose to take their break. A ride around the river would certainly be an appealing option! Also, I think it's very impressive how you can identify where CMs worked just by their costumes in semi-distant pictures. Now that's attention to detail!

Chuck said...

Ah, Cascade Peak...how we miss you.

A year later, and one of those CM's would have been leaning forward at the bow, arms outstretched, and yelling "I'm King of the World!" Titanic ruined casual bow-riding for everybody.

Thanks, Mr. X, for these photos...and good work keeping your kid brother safe on the race track all those years.

"Lou and Sue" said...

Beautiful photos, Mr. X and Major - thank you!

Sue

zach said...

Mr X, you've done it again. And thanks for sharing Major P.

dz

K. Martinez said...

My favorite pic today is that of the mama duck and her ducklings. It reminds me of one of my pastime pleasures at Disneyland. Watching the birds. I used enjoy waiting in line at the Autopia and watching the little sparrows bring twigs and bits of food to their nests located underneath the Autopia awnings or scavenging for French fries and pieces of hamburger bun at the Tomorrowland Terrace.

And then there are the ducklings that swim along the shores of the Rivers of America following closely behind mama. Also, got a kick out of the occasional duck that would wander over and enjoy the waters of the Jungle Cruise too. Thanks Mr. X and Major.

Major Pepperidge said...

Nanook, some say there’s a snapping turtle so big that people think it’s an island!

Mike Cozart, those fellows look so relaxed, it doesn’t feel like they are “on the clock”. Maybe they truly were just enjoying a pleasant ride?

Andrew, I’ve spoken to a few other former CMs, and on occasion some of them would enjoy the privileges (such as going where regular guests couldn’t go) to enjoy their lunch breaks. Mr. X used to eat lunch in Nature’s Wonderland where guests couldn’t see him!

Chuck, I am ashamed at how long it took me to get your “Speed Racer” reference. When I think of all the hours I spent watching that show….

Lou and Sue, I’m sure he was happy to share!

dzacher, glad you liked these.

K. Martinez, I forget if I mentioned the sparrows in a comment or in a post that hasn’t published yet, but I did used to watch those birds hopping around various Disneyland eateries, grabbing fries or whatever happened to fall on the ground. Once in a while I’ve seen a mother duck leading her babies across a busy stretch of Frontierland walkway, and I always worry that some clueless guest will hurt them. Seeing photos of ducks resting on the crocodiles in the Jungle Cruise is one of my favorite things!

Melissa said...

If I was in charge I'd *encourage* costumed CM's to take a "busman's holiday" like that. It adds authentic color to the guests' ride experience. Oh ye of little haw.

pursuit agent said...

Mike Cozart, the Thunder-costumed cast member is actually wearing the 1996-era Keel Boat costume. When they brought back the attraction after the hiatus, they didn't bring back the western shirts that were unique to the ride. They had to cobble to costume together from other existing ones, so it consisted of a Thunder hat, a white undershirt from the Country Bear Jamboree, the green vest from Thunder, and Splash Mountain trousers. As to the handkerchiefs, I can't remember if the blue ones from Thunder were used, or where the red ones came from - maybe a restaurant location?