The Disneyland Book of Secrets 2014: One Local's Unauthorized, Rapturous and Indispensable Guide to the Happiest Places on Earth (48 page)

Big Thunder Ranch

[
FastView:
 
Time travel back to the old frontier, complete with a ranch and petting zoo, toe-tapping music, and hearty eats.  This is where the presidentially pardoned turkeys used to retire.
]

When
Walt
was creating
Disneyland
, he was consciously conceiving a world that would balance nostalgia with innovation, history with progress, the homespun with the high-tech, and “hard facts” with fantasy.  One of the reasons that the park continues to attract millions of Guests each year, many of them returning locals, is that
Disneyland
achieves such balances and thereby offers something to every Guest.

Walt
and his
Imagineers
always wanted to provide thrills and motion to Guests, but they also intentionally crafted placid, enchanting nooks where Guests could rest and reflect.  One of these calm charmers is
Big Thunder Ranch
, accessible along the
Big Thunder Trail
by traveling west from
Fantasyland
or northeast from
Frontierland
’s main drag.  Although not developed until 1986, 20 years after
Walt
’s demise, this little ranch perfectly partakes of the original
Disneyland
spirit of balancing the thrilling with the serene.

Big Thunder Trail
itself is usually a quiet, backwoods path, lined with shady trees, ponds, and the earthy rust-orange rock formations of
Big Thunder Mountain
.  It’s almost impossible to rush anywhere along this trail; you find yourself slowing down, listening to the birds and the murmur of little waterfalls tumbling over the rocks.  There are a few benches along the route if you want to sit for a spell.  Tucked away in the wilderness, this is also the location of one of
Disneyland
’s few designated
Smoking Areas
, but smokers are corralled, so to speak, well enough off the main trail that unless you are especially sensitive, the smoke won’t bother you as you stroll past.

Big Thunder Ranch
has two separate entrance gates.

The western gate, near the
Rivers of America
, leads to a rustic cabin known for awhile as
Little Patch of Heaven
, now known as
Miss Chris’ Cabin
, a replica of a typical settler’s cabin in the old West, and a small petting zoo, and
Big Thunder Ranch Jamboree
, a festival area with a stage that’s used for seasonal events.  In recent years,
Big Thunder Ranch Jamboree
has become a year-round fixture with crafts, games, character meet-and-greets, performances by
Billy Hill and the Hillbillies
, and treats like hot dogs and braised pork shanks vended from a cowboy-themed snack cart.  The
Jamboree
hosted
Woody’s All-American Roundup
in summer 2013, a nice alternative for families without the time or budget to dine at
Big Thunder Ranch Barbecue
, and it hosts
Halloween Carnivals
in the autumn.

Big Thunder Ranch
’s eastern gate, near
Fantasyland
, leads to a frontier show and dining area presently billed as
Big Thunder Ranch Barbecue
.  (See also the
Frontierland
“Grub” section).

The cabin
is well crafted and feels authentic, right down to its small details like kitchen utensils and books. 
Tomorrowland
once had
Monsanto
’s plastic
House of the Future
(1957 to 1967); this is a quintessential house of the past.  It’s worth taking a few moments to stroll through the cabin, particularly if you have children–it’s a quick and fun visual history lesson.  Don’t forget to look up to see the loft-style pioneer bedroom (but don’t try to climb up there; probably for safety reasons, it’s not open to the public).

Most kids will love the petting zoo, which, given that this is a
Disneyland
attraction, is surprisingly small in size, scope, and type of animal.  Somehow the small scale works, though.  It feels homey rather than meager; it’s as if the animals are part of the small ranch of a real frontier family.

There are
usually goats and
Clarabelle
cow, sometimes other creatures.  The animals are secured behind low, rough-hewn fences.  Children can pat the creatures, and chit-chat with them.  Hygiene-conscious parents will be glad to know that there are lots of open-air sinks and soap and hand-sanitizer dispensers so the kids can wash their hands immediately after patting the critters.

During the holiday season
, this area hosts
Santa’s Reindeer Roundup
, although the reindeer weren’t able to visit in winter 2012.  Guests of all ages enjoy meeting some of
Santa’s Reindeer
(live, not mechanical or
Audio-Animatronic
), and the area is decked out with jingle bell harnesses, red plaid ribbons, comical gift buckets for all Santa’s reindeer, from Dasher to Blitzen, and other frontier holiday décor.  Guests can sit in the sleigh parked just outside the western entrance gate–a great holiday photo opportunity!

The eastern gate leads to a large open area with a slew of plank tables and bench
es, a rustic stage, and rest rooms located to the north.  Sometimes when strolling along
Big Thunder Trail
you’ll hear music or laughter and catch glimpses of performers on the stage, from
Woody
or
Jesse
of
Pixar’s Toy Story
movies, to country and bluegrass musicians like
Miss Chris
and
Tex Tumbleweed
, backwoods magicians or hillbilly comedians.

This
is an area where you might find
Santa
and
Mrs. Claus
during the holiday season.  They’re usually assisted by holiday-garbed
Disney Characters
.  You and your small ones can meet the benevolent North Pole power couple and have your photo snapped with them.  Holiday crafts and desserts are usually on sale at a nearby cart.  Recently,
Santa
and the holiday crafts and foods were moved up to
Big Thunder Ranch Jamboree
.

In 2009, this area was named
Celebration Roundup and Barbecue at Big Thunder Ranch
, simplified in 2010 to
Big Thunder Ranch Barbecue
.  It’s an outdoor barbecue restaurant, offering meals and a show, frontier style.  For about 30 dollars per diner, Guests are given access to all-you-can eat barbecue meats, side dishes, and desserts.  It’s pricey, but delicious, and the bottomless portions mean everyone gets their money’s worth.  Dining outdoors while listening to backwoods comedy or authentic folk fiddling can be a recipe for one of those
magical
Disneyland
moments
.

For some
Guests the barbecue theme might seem new, but according to
Chris Strodder
’s
The Disneyland Encyclopedia
,
Big Thunder Ranch
served up barbecue at
Big Thunder Barbecue
from its opening in 1986 until 2001.  (For two years (1996 – 1998) the barbecue restaurant was themed to
Disney
’s animated feature
The Hunchback of Notre Dame
.)  So the years
without
the barbecue (from 2001 – 2008) were the anomalous ones.

Big Thunder Ranch
and its attractions typically open later and close earlier than park operating hours.  Sometimes they’re closed altogether.  For specific schedules or to confirm that the attractions are operating, check online or with a Cast Member before moseying over. 
Did You Know?
  Every year the President of the United States officially pardons Thanksgiving turkeys, sparing them from becoming someone’s Thanksgiving feast.  Until 2010, pardoned turkeys were flown first-class to California aboard “Turkey One” (a play on “Air Force One”, the name of the President’s plane) and given a police escort to the happiest place on earth.  Pardoned turkeys were warmly welcomed and served as Grand Marshals of the
Disneyland Thanksgiving Day Parade
down
Main Street.
Beginning in November 2010, turkeys pardoned by the President were sent to live with the wild turkeys on George Washington’s farm in Mount Vernon.  What happened to the pardoned turkeys already living at
Disneyland
?  They’ll spend their lives at the park; Guests can view “the happiest turkeys on earth” all year long at
Big Thunder Ranch
.
Did You Also Know?
  Behind
Big Thunder Ranch
and the
Rivers of America
is a five-acre ranch called the
Circle D
(think “D” for
Disney
).  That’s where
Disneyland
’s animals reside and where they’re cared for and trained.  The surprisingly expansive ranch (stables, sheds, tack rooms, corrals) was created in 1954 when
Disneyland Park
was under construction.
Walt
hired
Owen
and
Dolly Pope
to live on property to train the park’s horses; the
Popes
ended up living at
Circle D
until 1971!  The
Pope
House
still exists; it’s backstage, north of
Fantasyland
, south of the stables, and east of
Toontown
, not far from
Mickey’s House
.
Night Vision:
 
Big Thunder Ranch
is usually closed at night, but as you walk past it along
Big Thunder Trail
, you’ll find the tree outside the western entrance gate beautifully lit, particularly at Christmastime, when the branches are festooned with multi-colored lights. 
FastPass:
  No.  The attractions at
Big Thunder Ranch
are self-guided and generally have short lines to no lines.  An exception would be the line to meet
Santa
and
Mrs. Claus
; that queue can get long, but it’s worth the wait. 
Kid’s Eye View:
  It’s kind of boring.  If you’re six or seven, the petting zoo is cool.  The goats are kind of scary.

Fantasmic!

[
FastView:
 
A Guest favorite. 
Mickey
battles evil using nothing but his powerful imagination, and a dazzling show ensues.  Water, fire, princesses, a pirate ship battle, and (not-to-be-missed)
Maleficent
in dragon form.
]

First debuting in the summer of 1992,
Fantasmic!
is a multimedia experience that defies simple categorizations.  It’s a show–but what a show!  It’s an outstanding example of the
Disney
genius for melding story with technology to create moving and eye-popping experiences.  Held twice each night during the summer and holiday seasons, this extravaganza incorporates water and fire, animation and live character performances, pantomime, audio, music, and, since a substantial enhancement in 2009, a 40-foot tall mechanical version of
Maleficent
in her fire-breathing dragon form.

Fantasmic!
takes place at the southern end of
Tom Sawyer Island
. 
Mickey
, in character as the
Sorcerer’s Apprentice
from
Fantasia
, uses the power of his imagination to battle evil.  Cutting-edge multimedia projection allows the more than 15,000 Guests packed along the
New Orleans Square
riverfront to view and hear montages of iconic
Disney
film moments, and, in particular, iconic
Disney
villains as they battle
Mickey
’s powerful imagination.

The show lasts about 20 minutes, and by its conclusion, it seems that every major and minor
Disney
character has made an appearance, and
Mickey
has had a few costume changes.  The
Mark Twain Riverboat
and
Sailing Ship Columbia
are pressed into service, their decks overflowing with
Disney
superstars and bit players. 
Pan
and
Hook
feint and fence among the
Columbia
’s rigging in a battle with the flavor of
Pirates of the Caribbean
as well as the animated
Pan
films. 
Mickey
himself pilots the wheel of the great steamship
Mark Twain
. 
Maleficent
the dragon is terrifying, as tall as a four-story building, but never fear–
Mickey
is always triumphant!