Splash Mountain

The Magic Kingdom is the most famous of the Disney parks and the one people think of when you speak of Walt Disney World.  So naturally it was the first park we visited as we continued our first full day on The Magic Tour.  Everyone was very excited about such classic rides as Space Mountain, Pirates of the Caribbean, The Haunted Mansion and the Jungle Cruise.  But the biggest anticipation was reserved for the newest ride at the MK, Splash Mountain.  Splash Mountain was the newest ride at the MK, having been open for less than a year.  The ride was a boat trip through the stories of the movie Song of the South, featuring such characters as Brer Bear and Brer Rabbit.  The rides climaxes with a huge climb to the top of the mountain and then a monster drop into the "Brier Patch" below.  Perhaps the easiest way to describe it is with words from the back of a t-shirt my wife Marilyn has had since those early days, pictured below.

We rode the ride over and over again that week, waiting in lines as long as two hours to do so.  Every ride was better than the last, and each one left us soaking wet.  We discovered that if we went to the ride during the 11 PM parade time we could avoid the lines and ride a couple of times before the park closed at midnight.  It was also, of course, the perfect ride in the heat of the day.  There was little question that Splash Mountain was one of the hits of the trip.

Our first day had been a huge success.  And on Monday, we were off to Hoop-de-doo!