Ok, My Mother was my best Disneyland buddy. She was one of the only people who understood how I felt about the park. Not just with her head, but since she was so much like me, she understood it in her heart as well. So, baring that in mind, WE had a couple of favorites from that era. Number one was the MINE TRAIN THROUGH NATURE'S WONDERLAND. At the time that we were enjoying this attraction we were living half the time in the Mojave Desert at 29 Palms and we both loved the desert. Sure it was hot, but it had a special beauty, if you knew where to look. Also, we were both animal nuts. The local sheriffs office knew that if they found a hurt wild animal, Mom was the one to bring it to. So as we rode the train past bobcats and coyotes, rabbits and roadrunners... and several other species of animals... we were seeing some of our old "house guests" in their won homes. I especially loved the part of the trip where we went by CASCADE PEAK and under BIG THUNDER FALLS. It was sometimes a real trick to go under if the high Santa Ana winds were kicking up. The engineer had to TRY and time his run to when the wind was off.... But I have wound up soaked more than once! That stretch of track was VERY special to me. I loved to sit on Tom Sawyer's Island and watch the train go past us, under the falls and into the tunnel to Bear Country. I once had a fantasy wedding in my mind. On the Deck of the COLUMBIA at sunset, with her "hove to" (sitting ) off of Cascade peak, to be married by the ships Captain and to walk the aisle between two rows of ship's crew. Now the peak is gone, the train is gone, and there is serious talk of tearing down fort wilderness on the island. sighhh. Another thing I loved on the trip was to go over that rickety old bridge by the bears. I really love finding photos of the train on that stretch of track. And no tale of the Mine Train would be complete without finishing up with the RAINBOW CAVERNS. That place was always cool and damp... and when I was little, the music and the dark kind of scared me, especially with the sign pointing to "witches cauldron!" One of the biggest reasons I loved this attraction was that no matter how many times I went on it I almost always discovered something new. The little marmots that popped up over the tunnel to "whistle at the pretty ladies" were so cute! I am glad that they moved into the wrecked ore train on my old favorite stretch of track, but it still isn't quite the same. Laura, [email protected]
The photograph is from the booklet
Walt Disney's pictorial souvenir book of Disneyland, page 15.
Updated: November 2, 2001