Frontierland got a whole lot wilder on September 15, 1979 when Big Thunder Mountain Railroad opened and coined the phrase as “the wildest ride in the wilderness”!  Big Thunder Mountain Railroad is reminiscent of the fanciful red-rock buttes of Bryce Canyon National Park in Utah and is covered by authentic and imaginative sights, including a goat with dynamite.

Big Thunder Mountain Railroad was the third of four mountains in the Disneyland mountain range.  This railroad themed roller coaster ride is a runaway mine train and takes riders through desert canyons and an old mining town with several other diversions along the way.  Although, by today’s standards, it is barely a thrill ride, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad continues to prove that it has what it takes to be a favorite at Disneyland and other parks around the world.

Disney Imaginers scouted swap meets, auctions, ghost towns, and abandoned mines throughout the West in order to find the genuine, antique gold-rush-era mining equipment located along the walkway to the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad depot.  Such equipment includes a 1,200-pound cogwheel used to break down ore, a hand-powered drill press, and a 10-foot-tall, 1880 stamp mill.

Big Thunder Mountain Railroad may not be the biggest mountain in the Disneyland Resort, but you should still make it a point to take this in on your trip.  It really is the “wildest ride in the wilderness”.  Just make sure that you take off your hats and glasses or they will for sure come up missing!

Additional Trivia and Fun Facts

• The little mining town at the base of Big Thunder Mountain, called Rainbow Ridge, was the original departure point for the former attraction, Mine Train Thru Nature’s Wonderland.
• Each of the six trains of the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad has a name such as I.M. Brave, U.B. Bold, I.B. Hearty, U.R. Courageous, U.R. Daring and I.M. Fearless.
• Even though there are six trains, only five can be in operation at a time.
• Big Thunder Mountain Railroad was built on the “Rainbow Caverns Mine Trail”, which later became “Mine Train Through Nature’s Wonderland”.
• Genuine antique mining equipment can be found all around the attraction.
• The rocks in the “earthquake” tunnel used to appear to fall, but now glittering veins of gold and projections have replaced them.
• Imagineer Tony Baxter and ride design engineer, Bill Watkins, designed Big Thunder Mountain Railroad.  The concept idea came from Baxter’s work on the runaway mine train segment of Marc Davis’ Western River Expedition showroom, Thunder Mesa.
• The sound effects of the actual train going on the tracks were used in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom for the mine cart sequence.
• In 2006, an inflatable doll dressed as a Guantanamo Bay detainment camp prisoner (orange jumpsuit, black hood and handcuffs) was placed beside the tracks by artist Backsy.